Photo Flash: First Look at Centenary Stage's DEATHTRAP

Running through October 20th, Centenary Stage Company's professional production of Ira Levin's Deathtrap is fit for the Halloween season. One of the most popular successes in Broadway history, this theatrical triumph with gasp-inducing thrills and spontaneous laughter, is a chilling murder-mystery mixed with a healthy dose of humor. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Playing at The David and Carol Lackland Center in Hackettstown, Deathtrap is a play within a play following the struggles of Sidney Bruhl, a successful writer of Broadway thrillers battling a crippling dry spell. Sidney has experienced a string of flops and a shortage of funds when suddenly help seems to come from out of nowhere. He receives a script in the mail from a student in the seminar he has been conducting at a nearby college-a thriller Sidney recognizes as a potential Broadway hit. What happens next is the stuff of Deathtrap.

Award-winning Artistic Director Carl Wallnau is directing and also starring in this complex thriller that he calls "one of the best constructed plays." He also quotes the main character of Sidney Bruhl himself when describing the appeal. Sidney says in the opening of the play, "Deathtrap...A juicy murder in Act One, unexpected developments in Act Two. Sound construction, good dialogue, laughs in the right places. Highly commercial." Audiences will be held spellbound to the very end.

The five person cast includes local actress Maria Brodeur (Rockaway) who has been seen on the CSC stage in A Christmas Carol, Oliver, and How to Pray. Playing the role of the young playwright Clifford is Pennsylvania Shakespeare alum Jon Mulhearn (Jersey City), who was seen in last season's thriller Mousetrap. Making his CSC debut is experienced actor/director Paul Whelihan (Bloomfield). And rounding out the cast is Broadway (Crazy For You) and Regional Theatre veteran Colleen Smith-Wallnau (Hoboken). Emmy Award-winning designer Bob Phillips has once again been chosen to beautify the stage of the Sitnik Theatre with his life-like set design.

?Tickets for Deathtrap range from $25 to $27.50 with discounts for students and seniors. Every Thursday night is "Family Night," which offers a 2-for-1 rush ticket price when purchased at the door. Performance times are Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. There are2 p.m. matinées Wednesdays October 9th and 16th and for the Preview Performance on Friday, October 4th at 2 p.m. Deathtrap is sponsored by Bea McNally's Irish Pub, Old Souk Trading Company, and Heath Village Retirement Community.
Tickets may be purchased online at www.centenarystageco.org, at the CSC Box Office located in the David and Carol Lackland Center at 715 Grand Ave in Hackettstown, or by calling 908-979-0900. The Box Office is open 1-6 PM Monday through Friday, and 2 hours prior to performance times. The Box Office on 217 Main Street is open once more from 3-6 PM Monday through Friday.

Photo Credit: Pat Lanciano (unless otherwise stated)

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