Fifteen years ago, Ellie King brought the comedic mystery It Was a Dark and Stormy Night to the stage at the Burr Theatre.
Today, the Burr is no more – but King is bringing the play back to the stage with her Royal Canadian Theatre Company.
The decade-old company, with King at the helm as artistic director, is staging Tim Kelly’s play at three locations: the Surrey Arts Centre, the Metro Theatre in Vancouver and the ACT Arts Centre in Maple Ridge.
In her cast are two New Westminster residents, Kay Lozada and Julian Legere, with Royal City locals also serving as costume designer (Stella Gardner, with B.J. Windrum) and lighting designer (Nigel Brooke).
It Was a Dark and Stormy Night, which spoofs old Hollywood movies, is set in Ye Olde Wayside Inn, Massachusetts – home of the eccentric Saltmarshes, Hepzibah (Steve Weller), Arabella (Jacqueline Becher) and Cousin Ebenezer (Michael Charrois), with their strange servant girl Olive (Jennifer Lane) and decrepit Uncle Silas.
Throw in the ghost of a soldier and some strangers – including a couple of college students played by Lozada and Legere - forced to seek refuge at the inn during a storm, and the mayhem begins.
It Was a Dark and Stormy Night takes to the stage at the Surrey Arts Centre Oct. 7 and 8, the Metro Theatre Oct. 20 through 22, and the ACT Arts Centre Oct. 28 and 29 – just in time for Halloween.
Ticket prices vary by location, starting at $25 for adults and $18 for seniors and children, with discounts for family packs and groups of 10 or more. Check out www.rctheatreco.com for more information and links to ticket sales.
