First Stab Festival 2017: Mystery Lit

Unbound Productions’ First Stab Festival 2017: Mystery Lit

Join us for free script-in-hand staged readings of new plays adapted from classic mystery literature!

Saturday, July 22 at 3:00pm:
The Bell, My Favorite Murder, A Double Tragedy: An Actor’s Story

Sunday, July 23 at 3:00pm:
The Danseuse, The Rifle and The Doctor, His Wife and the Clock

Donald R. Wright Auditorium
Pasadena Central Library
285 E Walnut St.
Pasadena, CA 91101.

Ample free parking on site, please read all posted signs.

NOTE: plays contain adult content. Email Jonathan for details.
RESERVE TICKETS HERE
Each afternoon of readings will run roughly 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Admission is free

More details:

Saturday, July 22 at 3:00pm:

The Bell
adapted from “A Thumbprint and What Became of It” by Mark Twain
adapted by Angie Hobin, directed by Paul Millet

Ambrose Bierce’s My Favorite Murder
adapted by Jeff Folschinsky, directed by Darin Anthony

Can a man get away with murder twice by virtue of the bizarre circumstances of the crimes? A colorful cast of meta-theatrical characters will endeavor to find out as they take you through Ambrose Bierce’s most wild and witty crime story.

Louisa May Alcott’s A Double Tragedy: An Actor’s Story
adapted by Jonathan Josephson, directed by Diana Wyenn

Paul and Clotilde are young actors, madly in love. As they prepare for the performances of their lives in Romeo and Juliet, a figure from Clotilde’s shrouded past arrives at dress rehearsal with blood on his mind. Double Tragedy: A Actor’s Story is a nuanced melodrama, adapted from an early work by Louisa May Alcott, the iconic author of Little Women.

Sunday, July 23 at 3:00pm:

Thomas Baily Aldrich’s The Danseuse
adapted by Susannah Myrvold, directed by Richard Large

When a prima ballerina is found dead, eccentric genius Paul Edward sets out to find her killer. But his answer to the mystery only raises more questions.

William Leggett’s The Rifle
adapted by Diana Woody, directed by Lora Ivanova

The town doctor has been accused of murder and the townsfolk are sure he did it.  It’s up to his friend, James Buckthorn, to find the true culprit and save an innocent man from the hangman’s noose.

Anna Katherine Green’s The Doctor, His Wife and the Clock
adapted by Melanie MacQueen, directed by Brian David Pope

in 1850s Manhattan, Detective Gryce must uncover why a blameless man, with no enemies, has been murdered. The case become murkier when a man, who will give no motive, confesses to the crime.

All six plays were initially commissioned by Unbound Productions from playwrights with whom we greatly admire. We also have six directors working on these plays who represent the best of what LA theatre has to offer!

RESERVE TICKETS HERE
Admission is free