From left to right: Melinda Kreisberg, Linda Cowan, Karissa Martin, Joshua Fromhart, Judith Hennen, Michael Aulick, Melody Meadows and Gretchen Schneider (seated), rehearse a scene in Kelly Theater.

POSTED:  Aug. 23, 2012 – West Liberty University will open its theater season with a reprise of last spring’s production, “The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940,” this time with a mostly-alumni cast.

Curtain is at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Aug. 30 – Sept. 1 and 3 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 2 at Kelly Theatre and all performances are open to the public.

Adjunct professor of theater John Hennen ’70 is the director of the comedy that promises to be a comic romp. Written by John Bishop, the play pokes fun at the more ridiculous aspects of “show biz” and the corny thrillers of Hollywood’s heyday, as the cast untangles the mystery of the “Stage Door Slasher.”

Cast includes: faculty members Michael Aulick, Linda Cowan, and Melinda Kreisberg; current students Matt Dougherty and Kevin Hensley; alumni, Joshua Fromhart ‘04, Judith Hennen ‘73, Karissa Martin ’12, Melody Meadows ’91 and Gretchen Schneider ‘08.

As the play opens, the creative team responsible for a recent Broadway flop (in which three chorus girls were murdered by the “Stage Door Slasher”) assembles for a backer’s audition at the estate of a wealthy “angel.” The house is replete with sliding panels, secret passageways and a German maid who is apparently four different people (all diabolical). The infamous “Slasher” makes his reappearance and strikes again—and again.

General admissions tickets are $10; students with I.D.s are $5. For reservations, please call the Hilltop Players box office at 304.336.8277.