Murder in the House of Horrors, by Billy St. John

Welcome to the museum’s lecture on ’Monsters, Murderers and Madmen.’ You have no doubt enjoyed the Chamber of Horrors display in the lobby and are listening attentively to Professor Dirk Carlton, a renowned Egyptologist, tell of his discovery of the Pharaoh Menkaura’s tomb. Suddenly, while watching a slide of the ruler’s sarcophagus, the projector goes off, plunging the auditorium into darkness. When the lights come on, the professor is dead and the priceless jewel he was holding has vanished! Your audience is now drawn into this mystery, both as witnesses and suspects. When Lt. Dan Morrow arrives, he narrows the suspects to seven. Was it the jealous wife? Or the exotic Egyptian who cursed the expedition? The lieutenant enlists the audience’s aid in solving the crime, allowing them to question and accuse the suspects. Your audience will be caught up in this ’virtual’ thriller, uncovering the clues that reveal the killer in the electrifying climax. This unique mystery, equally suitable for community theatres and advanced school groups, contains as many laughs as it does shivers.

The Foreigner, by Larry Shue

The scene is a fishing lodge in rural Georgia often visited by “Froggy” LeSueur, a British demolition expert who occasionally runs training sessions at a nearby army base. This time “Froggy” has brought along a friend, a pathologically shy young man named Charlie who is overcome with fear at the thought of making conversation with strangers. So “Froggy,” before departing, tells all assembled that Charlie is from an exotic foreign country and speaks no English. Once alone the fun really begins, as Charlie overhears more than he should—the evil plans of a sinister, two-faced minister and his redneck associate; the fact that the minister’s pretty fiancée is pregnant; and many other damaging revelations made with the thought that Charlie doesn’t understand a word being said. That he does fuels the nonstop hilarity of the play and sets up the wildly funny climax in which things go uproariously awry for the “bad guys,” and the “good guys” emerge triumphant.

Winner of two Obie Awards and two Outer Critics Circle Awards as Best New American Play and Best Off-Broadway Production. An inspired comic romp, equal in inventive hilarity to the author’s classic comedy The Nerd, the present play enjoyed a sold-out premiere in Milwaukee before moving on to a long run Off-Broadway. Based on what the NY Post describes as a “devilishly clever idea,” the play demonstrates what can happen when a group of devious characters must deal with a stranger who (they think) knows no English. “Something funny is going on in Milwaukee—to the delight of audiences at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater.” —Variety. “I laughed start to finish at one comic surprise after another.” —The New Yorker. “…a constant invitation to relax and laugh at the foolishness of life…” —Village Voice. “Shue’s comedy is positively antic, yet pleasantly seasoned with a few dashes of sentimentality…He has raided comedy’s storehouse…” —Bergen Record.