Izik Gutkin
Correspondent
The room was abuzz as “The Festival (Not) to Die For” commenced in the Brower Student Center at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec.3. The show generated a lot of hype and the extremely large turnout surprised many.
The show was also presented the previous evening on Dec. 2.
The event began at with an Italian dinner provided by Mamma Flora’s Trattoria. While people were eating, actors from the play walked around the floor in their character’s persona, creating a sense that these characters were real and not merely actors.
Jonathon Maclin, sophomore communications studies major, who played Sherriff Drassel in the play, enjoyed the ability to act in this interesting manner. Maclin stated “I’m expecting a big turnout … looking forward to everyone enjoying the food, sites and the fun. Just about everybody here has a natural ability to get into character … I credit the directors for getting the cast so well.”
The turnout of people in attendance allowed for an even more interesting night. The turnout even surprised the writer and director of the play, junior biology major Dan Loverro.
“It’s a lot of fun. A lot of people don’t realize exactly what they’re getting into. You know (it’s) a dinner and a show, okay, but it’s very interactive,” he said.
After the attendees had their fill of food and interaction with the actors, the show began.
The play takes place in the town of “Dead Man’s Crossing,” which has a peculiar problem; there is an extremely high number of deaths in the town, for a variety of reasons. The town is on the verge of celebrating nearly 30 days of no dying, when the mayor is murdered by some unknown individual.
Prompted by a newcomer in the town named Roger, the sheriff and the townspeople hold an investigation in order to solve the mystery of who ruined their death-free festival.
Pinpointing exactly who the culprit was proved to be difficult, as all of the characters had some reason to kill the mayor. When intermission came and dessert was being served, the audience was on edge, wondering who committed the crime.
Caitlin Gold, a freshman art and education major, believed that she knew who it was. “I think it’s Mindy because she thought it would get her closer to Tom," she said. "But I really can’t put my finger on it, the anticipation is killing me.”
The play proved to be a success with spectators of all ages in attendance. The overall uncertainty of who the mayor’s murderer was generated a lot of debate. The crowd shared some good laughs and some startled gasps upon knowing the killer’s identity.
