Chicago Street Theatre continues its 61st season with a Family Presentation that takes audiences back to the 1950's and the exciting world of Nancy Drew: Girl Detective running March 4 through March 13.The play, directed by Kari-Anne Innes, is based on the bestselling book series by Carolyn Keene and adapted by Marisha Chamberlain. Fans of the teenage super sleuth will find that this faithful stage version brilliantly captures the spirit and fun of Keene's 39th book in the series - The Clue of the Dancing Puppet which was originally published in 1962.
The Story: When the eerie performances of a life-size puppet begin to haunt the old Van Pelt estate, where an amateur acting group The Footlighters have their theatre, the world's most famous teen detective, Nancy Drew is called upon to unravel the baffling mystery. Nancy Drew: Girl Detective is a treat for audiences young and old as Nancy and her friends, Bess and George attempt to solve the mysterious of puppet puzzle and a hidden cache of jewels with complications from the estate's temperamental troupe of actors and divas.
Innes, who directed last year's family hit, Henry and Ramona for CST says that this was, once again, an opportunity to present another literary hero for the theatre and a chance to work with the group of young actors who are essentially the the next generation of theatre artists at Chicago Street. The director has assembled a large cast featuring the talents of: Megan Bentley (Valparaiso) as Nancy Drew; Dennis Murray (Valparaiso) as her father Carson Drew; Riley O'Neil (Westville) as Miss Willoughby and Tammi Whitlock; Joshua Ganz (Crown Point) & Zachary Gipson (Chesterton) as Hamilton Spencer; Angela Wehner (Valparaiso) as Margo Spencer; Gracie Ault (Valparaiso) as Emily Spencer; Darien Gress as Bob Simpson; Brittany Brice (Valparaiso) & Elli Bezotte (Valparaiso) as George Fayne; Molly Dashiell (Valparaiso) as Bess Marvin; Kyle Kristoff (Kouts) as Ned Nickerson; Tony Thomas (Michigan City) as Emmet "Cally" Calhoun; Elijah Sabourin (Chesterton) as Tom Tozzle; Michael Thomas (Michigan City) as Bushy Trott; Lisa Davison (Valparaiso) as Chef McGinnis; Mallory Gall (Valparaiso) as Yvonne; Abby Hazlett (Wheatfield) as Phyllis; Jillian Davison (Valparaiso) as Ivy; Jakob Innes (Valparaiso) as Ulric; Nathan Kirk (Valparaiso) as Otto; Sophie Burns (Valparaiso) as Jamie; Amanda Gardin (Chesterton) as the Dancer; and Paloma Calvin (Chesterton) as the Witch puppeteer.
Showtimes are: Fridays and Saturdays March 4,5, 11 & 12 at 7PM; Sundays March 6 & 13 at 2:30PM; Thursday, March 10 at 7PM; and Saturday, March 12 at 2:30PM. Admission is $12 for Adults and $10 for Students, Seniors and Groups of 10 or more. Tickets can be purchased through the CST Box Office at 219-464-1636 X1 or online at ChicagoStreet.org. Box Office hours are weekdays: Noon to 4PM and two hours prior to performance times.
Audiences are invited to join the cast and crew on Friday, March 4 for an Opening Night Party hosted by Zao Island at 1050 Horse Prairie Ave. in Valparaiso. On March 10 audiences can also learn about the production with director Kari-Anne Innes and the cast at our popular Thursday Talkback edition.
Next up at CST: Experience the folk and bluegrass inspired harmonies of The Shook Twins at March 13th's One Night Jam. On April 2, Chicago Street hosts its Let's Misbehave: Roaring 20's Speakeasy gala at the Spa and don't miss a true story based on the lives of Hollywood icons; Orson Welles and Laurence Olivier with Chicago Street's production of Orson's Shadow April 8-23, 2016 with Sarah Dooley's One Night Jam on Sunday, April 10.
Come solve a mystery with Nancy Drew: Girl Detective March 4-13 at Chicago Street Theatre sponsored by Ivy Boutique and jbh productions.