Fall Into the "Deathtrap" with The Rep This Month

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

The Resident Ensemble Players (REP) fully deliver in the form of Ira Levin’s 1978 Edgar Award-winning play Deathtrap – a dark thriller with a perfect blend of schemes, plot-twists, and black humor.

Ira Levin's Deathtrap playing now at The REP.
Photo courtesy of The REP.

Formerly successful playwright Sidney Bruhl (Lee E. Ernst) has had a recent string of theatrical failures; is dealing with writer’s block; and is getting short on cash. A potential change in fortune arrives in the form of a brilliant script sent by former student Clifford Anderson (Mic Matarrese). Clifford’s thriller – also titled Deathtrap – has all the makings of a Broadway hit. Sidney tells his wife, Myra (Elizabeth Heflin), that the student’s play could put him back on top if he steals it and passes it off as his own. But for that to work, Clifford would have to be out of the picture. Permanently. Myra sees the wheels in Sidney’s head turning and hopes the unthinkable hasn’t really been considered. Sindey assures Myra he is only kidding and would never truly entertain such an atrocity just to steal a script. But the play is called Deathtrap…

“I’m interested in the thievery,” says Interim Producing Artistic Director Steve Tague. “It is an old premise, but we don’t seem to get tired of it. What are we willing to do for success, or money, or fame, or admiration?”

Director Michael Gotch keeps the pacing tight and uses the wonderful set by Stephanie Hansen in ominous and oddly comforting ways. When Sidney isn’t scheming, he’s enjoying his brandy by the fire and fawning over his collectibles – various weaponry. But when his doddering evil takes hold of him, Sidney’s surroundings become his killing fields. Credit to Ernst for appearing tough to decipher when he’s being nice and when he’s sizing up his prey.

Matarese is solid playing a character who may just be too smart for his own good. His Clifford initially seems overwhelmed, but grows bolder and more driven in purpose as Act II develops.  The cast also includes REP company members Stephen Pelinski (attorney Porter Milgrim) and Kathleen Pirkl Tague (psychic Helga ten Dorp). The portrayal of ten Dorp is somewhat over-the-top, but provides humorous portents of things to come and unknown things that were. Plus, her hair – and that of Matarese – are glorious. Kudos to Denise O’Brien for her wig design.

The show is a pleasure to experience and holds up well after almost 50 years. Celebrated author Chuck Palahniuk praised Deathtrap thusly: “Everything looks so gorgeous and simple and approachable, but on the other hand, it’s so incredibly complicated and beautifully assembled.” I concur.

With over 1800 performances, Deathtrap is known as one of Broadway’s greatest successes. It was even adapted into a film starring Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve. Interim Producing Artistic Director Tague concludes: “The consequences of deception are the deliciousness of this play. It’s a wicked, outrageous romp that won’t disappoint.” 

Warning: This production includes strobe lights, gunshots, violence, and profanity. Many audience members gasped and visibly reacted to some of the surprises the plot revealed. 

Performances of Deathtrap run April 11-28 with Opening Night being April 13. Informal talkbacks with the cast take place following the evening performances on Thursday April 13 and Friday April 26. Two “prologues” occur on Saturday April 20 and Sunday April 28. Tickets prices range from $30-39 with discounts available for students, seniors, plus University of Delaware faculty and staff. Tickets can be purchased online at www.rep.udel.edu; by contacting the REP box office at (302)831-2204; or visiting in person at 110 Orchard Road Tuesdays through Fridays from 12 to 5 PM. The show runs approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes with one 15-minute intermission between acts.

The Thompson Theatre at the Roselle Center for the Arts is located on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus and is ADA-compliant. It is equipped with a hearing loop system, which works with hearing aid t-coils, cochlear implants, and in-house hearing devices. Wheelchair and other seating requests can be made prior to the performance by calling (302)831-2204 or emailing cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu.

