Catching the Gossamer “Clue” at Farmington High School

Imagine it's a dark and stormy night, and you've been invited to a very unusual dinner party at Body Manor. It's a production of the twisty turny madcap comedy "Clue," presented by the players of the Spotlight Theater at Farmington High School. You're watching the Local News Network, brought to you by Boon's Family Thai Barbecue and Home2 Suites. I'm Hayley Opsal. Based on the cult classic film and popular board game, "Clue" brings together the iconic oddballs known as Plum, White, Green, Peacock, Mustard and Miss Scarlet, the vivacious and flirty businesswoman played by junior Abbie Allen, who, like a true star, deflects the attention to her fellow players.

The funnest part of being a part of "Clue" is definitely the people. Everybody here is so sweet, so kind, so loving, so supportive. And I don't think that I'd probably be in "Clue" without them. So thank you to everybody.

The Farmington High School Theater Department has been transformed by teacher and director Dallas Padoven. He's grown the department from 21 kids last year to triple that for "Clue's" large assembly.

So "Clue itself, we have about 35 kids on stage for the production, and then we have about 38 kids backstage. Now, that includes lighting, sound, costumes, paint crew, set crew, seamstress, all of that, sound, microphones. So it's a lot, it's a big, big production.

Senior Tavin Graham Diaz, who plays the handsome, conniving butler Wadsworth, demonstrates a pleasant procedure for warming up his voice behind stage.

Black Socks is one of my favorite that goes. ♪ Black socks, they never get dirty ♪ ♪ The longer you wear them, the cleaner they get ♪ ♪ Sometimes I think I should wash them ♪ ♪ But something inside me keeps saying not yet ♪ ♪ Not yet, not yet ♪

As the body count stacks up on stage, the spooky mood is enlivened backstage with computerized sound effects.

It's pretty fun. I just sit here on the laptop and I do like all of this stuff. Whenever they ring the doorbell, I like to check this. Whenever there's thunder, I do the thunder sound. It's pretty fun.

The elaborate stage scenery, including two stories, two side stages, stained glass and a trap door cost $7,000, all paid for through ticket sales. The Spotlight Theater seats 250 patrons. The next big production will be "Grease" in late March 2024. For more information about this and other stories, go to farmingtonlocal.news. Thank you for watching this edition of the Local News Network. I'm Hayley Opsal.