The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940, an Agatha-Christie-meets-Clue parody, is full of twists, turns, red herrings and slapstick for audiences of all ages! John Bishop’s 1987 comedy is a send-up of all the cliches and stereotypes from both musical theater and murder mysteries thrown together and shaken up for laughs.
The creative team responsible for a recent Broadway flop assemble for a backer's audition of their new show at the Westchester estate of a wealthy and eccentric theatre financier. However, the shadow of the team’s last show hangs over the group-- Manhattan Holiday was ravaged by the “Stage Door Slasher,” a mysterious killer who stabbed chorus girls. As the composer, lyricist, actors and director prepare their performance, and a blizzard cuts off any possible retreat, bodies start to drop in plain sight. It doesn't take long for everyone to figure out that one of them is The Stage Door Slasher and accusing fingers point in all directions. The bumbling police inspector, who snowshoes in to investigate, is hoping to flush out the killer from this group of suspects--but the killer has other plans. More than that, the threat of Nazi saboteurs lurks among them! Will the Slasher be unmasked? Maybe, but not before the audience has been treated to a rollicking good time full of the author’s biting, satiric and irreverent wit.
The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940.
February 9,10,16,17,23,24 at 8pm
February 18 at 2pm
CDC Theatre - 78 Winans Ave., Cranford, NJ
Tickets at cdctheatre.org
