Deadly Anniversary

Mayhem is on the menu for a post-Valentine’s Day murder mystery.

By: Jodi Thompson
   Some people buy roses. Others give chocolates or jewelry. A lucky few escape to a cozy bed and breakfast in a quaint town or a lavish hotel in the islands. Still, there are some people for whom a Valentine’s Day celebration would not be complete without a fancy dinner and champagne served with a murderous mystery and some raucous laughter.
   For those mirth-starved individuals, J&T Talent of Yardley offers Happy Deadly Anniversary at Northampton Valley Country Club in Richboro, Pa., Feb. 16.
   Under the guise of a 25th wedding anniversary for Charles and Nora Bennett, guests become friends and family of the unhappy couple. But hide the steak knives, because one of the celebrants is bent on murder. Just who it will be and who is responsible is anyone’s guess. Enjoy the dinner and open bar while you laugh at the antics of the attendees.

Morrisville residents Donna Ryan (front) and David Mulholland, and Philadelphia resident Linda Axelrod will conspire for a murder mystery at Northampton Valley Country Club Feb. 16.

   Don’t worry that you’ll be dragged kicking and screaming from your filet mignon to read some lines.
   "We don’t force anyone to do anything," insists Joanne Bradley, president of J&T Talent. "There are always people who want to do it."
   Free-flowing libation couldn’t hurt, however. Ms. Bradley says her troupe of professional actors keep the action going.
   Morrisville resident Donna Ryan portrays Nora Bennett, a heavy-drinking socialite looking outside her marriage for entertainment. Ms. Ryan appeared recently in My Fair Lady at Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia as Mrs. Pearce. Locally, she played Momma Morton in Bristol Riverside Theatre’s production of Chicago.
   Linda Axelrod portrays the Bennetts’ maid, and Mr. Bennett’s dalliance, Marietta Moore. Ms. Axelrod, a Philadelphia resident, has appeared with Charles Durning in NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Streets.
   "These people are pros," Ms. Bradley says of her actors. "They’re a really strong improv group. They’re all professional actors. They are so fast at improv."
   Evidently, the actors enjoy the evening as much as the audience. During more scripted corporate events, they must make an effort to be p.c. At murder mysteries, they "can go a little wilder," she says.
   "These (murder mysteries) are comedies. They are totally outrageous. We get the people so involved, we get it to the point that the audience is screaming and yelling at us, and that’s what we want.
   "I believe that everyone wants to be an actor, everybody wants their time on stage. They want that 15 minutes of fame. They get the opportunity to do something crazy when they go out like this, which I think is great. It’s like a great medicine for people."
   Laughter has certainly worked its magic for Ms. Bradley. The Newtown resident has been a performer for 23 years. Sixteen years ago, she approached a fork in the road. She’s pleased with the path she chose.
   "I’m a very lucky lady," she says. "I’m 55 years old and I’ve got it all. I went through a divorce and it was like starting over again. I took a loan out on the house and it’s all worked."
   While at Washington Crossing Inn one evening years ago, Ms. Bradley met the owner of Settler’s Inn in Medford Lakes, N.J. He was trying to find something to bring people into his restaurant. Ms. Bradley pitched the idea of a murder mystery and she was in business. She hadn’t even attended one before.
   Ms. Bradley says the murder mystery dinners were very successful for 10 years until Settler’s Inn burned down. That unfortunate incident just produced another road sign: corporate events. The bend in the road seemed perfect to her, despite obvious potholes.
   "Corporate’s so straight and being an actress, I’m totally outrageous," she says.
   It must have been a shortcut to Nirvana. J&T Talent has grown to become a popular entertainment specialist, planning high-end parties, corporate events, team building and product introduction for companies as local as Prophet 21 and as global as Citibank.
   "And it all started with the mysteries," Ms. Bradley says. She’s worked with Northampton Valley Country Club many times on corporate events and has been especially pleased. This is the first time they’ve hosted a murder mystery at Northampton.
   "I do love the club," Ms. Bradley says. "It’s a wonderful place."
   She also loves the people she works with at J&T. Barbara Helwig, vice president of J&T, is at the wheel while Ms. Bradley performs in Sophie, Tottie and Belle in Sarasota, Fla. She portrays Belle Barth, a rather risqué "female Lenny Bruce."
   "I’m in a hit," says Ms. Bradley. The musical comedy has been held over through February. "It’s been kind of fun, but my company’s where my heart is and the murder mysteries were really the reason we succeeded because that’s how we started."
Happy Deadly Anniversary is presented at Northampton Valley Country Club, Route 532, Richboro, Feb. 16, 7 p.m. Cost is $49 per person, including show, choice of entrée, champagne, open bar and dessert. For information and reservations, call (215) 355-2234.