Tag Archives: theatre

Did Somebody Say Murder?

Posted on April 22, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I have actually been running around having lots of Mohawk Valley Adventures (alternating with periods of sitting on the couch saying, “I just can’t even!” but you’ll have that).  Yet I am going to do a fast Pre-Rehearsal Post, because I have a few more pre-rehearsal chores to do before, you know, rehearsal.   I suppose I am being a little too lenient with myself by using all the pictures I took during rehearsal last week, but I cannot pause to analyze my motivations now.

Obviously a dramatic moment!

Jerry loves to sing.  I always try to give him the part of a person who wants to do a musical, whether a musical is appropriate to the rest of the murder mystery or not.  You can do that when you write the thing.

Big gesture!

I thought our last rehearsal went really well.  People were really into character and interacting with each other a lot.  They praised my script, but really they are the ones that make it work.

What’s he laughing at?

I spent a good part of this afternoon making a prop: a note made of letters cut out of a magazine. Do you know what a pain in the butt that is?  I’m surprised at kidnappers or blackmailers who take all that trouble.

“Did somebody say… murder?”

OK, the caption isn’t really a line in the script; I just couldn’t think of anything else.  But I am over 225 words, so here is the plug:

A Revolutionary Murder, to benefit the Herkimer County Historical Society, will be presented at Herkimer Elks Lodge, 124 Mary St., Saturday, April 25, doors open at 5, dinner at 6.  Tickets are $45 for individuals, $80 for couples, available at the historical society.

 

3 Comments

Posted in humor, personal, pre rehearsal post and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Feeling Murderous on Lame Post Friday

Posted on April 18, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Decisions!  Choices!  If only dithering burned calories, how skinny I would be!  Never mind that, I want to make a blog post, Lame Post Friday or not and I decide to go with a Post-Rehearsal Post and share some pictures of last night’s rehearsal of A Revolutionary Murder, the murder mystery we are presenting to benefit Herkimer County Historical Society next Saturday.  We had a fun rehearsal and I am greatly optimistic about the performance.

That face!

Regular readers may recognize some of the actors from previous murder mysteries.  I do love my regulars!  This time I also have two people I have worked with on other plays, and they are doing marvelously.

She is setting them straight on a few things.

One of my actresses showed up in a spangly gown she intends to wear as her costume.  I love it!  Costume does help one get into character.  I at least try to wear the shoes I intend to have on.

A wider shot.

As you may notice, we are rehearsing in Herkimer Elks Lodge,  where the performance will take place.  The Elks are very generous with letting us use their space.  It is so helpful to rehearse where we will actually perform.  Additionally, I like to purchase a glass of wine after rehearsal.

Almost everybody is in this shot!

I guess I have not said much about the mystery, but I feel this is all to the good.  I would not want to give away any salient plot points; I like my audience to be surprised.

A Revolutionary Murder will be presented Saturday, April 25 at Herkimer Elks Lodge, 124 Mary St., Herkimer, NY, doors open at 5, dinner at 6.  Tickets are $45 for individuals, $80 per couple, available at the Historical Society at 406 Main St., Herkimer, or at the Elks Lodge.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in Community Events, humor, Lame Post Friday, personal and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Ah, Murder In Springtime!

Posted on April 12, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I have been at the Herkimer County Historical Society twice in the last two days concerning the next murder mystery, A Revolutionary Murder, which will be presented on Saturday, April 25 to benefit the Historical Society. I thought I might give a little teaser about that.

Wednesday when I stopped by, it was for dramatic purposes.  Without going into too much detail, a character reports that a cell phone was blown clear and landed in a bush.  In fiction (and probably real life too, but I don’t know too much about that), it is nice to be exact. Not just “a bush” but “an azalea bush” or “a hydrangea bush.”  So I stopped to ask what kind of bush grows around the historical society.

Oh, no, not that kind of bush!