The preface to the published script describes it as "...something so evil that it infects all who touch it...” but I would say it entertains all who witness it. Call it a Murder Game…

REP Delivers Multilayered Story with Stark Examination of Race in Play "Pass Over"

By Mike Logothetis

Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

Justin William Davis (Moses) and Jeffrey Rashad (Kitch) in
The REP's performance of Pass Over by Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu.

Photo by Evan Krape.

The Resident Ensemble Players (REP) deliver
a stark examination of race with the play, Pass Over, by award-winning American playwright Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu. Pass Over is a loose amalgamation of the classic Waiting for Godot (Samuel Beckett) and the Book of Exodus told in a modern urban setting. 

The play spotlights two young black men who pass each day on a city street corner talking trash, killing time, and dreaming of the “Promised Land.” Then, a (white) stranger wanders into their space and disrupts whatever plans they may have…or wish for.

“It’s a spiritual and existential story,” says Hassan El-Amin, REP company member and director of Pass Over. “It’s a story of love, joy, hope, despair, longing, friendship, family, social conditioning. Pass Over is multilayered.”

Nwandu began writing Pass Over after the 2012 killing of 17-year-old Floridian Trayvon Martin and the outcome of the ensuing George Zimmerman murder trial. Nwandu channeled her feelings of anger, sadness, and frustration into this compelling, unfiltered play.

Word of caution: This is a mature show with adult language and scenes of violence, including gun shots. While the bawdy talk sometimes feels gratuitous, there is contextual relevance in the vernacular Moses (Justin William Davis) and Kitch (Jeffrey Rashad) use to describe their seemingly never-ending situation.

Moses and Kitch appear to exist in a state of purgatory, where their days are fruitless and tedious due to their lack of initiative and impulse. Police choppers fly over their corner of Martin Luther King and Freedom Drives while the two pals make top ten lists of what their dream lives would entail.

But an odd white man (Mic Matarrese) in a suit and boater hat interrupts their usual discussions. Mister (or “Master”) disrupts whatever semblance of constancy the two black men had in their patch of the city. Challenges of norms by Mister and verbal provocations by both sides take the action to heightened levels. Matarrese (as Mister) is excellent at pushing Moses’ buttons while Kitch somehow sees positives in what the visitor represents, even though there are cultural chasms and significant distrust between them.

Visiting actors Davis and Rashad do a beautiful job of switching from wistful to defensive to brotherly to defiant. The roles must be fully embraced to spew the sorts of emotions Moses and Kitch feel throughout the show. REP company member Matarrese plays his roles of Mister and Ossifer — a policeman — with a certain menacing poise. He must walk a thin line between the huckleberry lost stranger Mister and the no-nonsense Ossifer.

To reveal dialog and plot direction in this review would be a disservice to the writing and performance of the company. During this play, both the journey and destination are worth deep evaluation. The ending was affecting and sudden. Many remained in their seats absorbing what had just happened.

Nwandu has embraced revising Pass Over’s ending to continue to engage with the current events and audience. “Each time I go back with this play, I ask, ‘What’s happening in the world? Who’s actually going to be in those seats?’”

Acknowledging that having multiple Pass Over scripts offers multiple interpretations, Nwandu encourages theaters to use the version that fits the needs of the specific community. “I now have three versions of this play from this era of American history,” says Nwandu. “If your community needs the angry version, then do that. Present whichever version you need.”

“To be able to put this play on stage in 2024 when it was born in 2012, shows you the power of the story,” says director Hassan El-Amin. “But it also shows you how far we have to go to overcome whatever this sickness is, this disease, we have when it comes to the value of life for African Americans in the United States.”

Pass Over is an emotionally charged and powerfully impactful story that brilliantly blends modern poetry, Biblical verse, and funny modern refrains. Kudos to the creative team at the REP: El-Amin (Director); Stefanie Hansen (Scenic Designer); Jo Fulmer (Costume Designer); Eileen Smitheimer (Lighting Designer); and Ryan P. McGinty (Sound Designer).

