Musical comedy ‘Curtains’ to bring lighthearted whodunit mystery to the Tower Theater stage

Liberty University’s Department of Theatre Arts is inviting audiences to laugh along the trail of a murder mystery at the center of its latest production, “Curtains,” a musical comedy set to open on Oct. 14 as Liberty celebrates Homecoming Weekend.

The show follows Lieutenant Frank Cioffi, a Boston detective with a fondness for musical theater, as he investigates the murder of a lead actress while also finding ways to relish in the theatrical setting. The musical’s Broadway production earned eight Tony Award nominations in 2007 and features a story by Rupert Holmes, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander.

“Curtains” has never been staged at Liberty, which make it more exciting to perform, said senior Aaron Hall, given that the audience will be able to discover the answer to the mystery at the same time as Cioffi, who Hall portrays.

“A lot of people haven’t seen ‘Curtains,’ and that’s really helpful since it’s a murder mystery, so we get a fun chance to share the mystery for the first time,” he said. “It has very witty humor, and if you’re a fan of musical theater, it’s a little meta because it makes fun of musical theater and people who love musical theater.”

After last month’s faculty showcase of “39 Steps,” in which four Liberty theatre professors portrayed significantly more characters in a slapstick spoof of the Hitchcock classic, this show is the first opportunity of the season for audiences to see students perform. Director Chris Nelson added that the show’s cast will feature many students who are taking on prominent roles for the first time.

“I’m always excited when a student who maybe hasn’t had the chance to have a meaty part gets the opportunity to showcase the talents that they have,” Nelson said. “Some students have been under a wig in the ensemble in the past and are now getting a larger role. That’s my favorite part — seeing student performers rise to the occasion and own that opportunity.”

“It’s a good show to feature a lot of different people in our department because it’s not like most musicals where you just have one or two leads,” Hall added. “Everyone is onstage for a good portion of the time. The (characters) are all trapped in the theater after the murders, so there are a lot of featured roles.”

Senior Lindsey Sommons will be playing Niki Harris, an actress in the show within the show who falls in love with Cioffi. She said that the humor makes the murder plot anything but tense.

“When you watch the show, you’re not really even anxious about who’s next to get murdered because you’re laughing so much,” Sommons said. “It’s very fun and lighthearted most of the time, which is different for a murder mystery. We have some show-stopping numbers that I think people are really going to enjoy.”

Comedy is best enjoyed with others, and being that the show has performances during both Homecoming Weekend (Oct. 14-15) and Family Weekend (Oct. 21-23), Nelson hopes to fill the Tower Theater. The show will also be performed on Tuesday, Oct. 18, with half-priced tickets for current Liberty students.

“What will make this show even more fun is if we have a full audience, because comedies are made more fun by having audiences that are laughing together,” Nelson said. “It’s a part of the whole experience. We hope that audiences are able to sit back, let their imaginations go wild, and invest in the stories that we tell.”

Showtimes

• Oct. 14, 18, 20, 21*, 22 – 7:30 p.m.
• Oct. 16 – 8 p.m.
• Oct. 16, 23** (ASL-interpreted performance) – 3 p.m.

Tickets: https://www.liberty.edu/arts/theatre/tickets