I guess by two weeks from now the bushes will not really be that far along, but I hardly think the audience will call me out on that.  Several bushes that will be there as spring and summer wear on, and I think I am going to settle on Bleeding Heart, just for the reference to blood (you should see the fliers!) (which you can see on the Historical Society’s Facebook page).

Aren’t they cute?

Yesterday I stopped by to see if they had some tickets I could bring to the Elks Lodge, in case any members wanted to purchase them.  On the way out, I took the two pictures I just used as illustrations.  I mostly took them because I tend to take pictures of everything I see growing.  I try not to let winter drag me down, but oh, do I love the rebirth of spring!

Funny to be enjoying rebirth when I am about to kill somebody off for fun and non-profit, but so it is.  A Revolutionary Murder will be presented Saturday, April 25 at the Herkimer Elks Lodge, 124 Mary St., Herkimer, NY, doors open at 5 p.m., dinner at 6 p.m.  Tickets are $45 for individuals, $80 per couple, available at the Historical Society, 315-866-6413.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in Community Events, humor, personal and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Murder Remembered

Posted on April 10, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Alas, I have once again fallen down on the job as a daily blogger by failing to make even a Wuss-out Wednesday post.  A quick check of my phone tells me a Waste Not Want Not Wednesday is also ineligible.  As I sit here on my couch feeling rather tired, I fear a Throwback Thursday is my best bet.  For one reason, I am pondering the latest murder mystery and throwing back to past triumphs may inspire me.

You knew I would include a picture of Steven if possible.

This was indeed a fun one, Fabulous and Fatal in the fall of 2019.  My late, dearly missed husband Steven made quite the hit as Ophelia Upp, a member of Drag Queens Along the Mohawk.  I played the glamorous Roxanne Rolls.

Nothing suspicious about him!

And here is my friend Tucker as Renwick Spaulding, a great lover of all things insect in Donate to Murder.  He was pretty awesome.  I feel proud of myself for writing these murder mysteries, but really, it is the actors who make the stories come to life.  Which may seem like a funny thing to say about a murder mystery.

How could somebody that fabulous kill anybody?

Here is a less than candid shot of one of our suspects for Shooting at the Grange, which we performed at Salisbury Grange in the spring in 2023.  It was a pretty fun script in a nice setting.

I don’t know that I feel particularly inspired now to work on the mystery we are rehearsing tonight, but at least I have my blog post done.  I hope you’ll stay tuned for future Mohawk Valley Adventures.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Throwback Thursday and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

What Would Truman Capote Do?

Posted on March 13, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had the intention to combine my Throwback Thursday and Lame Post Friday posts and thus pretend I am caught up, but of course it is a little Non-Sequitur to be posting on the wrong day, and I do have a feature of Non-Sequitur Thursday.  Then again, it is kind of a sequence to do Monday’s post on Tuesday, Tuesday’s post on Wednesday, etc.  What’s a blogger to do?

As long as I can wear a tiara, I’m good.

I was looking for a more appropriate picture, but then I thought, Why?  Did I not say Non-Sequitur Thursday?  Or Throwback Thursday, although this is only throwing back to a year ago, when I appeared in Four Old Broads on the High Seas with Players of Utica.  The blue hat in the background is another actor trying to photo-bomb.   I feel bad that she did not succeed.  I started to write a similar play.  I mean a silly comedy about a few older ladies.  I must put in more work on that.

There’s the photo bomb!

OK, now my two pictures are sequential, so perhaps Non-Sequitur Thursday is out of the question.  I don’t care. It is my blog and I will do what I like.

In a preview of coming attractions, I may go to a fish fry tonight, and I may go to a couple of my favorite fun local businesses during the day.  I may also do something to celebrate Friday the 13th, which always sounds like a holiday to me.  I could walk under a ladder or go into a theatre and mention MacBeth (that is a theatre superstition you may or may not be familiar with:  real theatre geeks must always refer to it as, “The Scottish Play.”

To explain the headline:  Truman Capote once said about some work or other, “That’s not writing, that’s typing.”