Performances of Pass Over run from February 8 through 18 with Opening Night being February 9. Informal talkbacks with the cast take place following the evening performances on Saturday February 10 and Thursday February 15. Tickets prices are only $20 with discounts available for students. Tickets can be purchased online at www.rep.udel.edu; by contacting the REP box office at (302)831-2204; or visiting in person at 110 Orchard Road Tuesdays through Fridays from 12 to 5 PM. The show runs approximately 85 minutes.

The Thompson Theatre at the Roselle Center for the Arts is located on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus and is ADA-compliant. It is equipped with a hearing loop system, which works with hearing aid t-coils, cochlear implants, and in-house hearing devices. Wheelchair and other seating requests can be made prior to the performance by calling 302.831.2204 or emailing cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu.

“You are men and you are free to go.” – Kitch

The REP Heats Up the Stage with New Production

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

The Resident Ensemble Players (REP) deliver suspense, intrigue, and stage magic with John Ball’s In the Heat of the Night. Adapted by Matt Pelfrey from the book that inspired the 1967 Oscar-winning film, In the Heat of the Night is compelling theater with themes that often touch on modern ones.

Detective Tibbs and Officer Sam Wood driving to the scene
of the crime. Photo courtesy of The REP.

Set in the early 1960s, the piece tells the story of a white man is discovered dead in tiny Argo, Alabama. Local police arrest the only stranger in town — a black man named Virgil Tibbs (Hassan El-Amin). Little do they know that their suspect is an expert homicide detective from California. Left with no witnesses, no motives, and no clues, Detective Tibbs becomes this racially tense community’s only hope of solving the brutal murder.

El-Amin is excellent in portraying Tibbs as thoughtful and strong in a setting where the color of his skin can (and does) lead to dehumanizing actions by those around him. Tibbs is always trying to be the bigger man, upholding the honor of his person and race despite overt attacks against both. (Be prepared for onstage violence and strong language which includes racist, antisemitic, and homophobic slurs.)

Chief Gillespie (Lee E. Ernst) is a key antagonist to Tibbs. He dislikes both the situation and the race of the man who’s been tasked to help him solve the murder. But with each passing day, a modicum of respect creeps into the Chief’s interactions with Tibbs. Ernst does well as an often-flustered man who should control more than he does but is always being told otherwise. Ultimately, even after Tibbs “starting to grow” on him, Gillespie can’t bring himself to shake the man’s hand whose respect he’s earned.

While this story hits all the checkboxes for an entertaining detective story, it’s also an undeniable social commentary. Director Cameron Knight said, “We are at a moment in our country, with our art, politics, and even our interactions, where we operate in extremes: extreme rage, patriotism, protesting, etc.”

“For many, it makes any conversation of our history; our journey to this moment and how we deal with each other a delicate subject and often avoided. I believe we must be able to go towards difficult, uncomfortable conversations and at times, actions, in order to grow positively. We are fractured as a society and if we don’t begin to confront our past and the needs of our future, we are on a path towards despair.”

“This play offers a glimpse into the many levels of corruption that exist within our culture and institutions, shows the harsh and firm mindsets that are at odds, and invites us to examine who we want to be. Do we want to grow, or do we merely want to win?”

Hats off to the creative team for making the production a multimedia feast for the senses with articulating stage parts, 3-D dynamic curtains, and graphic video enhancements. Britton Mauk (Scenic Designer), Dawn Chiang (Lighting Designer), and Patrick W. Lord (Projection Designer) took the collective vision of Director Knight plus Interim Producing Artistic Director Steve Tague and did an amazing job.

Standout performers include Michael Gotch as conflicted policeman Sam Wood and Stephen Pelinski as both defiant Harvey Oberst and eerily protective Mr. Purdy. If this were a classic melodrama, we’d all boo and hiss at Mic Matarrese for his strong work as Pete — a cop and Klansman whose segregationist beliefs are pungently strong.

Performances of In the Heat of the Night run through November 19 in the Thompson Theatre at the Roselle Center for the Arts on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus. Tickets prices are $30-39 with discounts available for students, seniors, and University of Delaware faculty and staff. 

