DeSoto Family Theatre in Southaven decided to begin the Halloween season early this year by showcasing Agatha Christie’s murder-mystery “And Then There Were None.” Considered a master of suspenseful writing, Christie’s story of hapless house guests comes to life onstage at the Landers Center Theater, DFT’s home, from Sept. 4 through Sept. 13.

With over 100 million copies of the book sold worldwide, and being translated into over 100 languages, “And Then There Were None” is considered to be Christie’s most renowned story.

Cara Smith, who has served as a DFT board member for five years, undertook the task of directing Christie’s timeless tale of trepidation.

“We’ve never done a murder mystery or anything like that,” Smith says. “So it’s brand new to our season repertoire.”

Christie’s story centers around a group of unsuspecting houseguests who have been invited to a cliff-side mansion by a mysterious and unknown host for a weekend stay. During their visit, the guests are murdered one by one. This leaves the remaining guests shrouded in fear, suspicion, and overwhelming tension as they each suspect one another to be the cold and calculating killer, all while worrying which of them will be the next victim.

As patrons enter into the lobby of the theater, they are met with elegant decorations, similar to those that don the set for the play. Golden curtains gracefully drape the walls, tiny Indian statues, no more than six inches tall, and a plethora of Christie’s books adorn the ticket table in the lobby. Hanging on the wall behind the table is a giant, framed print of the poem “Ten Little Indians,” which is the basis for Christie’s book. Undoubtedly, theatergoers are immediately transported to the setting of Christie’s story the moment that they enter into the theater.

Perhaps the most intriguing of the decorations in the lobby are 11 glass mason jars, each one labeled with the name of a character in the play, that are evenly spread out across the ticket table.

Christy Wilbanks, DFT board member and producer for “And Then There Were None,” explained that the jars not only served as decorations, but also promoted audience participation, as well as serving a greater purpose. DFT’s next show will be “Miracle on 34th Street,” for which they have scheduled a private performance for autistic children and their families.

“Here at DFT we like to appeal to all of our audiences,” Wilbanks stated. “And we have a big group of children on the autism spectrum here in DeSoto County. So, for our Christmas show, we’re going to have a show that’s just for them, where the lights are on and the kids can get up and move around if they want to and make noise.”

The jars on the lobby’s table serve as both conversation initiators and donation collectors.

“At intermission,” Wilbanks continued, “the audience can come out and drop change into the jar of the cast member that they think committed the crime, or is the murderer, and all that money is going to go to help make the show possible for those children.”

Ashley Kirk, who serves as house manager for “And Then There Were None,” was overly pleased with the audience participation during intermission.

“They were so excited,” said Kirk. “And they couldn’t wait to come and pick their person and put their change in the jar.”
Following the curtain call, the audience and cast mingled together in the lobby, enjoying food and drinks provided by DFT, as is customary for every opening night performance. Many audience members either gloated in the fact that they had suspected the correct character to be the killer, or laughed at how wrong they had actually been in their suspicions.

“Opening night was a huge success,” Wilbanks said with a smile.

DFT encourages anyone who is interested in becoming involved with their nonprofit organization to visit their website at http://www.dftonline.org.