Who Saw Him Die ?

A thriller by Tudor Gates
Directed by Dale Kelly

Former Police Superintendent Pratt is driven by a desire to track down the criminal Jack Robin who has eluded him for so long. So when Pratt is summoned to Dr. Adcock’s surgery and is ostensibly presented with Robin's body, he is totally defeated.  But things are not what they seem and Pratt soon finds himself engaged in a duel of wits in this fast moving psychological thriller with a shocking twist.

Director’s Notes

Welcome to the Game!

    As old as man himself, since the first caveman stared across the fire and coveted the club of his fellow cave dweller, there has been lust, greed and avarice; fuel for crimes of every description.
    Often crude, but sometimes profoundly clever, the criminal mind executes its desires, a socially unacceptable situation that any society cannot tolerate.  Thus begins the game of Cat and Mouse, Cops and Robbers, Hunter vs Prey, Good vs Evil.
    The game is simple. Winner takes all.  Or is it?
    In any game, perception, rules, or morality can be moot.  Evil is in the eye of the beholder, and in this game, Cat and Mouse can be the same.

Good Hunting!
D. Kelly

Cast:

Superintendent Pratt - Ken Fynn
Once again, Ken is privileged to walk the stage of the Bernie Legge Theatre.  As President of Vagabond Players, Ken would like to welcome newcomers Peter, Karryn and Alex to our stage.  Ken was last seen as Dean Ravenswaal in Wrong Turn At Lungfish, while simultaneously, wearing the hat of Director, of the award winning production, This Is A Play.  Ken has been involved in community theatre for ten years, acting in many venues around the lower mainland.   He would like to thank Dale for casting him with such a talented group of actors. Ken finally gets to share some stage time with longtime friend, John.  Ken would like to thank you for supporting community theatre.

 
Dr. Adcock - John Cousins
John has been working in the entertainment industry for over eighteen years in both theatre and film.  He has performed various duties at the Bernie Legge Theatre, from stage management of This Year Next Year, direction of Out Of Order and acting in When The Reaper Calls and Rebecca.  Being a writer, actor, director and producer among many other relevant talents, John created his own opportunities, by creating the Out To Lunch Players (OTLP), a company that has produced a wide variety of entertainment and services.  This year, John co-founded On The Fence Theatre (OTFT), which produced Daniel MacIvor’s This Is A Play, which won Best Director, Best Actress and Best Production at the Vancouver Theatre Zone Festival as well as Best Production (One Act) at the B.C. Main Stage Festival.  Currently John is facilitating an on-going, peer-based workshop called Actors Wild and his future projects include a remount of Lil’ Red, Goldilocks and Aesop’s Tales as well as Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre with a Film Noir theme.  Later this year or next spring OTFT will be performing This Is A Play at UBC’s Frederick Wood Theatre.  John would like to express how thrilled he is to be working with this cast and crew (and you know who you are!) and send a huge thanks to Susan from the Little Britain (dust) and a special thanks to Desiree for all her love, support and belief.

Christine - Karryn L. Ransom
Karryn began her acting career in 1985 on the award-winning TV series Degrassi.  She earned an Honours B.A. in Drama and French, an Honours Specialist in Drama Education, and a B.Ed from Queen’s University. She has spent the past dozen years teaching high school Drama. Karryn made her Vancouver stage debut in the Metro Theatre’s production of Hotbed Hotel. She was recently featured in the book Generations about the original Degrassi cast, and will be featured in the forthcoming book Style Statement. Her writing has appeared in The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, National Geographic and the soon-to-be released: Notebook.  She can be heard on CBC Radio’s Outfront and seen in an upcoming print ad for BC Colleges. Karryn lives in New Westminster with her husband and their two daughters, Nicola and Rachael.

John Rawlings - Alex McGuire
Though new to the Vagabonds’ stage, Alex has performed in various productions around the lower mainland, including Tony & Tina’s Wedding with Hoarse Raven Theatre, The Anniversary, at Metro, Out Of Order with Deep Cove Stage and Are You Being Served? with NVCP.  Alex would like to thank Dale for giving him the opportunity to work with such a talented cast and crew. It’s been a rewarding experience working with all the Vagabond Players.  He hopes you will enjoy the show.
 

Police Constable Craddock - Janet Evens
Janet enjoyed performing in school plays. After coming to B.C. from Saskatchewan, she saw an ad in a local newspaper for auditions at Surrey Little Theatre and thought, “This could be fun!”  She auditioned and was cast as Joanne in Subject To Change. Well, that got her hooked and she has been involved ever since! When not treading the boards, she is doing the next best thing: stage managing, which she has done here with Vagabonds, at Surrey Little Theatre and Stage 43.  Janet thinks it’s great that Dale is giving her the opportunity to “stage-manage” herself. She is happy to be here once again, working with a great cast and crew, to whom she says, “Break A Leg, Gang!”  She also thanks you for coming to see the show!
 

Mick - Peter Naugler
New to Community Theatre, Peter Naugler's first success on stage was in placing first in the final rounds in an acting competition between Ontario high schools. It was in the lyric speaking division and for Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken. Prior to that Peter played a father in the St. Michael's College School production of Brigadoon in Toronto. He also played a Sandinistan soldier in a musical parody of The Vancouver Fringe Festival after studying acting with The Vancouver Arts Club Theatre in 1987.  He is honoured to be working with such a professional cast of actors and crew and to be accepted under the directorship of Dale Kelly. The production of Who Saw Him Die has become a most pleasurable experience.

Joseph - Reid Eiring
Reid is no stranger to our theatre, having appeared in numerous productions over the years. His credits include such plays as Ten Little Indians, I’ll Be Back Before Midnight, The Cat And The Canary and Sleuth. An avid fan of mystery, Reid likes a show with a few twists and turns.  He hopes you enjoy tonight’s deceptive thriller as much as he enjoys being a part of it. 

Director - Dale Kelly
A veteran thespian, Dale has been active in the performing arts for over thirty years. As a director, he has manned the helm of over sixty productions, the most recent being Radio TBS (The Trailer Park Broadcasting Scandal) at the Deep Cove Shaw Theatre.  Tonight’s presentation marks Dale’s eighteenth assignment for Vagabonds.  The list includes such shows as The Transylvanian Clockworks, Tainted Justice, The Lady’s Not For Burning and The Road To Mecca.  With his dark sense of humour and macabre point of view, Dale enjoys pushing the envelope of conventional performance.  “To experience and exchange ideas in a creative environment is the goal of any production.  To be part of such an association is to be immersed in the Passion of Theatre.”

Who Saw Him Die Promotional Poster created by Nathan Strijack