MPCHS presents Clue, this weekend

MT. PLEASANT — This weekend, Mt. Pleasant High School teacher Marlene DePriest proudly presents the hard work of her students in the last play she will direct for the district.

“This is probably one of those things that will hit me once it is all over and done with,” DePriest commented. “Every show has had its wonderful moments, and this is no exception.”

“I couldn’t be happier doing these plays and musical with these students,” she said. “They’re just amazing people. I have nothing to feel bad about and just enjoy the memories of what we’ve done.”

Mt. Pleasant High School will perform [ITALICS] Clue by Sandy Rustin, Hunter Foster, and Eric Price with original music by Michael Holland.

Show times include April 14 and 15 at 7 p.m. and Sunday April 16 at 2 p.m. at the Heatilator Performing Arts Center.

According to DePriest this play is not like any other production she has directed.

Despite the play advertisement including a mention of original music, DePriest clarified that this production is indeed a play and not a musical.

“This is a play, but there is music that goes along with it,” she said.

“So, there's underscored music, there are sound effects,” DePriest explained. “It just adds to the whole atmosphere of what the actual show is.”

“Plays that I've done in the past, we might add some sound effects that we find and just different things like this, But this literally, they have written the music that they feel goes along with the way they have written the screenplay for this,” she said. “It does it adds a lot.

“I think everybody needs to come see Clue,” DePriest said. “It is just a lot of fun. It is family friendly, and I hope everybody just leaves with a big smile on their face because it was enjoyable in every way.”

“I mean, it's a stormy night, so we have the lightning and the thunder, and then there's the music that you would hear of Clue,” DePriest described. “Then when they move from room to room, there's music lots of times that goes with them, and it just fits.”

The room changes also create something different for this production.

“It has been very challenging, but the biggest, because with our stage, we don't have a very big stage and we have almost no wing space on the sides to put things,” DePriest said. “So coming up with a show that we could do all the different rooms was very challenging.”

DePriest attributes much of the successful set to the efforts of longtime volunteers Dawn and Kevin Wiley.

“The set is something to behold,” DePriest said. “You want to come and see because we have a rotating set on both sides that come in, and we can do different rooms there we've built out in front of the stage on the sides where there's the stairs are, so we can have extra rooms there.”

With so many rooms, doors, and the expanded acting space, blocking for the 15-person cast took extra care.

“It's been hard because we have so many doors that we have to figure out how that works and get them in and out of different doors and be able to see everything,” DePriest said.

Along with blocking, DePriest expressed gratitude for Gayle Olson’s volunteer efforts in costuming.

“you've got to have specific styles for each of the different characters. And not just specific styles, but they have to fit that character,” she explained. “Mr. Green's got to be in Green. And Mrs. Peacock's got to be in Peacock. So Gail Olsen, who again, who has helped me out every time, has done an amazing job with that as well.”

All these unique and detailed parts come together to create a funny, dramatic, and

“There is definitely a murder that takes place, at least one,” DePriest said.

Based on the Hasbro board game, the play even contains reference to the Park Brothers who manufactured the game.

“You've got the mansion where it has all the different rooms of the billiard room and the library and the conservatory and the dining room and the grand hall, and it's all there,” she said. “They literally go from room to room to figure out what's going on. They even have Miss Scarlett with the candlestick and Mr. Green with the lead pipe and all those kinds of things.”

“It’s a lot of life-or-death moments, because there is the murders that take place.” DePriest said. “But it's got a lot of comedy.”

According to DePriest the play contains many moments of physical comedy, as well, and despite the dark nature of murder, she says families with children of all ages will also enjoy the production.

Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com