Serving Barnwell County and it's neighbors since 1852
The cast of Circle Theatre's production of "Clown Car" includes (from left): Jeff Miller, Dan Anderson, Virginia Nettles, Lyn Palm, Donna Creech, Jacob Sanders, and Rachel Hair. The play opens Friday, Feb. 17.
POZO, a clumsy clown who likes to rhyme. Portrayed by Jacob Sanders.
CHUCKLES, a proper British clown who is proud of his work. Portrayed by Jacob Sanders.
C.C., a clown who likes repetiton and questions. Portrayed by Lyn Palm.
DAHLIA, a mime who only communicates using her horn. Portrayed by Lyn Palm.
BACKWARDS BOBO, a clown who speaks backwards. Portrayed by Donna Creech.
SACCHARINE, a clown with a sweet tooth. Portrayed by Virginia Nettles.
Detective Artie (played by Jeff Miller), Detective Nick (Dan Anderson), and Dr. Amy Harris-Talman (Rachel Hair) are on the case in this comedic whodunit.
Murders abound as the circus comes to town for Circle Theatre’s new play, a comedic whodunit called “Clown Car”.
Marion Young, a veteran of the Circle Theatre stage, is making his directorial debut. As he searched for a light-hearted, fun play, “Clown Car” jumped out to him as something the community would connect with. He also knew he could find the right actors from Barnwell County’s talent pool.
“It’s a wholesome show for the whole family to watch and enjoy. It checks all the boxes for what I think our audience comes to see. Loads of laughs? Check. A clever whodunit mystery? Check. The chance to see your friends dressed like a clown on stage? Big check! So come on down to Circle Theatre, where the circus is in town and murders abound. Step right up and we’ll send in the clowns!” said Young.
The play, which opens Friday, Feb. 17, centers around eight clowns getting into a clown car but only seven getting out.
“It’s up to our two detectives to figure out who murdered Bubbles the Clown without letting the suspects drive them completely out of their minds,” said Young.
The first-time director said he couldn’t have asked for a better cast to bring these funny characters to life.
“They have put in the hard work of learning their lines and knowing the characters to bring them life, to the point that once they are in costume they can’t even be recognized. Off stage they put in the work helping each other with lines, building props and set, and especially words of encouragement to get through long rehearsals. Theatre, like with most things, is a team sport and when we don’t work together things can fall apart but with this team I know that won’t be an issue.
The experience has also been a fun one for the cast, who are excited to return to the stage.
“For me, this is more than a performance. It’s an opportunity to make people laugh. Even during rehearsals, we sometimes burst into laughter from our antics. Playing a clown gives me an excuse to deliver an over-the-top performance and try new things to entertain people,” said Jacob Sanders, who plays two clowns.
Lyn Palm has enjoyed being part of this production, which places her in very different roles from anything she’s done before. This includes a mute clown named Dahlia who honks a horn to answer questions.
“I hope everyone finds this show as funny as we have. Months into practice, we are still having trouble keeping straight faces,” said Palm.
Laughter has been Rachel Hair’s favorite component of this play.
“No matter how much we practice or go through the scenes, we always find something to laugh about. Most of time it's because one of us makes a scene funnier than the last time we practiced,” she said.
Playing a clown named Backwards Bobo has proved to be challenging yet fun for Donna Creech.
“I’ve enjoyed not having a ton of lines! I do love the silliness of playing a clown, but it’s been a huge challenge to memorize backwards lines,” said Creech.
The final suspect is Saccharine, a clown portrayed by Virginia Nettles. Though she’s been in many local plays, she’s enjoyed working with many new people.
“It’s been a great experience with a lot of laughing and lots of fun. I’m the little girl of the show. I love sweets, hence the name Saccharine, and am never without my lollipop. And like all the other clowns, I am a suspect,” said Nettles.
The task of identifying the murderer is up to two detectives and a police psychiatrist. Jeff Miller plays Detective Artie, Dan Anderson plays Detective Nick, and Rachel Hair plays Dr. Amy Harris-Talman.
“The clowns make it a humorous challenge for her (and the detectives) to figure out how to solve the case. But I love how creative she is in figuring out how to understand all the craziness the clowns throw at her. She has her own wit and humor that I have enjoyed finding through this play,” said Hair.
My character is an old, grisly detective trying to deal with a bunch of clowns, literally,” said Miller, who commends Young for doing a “fantastic job” during his directorial debut.
“My top rate producer, Beth Miller, and my amazing cast have made this show something I will never forget and will be forever proud to have been a part of,” said Young.
Performances are: Friday, Feb. 17, Saturday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m., Friday, Feb. 24, and Saturday, Feb. 25, all at 7 p.m., with Sunday matinees on Feb. 19 and 26 at 3 p.m.
“The play is really funny, and I hope Circle Theatre is packed for each performance," Miller said.
Tickets are $15 in advance and can be purchased at The People-Sentinel’s office at 222 Main Street, Barnwell. You can also call the newspaper office at (803) 259-3501 to pay with a card.
If seats are available, tickets will be sold at the door of the theatre (325 Academy St., Barnwell) for $20. Doors open 30 minutes before the show.
