The Suffolk Performing Arts Office brought comedy, drama and fishy mystery to the Keches room in Sargent Hall this past weekend for their dinner theater production, “Dead Men Tell No Tales.”
Not only did the show bring a suspenseful mystery to the table, but also a three-course meal. Audience members enjoyed an immersive experience that satisfied their appetite for both entertainment and food as they solved clues and connected dots.
The pirate-themed interactive theater was the 24th of its kind to be produced by Suffolk Performing Arts. Over the years there have been a variety of themes such as “Harry Potter,” “Star Trek,” “Star Wars,” a circus and they even performed virtually during the pandemic.
PAO has gotten dinner theater scripts from Samuel French, a play publishing company, but also from student and alumni writers. “Dead Men Tell No Tales” was written just for Suffolk by Rick Park, a Boston playwright. Kathy Maloney, PAO director, said that this allowed them to make changes tailored to the cast.
“Depending on who ends up in the roles, we do different things,” said Maloney.
One of her favorite parts of this show specifically, was watching it evolve through the cast and crew. She explained how the show added a “to be or not to be” skull reminiscent of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” simply because the cast and crew were playing around with one.
“My favorite part of the show is them playing and us finding, ‘oh my god that’s awesome. Let’s add that in,’” said Mahoney.
According to Maloney, this was also the first time the ending didn’t involve carrying away the murderer in chains. The ending was changed to feature a song so Julia Groover, who played Pearl, could show off her vocals.
Groover is a freshman journalism student. Although this was her first show at Suffolk, she has been involved in theater all her life.
“My mom used to take me to her rehearsals in a baby carrier, so I was always in a theater,” Groover said.
Groover also mentioned she was excited to be a part of this show because she had never done dinner theater before. She enjoyed learning how to interact with the audience and be involved in a different kind of theater than she was used to.
Quentin Boyd, a freshman theater major who played Shiva Me Timbers, also mentioned having never done dinner theater before. Interacting with the audience during shows is something he wanted to do in high school.
Mikayla Sanosi, a sophomore advertising major and creative writing minor, brought the character Kelpie to life. They came with a bit of dinner theater experience from high school.
“I’m glad that Suffolk does this because how often do you get to feel like you’re actually a part of a show that you’re watching?” said Sanosi.
Sanosi had all good things to say about PAO and the people involved in it. They also highlighted director Maloney’s significance.
“She’s the heart and soul of dinner theater, and it wouldn’t have happened without her,” said Sanosi.
Maloney said one of her favorite things about PAO is that anyone can be involved. Whether someone is or is not a theater major does not matter, neither does the amount of acting experience someone has. All are welcome and all can be a part of the family.
Breeyah Coulanges, a freshman journalism major, was in the audience. She said she has always loved theater, but she was also enticed by the food “Dead Men Tell No Tales” offered.
“When I saw you can pay with your meal plan, I was like, ‘heck yeah,’” she said.
Coulanges also praised the service by the cast and crew members, saying people came to her table frequently to ask if the food was good. After her experience, she hopes to attend more performing arts events in the future.
There are a few more PAO events to come in the current school year.
Sanosi said the arts are a huge part of a school’s culture, so if someone wanted to experience all Suffolk has to offer, they should check out some performing arts events.
Groover also encouraged Suffolk students to attend events, emphasizing the ticket discounts they would get.
“You’re guaranteed to have a good time,” said Groover.
The show’s director gave a similar sentiment.
“There’s so much talent in the students here at Suffolk, you should come and see what they can do,” said Maloney.