 

3 Comments

Posted in humor, Non Sequitur Thursday, personal, Throwback Thursday and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

That Came Out Of Lame Field

Posted on March 7, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Have I got time to make a Lame Post Friday post before I leave the house?  I will be perfectly honest:  I got nuthin’.  No brains, no ideas, just a vague headache and the feeling that I am about to do something wrong.  Or I have just done something wrong.  Or I forgot to do something.  Do other bloggers have these problems?  Perhaps there are other ways of dealing with them than whining about it in a silly blog post.

I sure don’t have my ducks in a row! And one of them’s a frog!

I threw in a silly picture to lighten up the mood.  I have been trying to make some progress in cleaning my house.  Then I can do fun things like put my ducks in different arrangements.  I hope to make better progress as I go.  It might be worth a blog post, but I shudder at the thought of posting “before” pictures.

“And another thing!”

I branch off into theatre with a picture of a rehearsal of a murder mystery we did last year.  I am polishing a script for the next one.  The three people pictured are in the cast.

This was longer ago, but it was a fun one!

I add one more murder mystery picture for your entertainment.  I see I am over 200 words.  I guess I haven’t said much, but it is Lame Post Friday after all.  I hope you are all having a lovely day.

 

7 Comments

Posted in humor, Lame Post Friday, personal and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

More Memories, This Time Theatre

Posted on February 5, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I want to do a Throwback Thursday Post today, specifically a Theatre Throwback Thursday Post, because I realized that with the pictures I shared of my late, dearly missed husband Steve, I did not share any of our joint theatrical endeavors.  Theatre was something we both loved and loved to do together.  Steven was a great actor and director.  We helped start the Seaway Valley Footlighters in Massena, NY back in the 1990s.  About that time we started the company Murder for Hire, which did interactive murder mysteries at area restaurants and clubs. We didn’t make a lot of money, but we had a great deal of fun.

After a dry spell (long story,not very interesting), we relocated to Herkimer and found Ilion Little Theatre in the 2000s.  A little later, I started again writing murder mysteries, which I now only do for free and to benefit not for profits.  Well, this is turning into a long story.  Quick, throw in a picture.  I hope I can find something in my Media Library.

It was our “big scene,” as Steven called it.

Here we are in Harvey in, I believe 2012.  Steve is Dr. Cbumley, I am Veda.  It is one of my favorite theatre memories, and this is one of my favorite pictures of the two of us.

I set him straight in this scene.

This is our scene from Splitting Issues, which was a series of sketches about relationships.  There was a large cast and, I think, three directors.   I went with Steven to auditions, not intending to audition myself.  However, I agreed to read with him.  We read this scene, and I was later told that when the directors discussed who should play which part, all were agreed that Steve and I had to do this sketch.  It was very flattering, and it I think we did a pretty good job.

A suspicious bunch, indeed!

I close with a picture from a murder mystery, Rubbed Out at Ruby’s, which LiFT, Little Falls Theatre Company performed at the Overlook when it was a bed and breakfast.  I do love a 1920s theme, and have been trying to write another one ever since.

Steven kind of participated in Prescription: Murder, the play I was in last year about this time (perhaps you read a few of my blog posts about it).  I loaned his wedding ring to a fellow cast member.  I think Steve would have liked that.  Anyways I liked it.  I hope to make some more theatre memories soon (preview of coming attractions).  In the meantime, I guess I got kind of long-winded (for my blog posts), but you’ll have that.  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Throwback Thursday and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

The Evil Pork Loin

Posted on January 25, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I thought of that title when I purchased a pork loin at the local grocery store for $6.66.  I mentioned to a worker who was stocking the meat case that I did not know how to cook a pork loin.  Then I saw instructions on the package.

“I am hooked up,” I declared.

I could not resist the price.

When Saturday was predicted to be one of the coldest days, I thought it would be an excellent day to run the oven.  That would be my Saturday blog post!

