Do you like musical murder mysteries? Then the riveting comedy known as “Curtains” will certainly capture your interest. Hosted by the Washburn University Theatre, “Curtains” will feature many students from the Theatre Department who will be performing in the play multiple times over the course of this month.

The play’s performance and the training of its actors has been under the guidance of Julie Noonan, a professor of Theatre at Washburn. Noonan has been with the Theatre Department since 2017 and this will be the third production that she has directed at Washburn. She received her PHD at KU and she earned her MA and her BA in South Dakota.

In regards to the play, Noonan would reveal little of the plot as she did not want to give anything away before the play’s first night. But what she did reveal paints a picture of a thrilling play that is sure to keep the audience guessing.

“Someone dies early in the play and then the detective comes to find who that is. This play is a full musical and the death occurs at a production of a show that is trying to go to Broadway set in 1959 so it’s a sort of older style musical that is being produced, although this musical was written in 2008, so it is a contemporary look back,” said Noonan.

“Curtains,” as said by Noonan, was first produced in 2008 and has remained a popular murder mystery play since its first night on Broadway. It was first directed by Scott Ellis and choreographed by Rob Ashford on March 22. The musical garnered eight Tony Award nominations after its first year of performances and has been recreated multiple times around the U.S. however, this is the first time the musical has been performed at Washburn.

Twenty-one students will be partaking in the show with another twenty serving in the orchestra and behind the scenes to make sure the show runs smoothly. Noonan and her students began rehearsals for the play at the beginning of February.

The play is about two hours in length with two acts and will be featured at 7:30 p.m. at the University Theatre on campus on April 5, 6, 12 and 13, with the final show taking place on April 14 at 2 p.m. The play is free to students, faculty and staff who bring their WU IDs with them, otherwise the price is eight dollars for regular admission. Tickets will be available at the box office one hour prior to each showing or through Eventbrite washburn university curtains.

For more information regarding the musical, please visit [email protected]. We hope to see you there!