November 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22
Friday and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2:00pm
Pay What You Can Preview Night - Thursday, November 12 at 7:30pm
Tickets only available at the door. Cash and cards accepted. Limited Seating.
A critical and popular success in London, this psychological thriller about revenge centers on the interlocking triangular relationship between Dee, a successful television playwright; Hallet, a detective superintendent; and Stone, a humorless, prissy man. Dee arrives at Stone's flat, having accepted an invitation to discuss a script by Stone's wife. She is rather surprised when Hallett, with whom she is having an affair, also arrives, apparently to investigate a matter concerning Stone's son and his involvement with a drug ring. But where are wife and son? After many twists and turns, Stone's intentions become clear as he slowly reveals the precise nature of the trio's relationship: all three are very much concerned with the business of murder and the play culminates in another perpetration of the crime.
Directed by Christopher Johnston
Generously Sponsored by Pat and Marggie Johnston, Steve Kawa and Dan Henkle
Meet the Cast
Charles Bertram (Mr. Stone) relishes the opportunity to once again perform on the Cloverdale stage in the role of Mr. Stone. His recent credits include Leo Clark/Maxine in Leading Ladies and Wadsworth in Clue. Favorite prior roles include Cliff in Look Back in Anger, Banquo in Macbeth, and Dafydd Llewellyn in A Chorus of Disapproval. Charles would like to thank his wife, Nicole, for all of her love and support, and for her expertise with line learning help.
Dan Stryker (Hallett) Dan has been tolerated by theatergoers around Sonoma County for more than a decade now. Cloverdale audiences most recently saw him as Jack in Leading Ladies. Favorite roles include Helmut in The Germans Upstairs, Sir Toby Belch in Twelfth Night and Eddie in Lost in Yonkers with the Raven Players, Lenny in Rumors, Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest and Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with CPAC. He lives in Cloverdale with his wife, son, and Ludo, the world’s hungriest dog.
Chelsea Jennings Bell (Dee) is quite grateful to be making her debut at Cloverdale Performing Arts with this very clever cast and crew indeed! Her past favorite roles include Suzanne in Eureka Day and Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest. She thanks Omar for his loving support, her parents for watching the kids on oh so many occasions, and Bowyn and Reya for being her daily inspiration to always follow her childhood dreams.
Alex Stefani (Musician) has been playing and appreciating music and sound for over 30 years. He has played in a variety of bands and ensembles, studied music at the college level and taught music in schools. Alex says, he's "Just a being, interests include: existence and perpetually searching for the sonic palette of the universe while promoting the proliferation of kindness through aural communication...and other stuff too.
Steven E. Rushing (Musician) is thrilled to make his theatrical debut in The Business of Murder, providing the live musical backdrop for this incredible story. A lifelong musician and a Cloverdalian for close to a decade now, Steven specializes in playing the electric and acoustic guitar. He has previously performed at CPAC open mics, holiday parties, and gatherings for friends and family. He would like to thank the director and cast for welcoming him into the theater world, and his family for their endless support.
Christopher Johnston (Director) is a former board member and continuing contributor at the Cloverdale Performing Arts Center. Since 2016, he has acted in more than a dozen staged performances at CPAC, including Run For Your Wife, The Foreigner, The 39 Steps, Of Mice And Men, God Of Hell, and The Beard of Avon. Johnston’s own dark comedy, Schrödinger’s Cat Shed, was produced as part of CPAC’s inaugural One Act Play Festival in 2024. The following year, he won a NorBay Theater Award for Outstanding Lead Performance, for his portrayal of Winston Smith in George Orwell’s 1984. As a director, Johnston staged Sam Shepard’s True West and 2 Old Time Radio Plays (The Hitchhiker and Sorry, Wrong Number), for which he also wrote comedic interludes. He is thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to present The Business of Murder to the community of Cloverdale.
As always, Johnston thanks his family for their patience and support.
This play is dedicated to Dog Lips, Dull and The Slug, for fostering a lifelong appreciation of hardboiled fiction.