Past: The Butler Did It

Notre Dame Regional High School presents Tim Kelly’s "The Butler Did It," a delightful comedy that spoofs English mystery plays, but with a decidedly American flavor. Miss Maple, a society dowager noted for her “imaginative” weekend parties, invites a group of detective writers to eerie Ravenswood Manor on Turkey Island, where they are to assume the personalities of their fictional characters. The hostess has arranged all sorts of amusing “incidents,” everything from the mystery voice on the radio to the menacing face at the window.

Secrets abound in the creepy old mansion. Why does Rita, the social secretary, carry a hatbox everywhere she goes? Who’s the corpse in the wine cellar? And how about the astonishing female who arrives via helicopter during a howling storm? When an actual murder takes place, each of the “guests” realizes he or she is marked for death. The outraged hostess offers an immense reward to the “detective” who brings the killer to justice. What an assortment of sleuths! An inscrutable Oriental, a seedy gumshoe, a scholarly clergyman, a sophisticated New York couple, and an intellectual type who idolizes Sherlock Holmes. When they’re not busy tripping over the clues, they trip over each other. The laughs collide with thrills and the climax is a seat-grabber as the true killer is unmasked and almost everyone turns out to be someone else.

Notre Dame Regional High School welcomes 11 actors to our stage— junior Zoe Koetting as Haversham, sophomore Molly Sellers as Rita, senior Kate Zibluk as Miss Maple, senior Sean Murphy as Father White, freshman Ben Schumer as Chandler Marlowe, junior Austin Sullivan as Louie Fan, junior Nick Kelley as Rick, junior Caroline Heckemeyer as Laura, freshman Aaron Deken as Peter Flimsey, freshman Samantha Gardner as Charity Haze, and freshman Liam Arnzen as the Radio Voice.

The play is directed by Miss Cynthia King with assistant directors junior Claire Conaway and sophomore Chelsea Ryan.