Oh, what a tangled web we weave when murder takes center stage

Murder is on stage when Main Street Productions (MSP) stages Spider’s Web April 3 to 13 at Basile Westfield Playhouse, 220 N. Union St.

Clarissa, the wife of a diplomat, is adept at spinning tales of adventure, but when a murder takes place in her drawing room, she finds live drama much harder to cope with. Desperate to dispose of the body before her husband arrives with an important politician, she enlists the help of her guests. Hilarity ensues when they are interrupted by the arrival of wry detective Inspector Lord.

“Clarissa, the young woman who is the lead, loves to make up stories,” MSP Director Jan Jamison told The Reporter. “She makes up a lot of things, and so when she tells the truth, no one seems to believe her. She sees this dead body and says, ‘Now what am I going to do?’”

With a little help from her friend and mentor, Clarissa tries to hide the body.

Matt McKee as Oliver Costello. (Photo provided by Erin Keller)

“And then ‘ding dong, uh oh, who’s that?’ It is the police who say someone called from here and said there had been a murder,” Jamison said. “So now we’re having to interrogate everyone, including the housekeeper, who is a bit strange, played by Thom Johnson – he’s kind of a Peter Lorre character. And the gardener, who is kind of kooky. She’s part of the comic relief. My whole cast is just amazing.”

Jamison directed this play once before, but she’s making some changes this time.

“I’m a real Agatha Christie fan, and I have realized since then that she does have a lot of comedy interspersed with everything, with the mysteries and the murders and, you know, the whodunit kind of thing,” Jamison said. “So we’re bringing out some of the comedy, too, because it makes for a better show.”

(From left) Syd Loomis as Sir Roland Delahaye, Jeff Haber as Jeremy Warrender, and Jim Simmons as Hugo Birch. (Photo provided by Erin Keller)

Jamison said she does not often do the same play twice, but she noted that she loves this play and she is looking forward to her first time directing in the new playhouse.

“That space is amazing,” Jamison said. “The stage is huge. Every year we keep laughing about the linear footage we have on this set. When you see the set, it’s huge. We’re filling every inch of it. J.B. Scoble, he should get credit for that because he almost single-handedly built it.”

Thom Johnson (left) as Elgin and Molly Kraus as Miss Peake. (Photo provided by Erin Keller)

While the success of a play ultimately is the director’s responsibility, Jamison said she has a lot of talented people helping her on this one.

“My whole staff actually has been amazing,” Jamison said. “Suzanne Bush is phenomenal. Tanya Keller, my stage manager, is really, really, really, really, really good. So are my prop folks. So are both my producers, Bill and Karen. I don’t use an assistant director, but I have an assistant to the director, which means you do all the grunt work. That is Lisa Williams, and she has really been a huge help.”

Erin Chandler (left) as Constable Jones and Dr. Laurence Adams as Inspector Lord. (Photo provided by Erin Keller)

You can find out whodunnit April 3 to 13 at Basile Westfield Playhouse, 220 N. Union St. Go to basilewestfieldplayhouse.org/showstickets or call (317) 402-3341 for tickets, and don’t forget to plan ahead for road construction woes.