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Arts & Entertainment

Mystery, Drama and Laughs Await Audiences at 'A Christmas Cactus'

The new Clague Playhouse production will premiere Friday at 8 p.m.

Douglas Farren wanted to try a little something different this holiday season at Clague Playhouse.

The director wanted mystery, intrigue, a hint of drama and lots of laughs, and he may have found just that in Eliot Byerrum’s “A Christmas Cactus.” 

The spoof play features a slew of slow-witted characters, off-the-wall plot twists and promises plenty of well-timed jokes. 

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“It’s great fun,” Farren said. “The group solves a mystery despite misunderstanding each other almost entirely.” 

The story is set in the office of a fledgling private eye named Cactus O’Riley, played by Nicole Daniel. As she and her assistant, Fred, are about to close up for Christmas, two escaped convicts burst through the door. 

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One is an illegal immigrant who can’t find his pregnant wife. The other is a falsely accused accountant who was framed by the man that previously owned O’Riley’s office. The group, led by the gumshoe detective, is on the case to prove the man’s innocence, but time is running out. 

The play premieres Friday at 8 p.m. and will run through Dec. 11. 

Tickets are $16 for adults, and $15 for students and seniors 60 years and older.

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