"Chat Room"

The new comedy "Chat Room" which debuted at the Bridge Theater, in the spring of 2005, was written as a result of the playwright suffering a broken leg.  Martin Kelly, producing artistic director at the Bridge Theater, wrote this play while he was housebound recovering from a severely broken leg.  Friends and business associated kept in close touch with him through e-mails and chat rooms, conversations that spurred his interest in a play.  As a result, the play concerns two people who find relief from loneliness with a chat room on their computers.  The play is a whimsical examination of two mature, bright& witty people who seek comfort in their loneliness  through an internet chat room, so familiar to people on computers.  The evolution of this relationship gives the play a breeziness that is infectious as the audience warms to the couple and becomes involved in their plight whole laughing with the characters as they deal with setbacks.  Bill Hickman and Sue Ingerson again teamed as a comic, romantic couple.

“The Recital”

A comedy/mystery and audience-participation show,  “The Recital” has been enjoyed by audiences throughout the Northeast for the past 17 years.  Written especially for the Riverview Entertainment Productions’ Company, the play brings an “over-the-hill” opera singer to a dinner party for one of the last recitals on her fifth-annual farewell tour of the United States.  She is due to return to Europe with her entourage the day after the dinner.  During dinner, the audience hears a variety of scenes involving the singer and her company that indicates that all is not well.  Something’s afoot!  Following dessert, the singer—Madame Elena Mishnakoff—proceeds to sing her first song after which she is quite testy because of lack of overwhelming response. She deigns to sing another song but before its completion, tragedy strikes which forces an interrogation to find out who murdered the victim.  Among the suspects are members of Madame’s entourage: her German manager, her Irish accountant, her French maid, her Russian secretary. her American accompanist and a  sleazy reporter from a tabloid magazine who’s been hired to get publicity for the tour.  Based on the intimate scenes heard by the dinner guests, they are prepared to offer suggestions on motive, opportunity and means (the Mom method) for the murder to help the investigator solve the crime.  The whole play is done with the seriousness of an old-fashioned melodrama so that the solution of the crime is fun-filled as the audience participates in providing clues and motives.  The murder and its solution takes about an hour following dessert.

"Marriage of True Minds"

...Gains wide audiance appeal.. The premiere of the “Marriage of True Minds” in July, 2004 at the unique Bridge Theater in Whitehall, NY was a continuation of the effort by the not-for-profit venue to maintain a historical concept for its summer seasons.  Since that premiere, the play dealing with the letters of John and Abigail Adams during their seven years of their separation has gained wide appeal. It has appeared in productions in Albany, NY and in Quincy, MA where both Revolutionary War figures lived and are buried.  Since its Quincy performances, the two-act play is being prepared for a tour of the Northeast. The play’s title, taken from a Shakespearian sonnet, celebrates the couple’s single-minded support of the American Revolution and their love for each other. Through excerpting their letters, Martin P. Kelly’s play provides the audience with a solid glimpse of John and Abigail’s involvement in the revolt and their personal lives through their own words. William Hickman, a veteran professional regional actor in the Capital District in New York State, has performed in the play as John Adams. The actor played Adams several years ago in Atlanta, GA in another play about the American colonial leader. Hickman is also an associate producer of Riverview Entertainment Productions. Rita Russell, another veteran theater professional from New York’s Capital District, performed as Abigail Adams production. She originated the role in the 2004 premiere in Whitehall.

 "Death in The Backstretch"

This popular comedy mystery, written especially for Riverview Productions, takes place four days before the running of The Travers Race at Saratoga Race Track in upstate New York. The action involves a dinner thrown by Douglas Van Cleeve for his associates and his backers to honor Wanderlust, his horse that will be running in the race. Van Cleeve, a former meat packer is married to Mandy, a lusty waitress he met in his hometown. His associates are Bobby Rangel, his horse trainer, who is married to Dahlia Rangel, a Kentucky socialite. The cast also includes: Jackie Sterret, the world’s oldest jockey, who will be riding Wanderlust in The Travers.  Jackie is traveling with Kitty, a wannebe rock singer with a dark past. Two other characters are: the security guard watching out for the trophy, and a tabloid newspaper person who has the dope on all the characters and not above sharing it quietly with the dinner guests. In the scenes among the characters during dinner, the guests find that they all have a past that gets more complicated. It leads to a murder shortly after dinner is completed. The dinner guests are asked to guided by the security guard in solving the murder.