The Virgin Valley Theatre Group held its inaugural fundraiser at the CasaBlanca Resort on Wednesday, Jan. 21. The showroom was alive with 106 patrons and donors attired in 1930s flappers and Dapper Dans.

The evening theme was “A Night on the Orient Express,” a preview for the group’s upcoming play, “Murder on the Orient Express,” opening Feb. 2.

The engaging emcee for the evening was Greg Dutkowski. He introduced the special speakers, like Mesquite Community Theater (MCT) president Mitzi Bender and board member Richard Cook. Bender reminded the audience of their commitment to the arts and how fortunate Mesquite is to have such a variety of artists in its midst. Special achievements were acknowledged, like the magnificent mural painted by Miles Woods and his daughter, Emma. Also mentioned were the children’s theater “Rising Stars” and all the benefits, like self-confidence and teamwork, children get out of participating.

Cook reiterated that all the benefits the community gets from the theater begin with its benefactors. He said, “Live theater has real fixed cost, and sustainability comes from planning and thoughtful decisions today, from its board, so we don’t create challenges tomorrow.”

Local crooner Cary Phillips kept the audience in the mood with songs from the 20s and 30s throughout the evening.

The stage was filled with MCT actors posing as passengers/murder suspects on the train. Each actor portrayed a character from one of the theater’s upcoming plays and told the audience why they could not be the murderer.

“Murder on the Orient Express” will be playing Friday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m; Saturday, Feb. 7 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. and Saturday Feb. 14 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets are available online at MCTNV.com

Other upcoming plays are “Guys & Dolls Senior” in March; Rising Stars Youth Theater in June; “Annie, the Musical” in September; “A Pocketful of Stardust Melodrama” and “Lights On! Christmas Show” in November and “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” in December.