Published on August 7, 2024 | Written by Carol Ann Benanti
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Sundog Theatre will present “Clue: The Musical,” a production based on the second most popular board game in the world — after Monopoly.
Suspects come to life and — from clues given during the show — allow the audience to choose and guess the solution to the mystery of who killed Mr. Boddy, in what room, and with what weapon.
“Sundog aims to entertain and make people laugh in times that need comedy,” explains Susan Fenley, Sundog’s executive director. “Our director Nikki Lauren perfectly cast actors who embody the playfulness and wit that bring great comic timing. We think audiences will really enjoy this, especially given that they create the ending of the show.”
Actors, many from Staten Island, include John Griffin, Niko Lento, Francesca Loftus, Ariel Marcus-Hollenbeck, James McKeon, Joseph O’Malley, Michelle Pagano, and George Anthony Papas.
The producer is Susan Fenley, director Nikki Lauren, musical director Michael Ancona, set designer Craig Stoebling, choreographer Kimberly Cantoni DiRoma, artist Gianna Ferrara, costumer Mark Muscaro, lighting designer Pamela Pangaro, and assistant to the director, Abby McNulty.
The show was mounted for the first time in 1995 at the Boston Street Theatre in Baltimore. It played to capacity houses and has been doing so ever since.
The game was created in 1944 in England by Anthony Pratt, a clerk’s solicitor, to satisfy armchair detectives in a country where mysteries have always been a favorite pastime. Fast forward to the present where three million Clue board games are sold every year in the United States alone. “Clue: The Musical” marks the first time that a board game has ever been brought to life on stage.
With the choice of person, room, and weapon, there are 216 potential endings decided by the audience.
Performance dates are June 21, 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. at Wagner College’s Stage One, 636 Howard Ave. on Grymes Hill.
Tickets are priced at $25 general admission and $20 for students with ID and seniors.
ABOUT SUNDOG THEATRE
en Island-based performing arts organization, formed in 2002, that provides contemporary and original theater for adults and children, educational touring shows to the Tri-State area, acting classes for young people, and programs that bring teaching artists into schools to support curricula through the arts that help make learning come alive.
