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SPTC to hold auditions for “The Mousetrap”

December 16, 2005
Santa Paula News

The Santa Paula Theater Center will hold auditions for Agatha Christie’s master suspense mystery “The Mousetrap” on Wednesday, January 4, 2006 from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Santa Paula Theater Center.

The Santa Paula Theater Center will hold auditions for Agatha Christie’s master suspense mystery “The Mousetrap” on Wednesday, January 4, 2006 from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Santa Paula Theater Center. “The Mousetrap” is under the direction of Fred Helsel, with Leslie Nichols producing.The 1952 whodunit murder mystery offers plenty of plot twists and turns in true Christie style. A woman is murdered in London, and someone at Monkswell Manor may have done it. Monkswell Manor is a just-opened guesthouse located in the countryside outside London.The police call proprietors Mollie and Giles Ralston, informing them that a detective will be arriving shortly and everyone must fully cooperate. An unexpectedly strong snowstorm strands the guests as the police arrive. After the detective arrives and explains his suspicions that the next murder could be at Monkswell Manor, the phones go dead. This sets off a series of events, with each of the guests suspecting the others until the mystery is solved.Roles available include Mollie and Giles Ralston, a young couple in their 20s or 30s, who are the proprietors of Monkswell Manor; Christopher Wren, a funny looking oddball of a young man in his 20s; Mrs. Boyle, a demanding and strict matron-like figure; Major Metcalf, a retired soldier; Miss Casewell, a mannish looking young woman; Mr. Paravicini, a foreigner stranded in the snow, very Hercule Poirot-like; and Sergeant Trotter, a policeman arriving on skis. All roles are open and on a volunteer basis. There is no pay.
No appointments are necessary; actors will be seen in the order that they sign in. Readings will be taken from the script. Auditions will be held at the Santa Paula Theater Center, 125 S. 7th Street. For questions, please contact director Fred Helsel at (805) 551-9911.Performance dates for “The Mousetrap” are Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees from February 17 through April 2, 2006 at the Santa Paula Theater Center. Performance times are at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings, and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoons. “The Mousetrap” will kick off Season 2006, being the first of five plays set for the upcoming year at SPTC.