Tickets can be purchased online at rep.udel.edu; by contacting the REP box office at 302.831.2204; or visiting in person at 110 Orchard Road Tuesdays through Fridays from 12:00 to 5:00pm. The show runs approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes with one 15-minute intermission.

The Thompson Theatre in the Roselle Center for the Arts is ADA-compliant and is equipped with a hearing loop system, which works with hearing aid t-coils, cochlear implants, and in-house hearing devices. Wheelchair and other seating requests can be made prior to the performance by calling the number above or emailing cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu.

A Taste of "Arsenic and Old Lace" at The REP

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

Arsenic and Old Lace playing now through November 20.
Photo courtesy of The REP.

The University of Delaware’s Resident Ensemble Players (REP) kicks off its 2022-23 season with the great American farcical black comedy, Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring.

This enduring play, originally staged on Broadway in 1941, continues to astound audiences with its ingenious and brilliant construction. The current production at the REP carries on the grand tradition of the show and entertains from opening curtain to curtain call.

“Some of you may have heard the pandemic radio version of the play and now you can see the real thing. It’s about two older women that relieve older gentleman of their loneliness by killing them with arsenic. You can think of it as a euthanasia comedy.”

— Steve Tague, the REP's new Interim Producing Artistic Director.

The show revolves around the odd members of the Brewster family in their stately Brooklyn home. Mortimer Brewster (Mic Matarrese) is living a happy life in the large old mansion. He has a good job as a drama critic at a prominent New York newspaper and he’s just become engaged to his neighbor Elaine Harper (Erin Partin). His spinster aunts Abby (Kathleen Pirkl Tague) and Martha (Elizabeth Heflin) dote on him and are adored by the community. They even look after and protect Mortimer’s quirky brother Teddy (Lee E. Ernst) who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt.

Mortimer’s world is turned upside down when he discovers that his dear aunts have been quietly poisoning lonely old men and burying them in the basement for years. Aside from this new revelation, long lost maniacal brother Jonathan (Stephen Pelinski) returns on the night that the aunts are planning to bury their newest victim. His somewhat unwilling partner Dr. Einstein (Michael Gotch) adds ghoulish layers to Jonathan’s mysterious past. Mortimer must rally to help his aunts, foil his brother’s nefarious plans, and protect his fiancé – all while trying to maintain his own sanity. Even the local cops (Rob Hancock and John Plumpis) become part of the action, both good and bad; albeit unwittingly. Put it this way, the plot is always swirling… As Abby Brewster says, “How delicious!”

The beautiful set design and construction is the first thing that catches the eye upon entering the theater. It is a wonder of planning and carpentry that includes fine wooden details, wallpaper, portraits, animal heads, and doors…so many doors. Kudos to Stefanie Hansen and her crew.

The actors all shine, but the menace is real when Pelinski’s Jonathan looms on stage. Matarrese does a great job of looking peaceful one minute and utterly distressed the next. His physical and mental exhaustion from the escapades he faces puts the audience on his side. 

The show is funny throughout, but the comedic highlights mostly happen in the second act with many quick and clever jokes. Aunts Abby and Martha (Heflin and Tague) always aim to please and drop some great deadpan one-liners while doing so. The old women just want what’s best for everyone they meet, even believing that serving their killer elderberry wine is a neighborly service. It is, but solely for our entertainment!

My suggestion is to plan an evening out in Newark to enjoy some great theater, but watch out for the apparent kindness of elderly female strangers.

Arsenic and Old Lace will run through November 20 at Thompson Theatre inside the Roselle Center for the Arts (CFA) on the campus of the University of Delaware. Evening shows start at 7:30 and curtain is at 2 for matinees. The performance runs approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes, with two 10-minute intermissions. 

Tickets ($35-39) can be purchased at the theatre box office or online. Please call the box office at (302) 831-2204 or e-mail cfa-boxoffice@udel.edu for information. 

For more information, visit www.rep.udel.edu.