AGATHA CHRISTIE’S MURDER MYSTERY
“AND THEN THERE WERE NONE” AT TOWNGATE THEATRE

WHEELING, W.Va. (February 21, 2010)- - Spend an evening on the edge of your seat as Oglebay Institute’s Towngate Theatre presents a stage adaptation of “And Then There Were None” by Agatha Christie, the best-selling murder mystery writer of all time.

Always an audience favorite, this dark and captivating tale will be staged for just two weekends –March 5-7 & March 11-13.

A group of ten strangers are lured to a mansion on a remote island off the coast of Devon, England by a couple, who, as it turns out, none of them has ever met. Shortly after arrival it is discovered that the host is missing. At dinner a recorded message is played accusing each guest of murder. By the end of the evening ten guests become nine. As the first guest drops dead, one of ten figurines on the parlor mantel falls to the floor. Stranded on the island by a torrential storm and haunted by the lyrics of an old nursery rhyme, the guests begin to die one-by-one.

Written in 1869, the song “Ten Little Indians” was quite the hit of the Victorian music hall. In the lyrics, ten little Indians stand in a line until one goes away, and then there are nine. “Indian” was later changed to “soldier” but the theme remained the same- ten individuals meet with an unexpected, unwanted fate. It is hard to say when Christie, born in 1890, first heard that song, which she used to form the framework for “And Then There Were None.” The book, written during World War II, was an instant sensation and is still considered the greatest mystery ever told.

Director P.D. Gregg has put together a strong ensemble cast that keeps the tension rolling throughout this classic whodunit. Cast members include: William Hofmann, Paul McKay, Dee Gregg, Nancy Longo, Jill Predragovich, Paul Orr, Bob Lane, Jon Coffield, Wayne McCord and Justin Swoyer.

Towngate’s curtain is at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday March 5 and 6 and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 7. Curtain is at 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday March 11 -13.

Call the Stifel Fine Arts Center at 304.242.7700 to reserve seats. For those buying seats at the door, Towngate’s box office opens one hour before all shows and can be reached at 304.233.4257.

Refreshments are available at Towngate Theatre and parking is curbside or in the nearby Center Wheeling Parking Garage. Located at 2118 Market St., Wheeling, Towngate is easy to find and located just across the street from St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in the historic Centre Market district of Wheeling.

This program is made possible through the generous support of the members of the Institute as well as with financial assistance from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History and the National Endowment for the Arts, with approval from the WV Commission on the Arts.