By AMY DAVIS
Moapa Valley Progress
Virgin Valley High School students put on their first play of the year November 15-16 with a special sneak peek to select audiences on Wednesday November 13. The play, “Three Murders and It’s Only Wednesday!” by Pat Cook, was performed in the school theater at 5:30 each evening.
“It was the kind of night you found yourself holding your breath for no reason at all,” said Private Eye Harry Monday who was played by VVHS student Tristin Klein. Monday had been hired to investigate three murders at Peaceful Pines Sanitarium.
The play is a fast-paced comedy/mystery spin on the old film noir-style private eye movies of the 1940s.
The play didn’t just stop with three murders, however. And everyone we talked to guessed the murderer wrong, making the play quite unpredictable.
The student actors were charming in their rolls, wore fun costumes, used noisy cap guns, and provided plenty of laughs.
“I thought it went amazingly well!” said VVHS Theatre teacher Kelly Zarndt. “The student got into character and were very coachable and eager to try new things. Once they got their lines down and felt more comfortable with each other, the play took on a life of its own.”
“It was scary knowing I had such a big role and that I would perform in front of so many people,” said Klein. “I did not want to disappoint anyone. I am so happy I tried out for the play because the cast and Mrs. Zarndt are amazing!”
It was Travis Terry’s very first production. “The very first performance was rough,” he said. “But we got better as the nights went on.”
Kiera Davis who played Tara, a character described as a “sultry soon-to-be-heiress,” said that Zarndt had to coach her in just exactly how to be “sultry.”
“There were some scenes that I just couldn’t get through at first without laughing because my character is so different from who I am,” Davis said. “But I would definitely do it again.”
Terry pointed out that the production was good at bringing students of different groups together. “It brought people from different areas of life together that normally wouldn’t interact,” he said. “We had the hard-core theater kids, the jocks, the drill team and the nerds. We ended up having a great time and becoming friends.”
“From their first performance to their last, it is great to see kids gain more confidence and to really start becoming the character,” Zarndt said. “By the last night they are usually improvising and trying different things. It is really amazing to watch the growth as they, in a sense, find themselves.”
Zarndt has taught at Virgin Valley High School for 13 years. This was her 27th production. She would like to invite the community to please come and support the next play.
