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Theater League of Clifton to present "Girls Night Out" Murder Mystery/Comedy at Mario's Restaurant

Published by New Jersey Stage

originally published: 01/14/2025

(CLIFTON, NJ) -- The Theater League of Clifton will present its next dinner/theater production, "Girls Night Out," an 'interactive' murder/mystery comedy. Performances will be held at Mario's Restaurant (710 Van Houten Avenue) in Clifton across three weekends from February 15 to March 2, 2025.

The plot of the show involves four women on their way to an evening at the theater. They stop for dinner at an Italian restaurant, owned by the ex-husband of one of them. Sometime between the salad and entre, the ex-husband ends up dead. It turns out that each of the women has a reason to wish him dead. The identity of the murderer will be revealed only by unwinding the plot.

The cast includes Carl Bergmanson, who plays restaurateur Everett McAlister; Maria Russell, who plays Brigitte Valentine (Everett’s love interest); Melinda DelPizzo, who plays Lucretia La Monica (a police detective); Janice-Lynn, who plays Gwen McAlister (Everett’s ex-wife); and Rebecca Mazumdar who plays Victoria Vanderbilt-Carnegie (Gwen’s stepsister).

“Girls Night Out” cast members include (seated, l to r) Janice-Lynn, Rebecca Mazumdar, (standing, l to r) Melinda DelPizzo, director Linda Wielkotz, Carl Bergmanson, and Maria Russell.

Performances take place February 15-16, 21-23, 28 and March 1-2, 2025. Performances on Friday and Saturday start at 8:00pm. Sunday matinees begin at 4:00pm. Tickets are priced at $65 per person and include a buffet dinner, bread, coffee, tea, soda and dessert. Tickets are available for purchase online, by calling 973-928-7668, or regular mail—payment by check only. The Theater League’s mailing address is: PO Box 4072, Clifton, NJ 07012. The restaurant can accommodate dietary restrictions by request in advance of reservation dates. A cash bar will be available for patrons.




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Linda Wielkotz will direct the show, written by D’Ann and Rick Artis, while JoAnne MacBeth is the stage manager. Mark Peterson, president of the Theater League, will serve as the producer. The show is being presented through an arrangement with Play-Dead Murder Mysteries.

Wielkotz has directed several dinner/theater productions for the Theater League of Clifton in recent years, including: “Last Chance for Romance;” “Murder at the Tropicana;” “Dealt a Deadly Hand;” “I’m Getting Murdered in The Morning;” “B.I.N.G.O. Spells Murder;” and “Pirates of the Salty Dog.”

Founded in 2005, the Theater League of Clifton is a non-profit community organization dedicated to fostering an appreciation of the arts through theatrical performances, while providing quality entertainment for all ages. The Theater League of Clifton welcomes volunteers in all aspects of performance and production.




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