Oxford High School Theatre ends season with ‘Clue: The Musical’

Published 10:48 am Thursday, April 13, 2017

Was it Mr. Green with the candlestick in the library? Or perhaps Colonel Mustard with the wrench in the kitchen? Whodunnit? That’s the central question in Oxford High School’s production of “Clue: The Musical,” based on the classic board game. After the murder of Mr. Boddy, the master of the manor where the action is set, the audience must figure out who committed the crime.

The director of the show, and the head of the OHS theater department, John Davenport, says that the show will potentially have a different ending every night.

“Three audience members choose, at random, the suspect, weapon and room from a deck of cards which get place in the famous confidential file,” Davenport explained. “Only the host for the evening, Mr. Boddy, sees the answer. It is then up to that character to make sure all of the correct clues are given throughout the performance to help the audience deduce the correct answer.”

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Davenport says that not even the rest of the cast will know who the criminal is for that particular night. Audience members will be given scorecards to keep track of the action unfolding, as if they were playing the traditional game.

The director also staged “Clue” 11 years ago and thought that reviving it for the OHS stage would be “a novel and fun way to end our season.”

Fundraisers planned

Next season, will mark Davenport’s 100th production with the department and the theater program is looking to celebrate his work with a couple of fundraisers. The fundraisers will serve to help send OHS students to the renowned Edinburgh Fringe Festival, a theater festival in Scotland. While there, OHS will be performing “Romeo and Juliet.”

The department is hosting a golf tournament on May 19 for which they are currently accepting teams and players. In addition, they will be having their “Good Company” dinner on June 14 which precedes the OHS Theatre alumni’s performance of Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” on June 16 and 17. The dinner is being hosted by the Nest B&B and will be catered by St. Leo. Those interested in signing up for either event can visit https://squareup.com/store/ohs-theatre.

“Clue: The Musical” will be running tonight through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the Kayla Mize Auditorium at Oxford Middle School. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets can be purchased in advance at www.oxfordsd.org/theatre.