playbill vip

Summary

The Mystery of Edwin Drood is a hilarious, interactive whodunit mystery musical that allows the audience to enter the action and become the ultimate detectives. The show is based on Charles Dickens’ unfinished novel of the same name. Dickens passed away before he was able to reveal the culprit. Rupert Holmes’ award-winning musical solves this predicament by asking the audience to choose which character is the killer by putting it to a vote. Staged in metatheatrical manner by the Music Hall Royale, a traveling Victorian theatre troupe full of just as many colorful characters as the roles they play, this charming and inventive musical is sure to intrigue and entertain any musical or mystery lover.

Time

England 1880’s

Director’s Note

After two years or so of Live Theatre being out of commission I believed it was important that the material that was chosen for any high school theatre production had to be both educational and entertaining. In trying to choose the right kind of material to achieve this goal it made sense to choose something that was ensemble based. The Mystery of Edwin Drood is a wonderful choice to achieve that goal.

I try to approach every project from a few theories I believe creates a meaningful creative process; Play creates Community, Discovery Happens in Moments of Not knowing and Surprise Yourself Everyday. These theories are the cornerstone of an exciting and rich theatrical experience. The confidence that is gained through this process is a one that has a lasting effect on young artist. It’s one thing to gain confidence through others praise, but a healthy foundation of confidence that comes from a young artists dedication to process can last a lifetime. These are the goals of the new Northstar Playmakers.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood has given all of us an opportunity to explore this process and we can’t wait to share it with you.

Mat Young

Director

Special Thanks from the Director

Rob Kennedy

Jac-que Robinson

Robert Ayala

Nicole Boruchin

Nancy Laist

Susan Leferman

Lorraine Masone

Nancy Meyer

Tommy DeSalvo

Stephen Emerick

Paul Meyer

Costume pieces provided by 

LaurelJuniperStudio, Stina Dougherty