Of course it wasn’t.  I cooked with wine and went to bed early, having enjoyed a couple delicious slices of pork loin. It is now Sunday, and I am thinking that my cooking a pork loin, even an evil one, is hardly a blogworthy activity.  So now I am having a Wrist to Forehead Sunday.  It seems everyplace is closed in anticipation of the terrible storm we are supposed to be getting.  What can I do but sit home, watch Columbo, and eat leftover pork loin?

Not the Columbo I am watching, but a good one!

While searching my Media Library for a picture of Columbo, I came across some pictures of Prescription: Murder, the play I was in last year at Ilion Little Theatre. It was a great experience.  I need to audition for another play.  And organize another murder mystery.

A great group of people!

I close with a shot of the cast with the director and assistant director.  I would love to work with any or all of these people again.  So I end my Wrist to Forehead Sunday post on a positive note, perhaps a Preview of Coming Attractions.

Have you eaten any pork loin lately?

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Wrist to Forehead Sunday and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Couldn’t Hurt, Might Help

Posted on January 23, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I thought I was feeling better, but it turns out not so much.  I don’t like to go days and days without making a blog post, so I will attempt a Throwback Thursday.  Or maybe a Non-Sequitur Thursday.  No, that’s no good; I can never think of a good headline for those.

Snow, snow, snow.

I have left the house in the last two days, taking walks through the snow but not pausing for pictures.  I really felt I had spent too many days lounging around doing nothing and thought a couple short walks would help.  I guess they kind of sort of did.

It really was a dramatic moment.

I veer into theatre throwback with a shot from 2019.  I may be getting involved in some new theatre shenanigans soon.  I received an email about auditions for Ilion Little Theatre’s next production, Good-bye. Charlie.  Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 16th and 17th at the theatre at 6:30 p.m.  I probably have a meeting to cover on Monday, but I can probably make it on Tuesday.  I like to be in a play.

If only I don’t get snowed in!

I have not had this much snow in my driveway for a long time.  I can only hope for the best for the rest of the winter.  At least I have gotten over 200 words of a blog post for today.  I apologize if I seem less articulate than usual.  I feel sure another couple of good nights’ sleep will put me to rights.

 

2 Comments

Posted in bloggers sick day, humor, personal and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Prescription: Blog Post

Posted on January 8, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I was going to do a Way-back Wednesday post about Prescription: Murder, the play I was in last year (was it only last year?) at Ilion Little Theatre, because I was watching the TV version with Peter Falk as Columbo on Roku TV.  Unfortunately, I got caught up in  watching further episodes of Columbo (love Murder by the Book with Jack Cassidy) and got too tired.  That is all right though; I can do a Throwback Thursday post now!

Columbo clears up one little point for his report.

I wanted to use the shot with my dead feet sticking out from behind the chaise, but I have several good pictures to share and I use the feet one often.

I totally wanted those shoes.

Our murderer was different from Gene Barry in the TV movie (it was a TV movie that became the basis for the Columbo TV series).  Barry is cold and arrogant.  Our Dr. Fleming was warmer.   Our Joan Hudson (Katherine Justice in the movie), the doctor’s lover and accomplice, was more innocent and endearing.

A staged shot taken backstage (a backstaged shot?).

I liked our Burt Gordon, the district attorney and close personal friend of the murderer, better than the one played by William Windom.  I was sorry ours only had one scene, but he made the most of it.  While being genuinely concerned for his friend, he still managed to make a lot of what he said sound like a political speech.

Rehearsal shot.

Our receptionist gave a more nuanced performance than the receptionist in the movie.  You knew how she felt about every character she encountered.

There were things I liked better in the movie, most notably the ending, but I had such a good time in the play.  I thought my fellow actors were all wonderful in their roles, and the director and assistant director were top notch.  I can’t wait to be in another play at Ilion Little Theatre!

 

Leave a comment

Posted in humor, personal, Throwback Thursday and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
← Older Posts
→