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EC Theatre Presents Golden Age of Radio

Elmira, NY (10/01/2020) — Inspired by the Golden Age of Radio, the Elmira College Theatre Fall 2020 productions will feature radio dramas from the 1940's.

The first performance, "A Five-Minute Mystery" is directed by Julissa Garcia Casiano '21, and is part of a directed study in Advanced Directing. The short piece allows Julissa to experiment with recording, sound effects and editing.

The production is based on "Five Minute Mysteries," a radio series popular in the mid-1940's. Each episode featured five mini-mysteries dramatized with actors, organ music, and sound effects. Solutions to each mystery were then suggested by a panel of listeners and studio guests.

Cast for "A Five-Minute Mystery," includes David Field '22 as the announcer, Josh Stuttle '22 as George, Kaylee Griffin '22 as Mary, and Cohen Root '21 as Sgt. Baker.

The performance will be released on the EC Theatre Facebook and Instagram accounts on Thursday, October 1. The performance is also available online as a podcast.

The Fall 2020 productions continue with "The Bickersons," created by Philip Rapp and Eddie Cantor. The show originally broadcast on NBC's radio network in 1946 and eventually moving to CBS running until 1951.

The sketches center around a married couple who truly live up to their last name and struggle to love each other out loud. Their comedic arguments are often nonsensical and repetitive, revolving mostly around John's incredible snoring problem and his wife's affinity for expensive things.

The EC production is directed by Sadie Kennett '20 and will be released at the end of October.

"Sorry Wong Number" by Lucille Fletcher wraps up the Fall 2020 EC productions in November. Originally broadcast in 1943, this mystery thriller, tells the tale of a neurotic invalid, whose only contact with the outside world is her phone. One night, because of a crossed wire, she hears plans for a murder, which turns out to be her own. Her frantic efforts to enlist help through the only means at her disposal, her growing terror and realization of the truth, and (along the way) the hints about her own life and personality she lets drop, make this a full character portrait not only of herself but of the unseen murderer, whose identity and motivations are surmised but never revealed.

The EC production is directed by Julissa Garcia Casiano '21.

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Inspired by the Golden Age of Radio, the Elmira College Theatre Fall 2020 productions will feature radio dramas from the 1940’s. The first performance, “A Five-Minute Mystery” is directed by Julissa Garcia Casiano ’21, and is part of a directed study in Advanced Directing.