‘Nightwatch’ to premiere Friday the 13th at McKeesport Little Theater
By JEFF STITT
jstitt@yourmvi.com
McKeesport Little Theater will mark Friday the 13th with the opening of a mystery/thriller play written by Louise Fletcher.
The theater’s production of “Nightwatch” premiers at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Unable to sleep for multiple days, Elaine Wheeler, played by Cindy Swanson, paces the living room of her Manhattan townhouse, troubled by unsettling memories and vague fears.
Her husband John, played by Steven F. Gallagher, tries to comfort her, but when he steps away for a moment Elaine screams as she sees, or at least believes she sees, the body of a dead man in the window across the way.
The Wheelers call the police, but an officer, played by Dellen Morton, and a homicide detective played by Dan Kirk, find nothing except an empty chair.
Elaine’s terror grows as shortly thereafter she sees another body—this time a woman’s—but by now the police are skeptical and pay no heed to her frantic pleas.
Her husband, claiming that Elaine may be on the verge of a breakdown, calls in a psychiatrist, played by Ellen Small, who agrees with his suggestion that Elaine should commit herself to a sanitarium for treatment.
That’s when the plot begins to move quickly as Elaine’s old friend and house guest Blanche, played by Chelsea Forbes; Applebee, the inquisitive and rather sinister man who lives next door, who is played by Ron Clawson; the nosy German maid Helga, played by Renata Bushik; and a delicatessen owner played by Philip Boatright, contribute to the deepening suspense and mystery of the play as it draws towards its riveting and chilling climax.
The show’s director, Sean David Butler, is a MLT board member and has acted in multiple shows at the theater, including “The Nerd” and “Leading Ladies,” in 2018. He has been volunteering with MLT for more than 13 years.
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