Delayed by COVID-19, Mid-Ohio Valley Players production finally opens
Mid-Ohio Valley Players volunteer usher Robin Parsons, left, takes the temperature of Parkersburg resident David Sommerville as he and his wife, Lynn, arrive at the Marietta theater for Sunday’s matinee performance of “And Then There Were None.” (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Patrons take their seats before Sunday’s performance of “And Then There Were None” at the Mid-Ohio Valley Players Theater in Marietta. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Patrons arrive at the Mid-Ohio Valley Players Theater in Marietta Sunday for a matinee performance of “And Then There Were None.” (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Mid-Ohio Valley Players volunteer usher Robin Parsons, left, takes the temperature of Parkersburg resident David Sommerville as he and his wife, Lynn, arrive at the Marietta theater for Sunday’s matinee performance of “And Then There Were None.” (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Patrons take their seats before Sunday’s performance of “And Then There Were None” at the Mid-Ohio Valley Players Theater in Marietta. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Patrons arrive at the Mid-Ohio Valley Players Theater in Marietta Sunday for a matinee performance of “And Then There Were None.” (Photo by Evan Bevins)
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MARIETTA -- To say the cast and crew of "And Then There Were None" have been waiting a while to perform would be an understatement.
"We were ready to go on last March, and we got shut down" the week the show was supposed to premiere, said Vanessa Rake, assistant director of the production for the Mid-Ohio Valley Players.
Live theater and a host of other activities were curtailed by Ohio officials in an effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
On Friday, the Players' theater on Putnam Street in Marietta opened its doors to welcome patrons back in for a show, just the third in-person performance since COVID-19 made masks and social distancing a part of day-to-day life. As with performances of "The Messenger: A Conversation with Edgar Allan Poe" in October and the Youth Theatre production of "Gothic Ghost Stories" in November, the audience was capped at 45. Those attending were asked to keep their masks on throughout the performance and space out in the 221-seat theater to maintain social distance. Temperatures were taken as people arrived.
"We've had great shows," Bonnie Rake, vice president of the MOVP (and Vanessa's mother), said before Sunday's matinee. "The tickets are going very fast. If they can't come this weekend, they're making plans to come next weekend."
The remaining shows are slated for 7 p.m. Jan. 28-30.
Most of the cast remained the same from the spring of 2020, although a few changes were made. Actors were masked at all rehearsals, although only one wore a face shield during the performance, Vanessa Rake said.
"The stage is big enough for everybody to spread out," she said. "The cast dwindles one by one."
Anita Newhart, the financial director for the Players, said she was glad the theater had enough space to make using only 15 percent of its capacity, per state guidelines, viable.
"These people have put in a year of work," Newhart said. "It's just marvelous we finally got a chance to put it on."
MOVP President J.R. Wells, who plays Rogers, said it was good to get to perform after a year of preparation and it will be good to finally move on to other roles.
"It's nice to be able to put our characters to be displayed and put them to sleep at the same time," he said. "We had quite a long time to get into the mind of the character."
Waverly resident Tomi Bennett came to Sunday's performance with her sisters to support a family member in the cast.
"We haven't been anywhere" since the pandemic started, she said. With the steps the theater was taking, "I feel like it's a safe environment," Bennett added.
Actors Guild President David Rexroad said he's looking forward to getting performers and audiences alike back in the group's downtown Parkersburg theater, after months of online offerings. He expects an eventual return to be discussed at an upcoming board meeting, but he doesn't anticipate that happening until perhaps late spring, after more people have been vaccinated and rules have been updated.
"I just think it's a little too soon to be doing this," Rexroad said.
Shows planned for last year and some smaller options are being considered, he said.
"Believe me, we want to come back in the worst way possible," Rexroad said.
Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.