CLC thriller is moody, complicated fun

About halfway through the complex proceedings of Central Lakes College's "Wait Until Dark," Bill Musel, playing a con man, barks out, "This safe! I've only just noticed it here!"

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It's one of several intentional pieces of overacting in the thriller, and a prime example of the head-spinning amount of levels on which director Patrick Spradlin's production must operate.

Musel is delivering the line to:

make blind woman Susy Hendrix (Sarah Dill) believe he had just discovered the safe.

let the audience know he is attempting to fool Susy.

let us know he thinks the missing doll is in the safe.

let us know the doll is probably not in the safe, because that would be too easy.

And, I suspect, the gregarious Musel is also going for laugh, which he earns.

"Wait Until Dark," which continues Monday-Thursday at the college, takes place one weekend in a 1960s-era Greenwich Village apartment. A trio of con men - Talman (Musel), Roat (Erik Steen) and Carlino (C.J. Anderson) - are searching for a heroin-filled doll.

Roat had engineered it so innocent Sam Hendrix (Bob Spear) would bring the contraband into the country. But when Roat breaks into the apartment, Sam is out of town and the doll is nowhere to be found.

With Sam's recently blinded and too-trusting wife Susy being home alone, the con men pose as various characters to get the information they need - Talman as an old friend of Sam's, Carlino as a police sergeant and Roat as a variety of oddballs.

"Wait Until Dark" was written by Frederick Knott and released as a film in 1967, but it feels more like a 1940s noir piece with its single set, stylized acting and the way it emphasizes sound (a ringing phone plays a key role) and light. The latter is usually not an issue to a blind person, but light - and the lack thereof - become important in a climactic sequence that evokes a horror movie; the creepy scene-change violin cues help set that mood.

If you go

What: "Wait Until Dark"

Presented by: Central Lakes College Theatre

Director: Patrick Spradlin

When: 7:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday

Where: Chalberg Theatre, CLC, Brainerd

Tickets: $5

Phone: 855-8199

Dill, reprising the Audrey Hepburn role from the film, does a convincing job of playing blind - not once does she seem to be cheating as she walks stiffly into tables, stumbles over misplaced chairs and lines up cubes to help her remember phone numbers. Dill does go over-the-top with her emoting, but in her defense, this isn't an easy role: Because some scenes are played in near or total darkness, subtlety is a luxury the actress was probably forced to abandon.

Elena Spradlin, the director's 11-year-old daughter, is suitably bratty as "Four Eyes" Gloria, a neighbor who helps - and often hinders - Susy with groceries and cleaning.

Steen, Musel and Anderson - three veterans of the area scene - have a blast in their roles, especially Steen, who gets to try on a variety of costumes and accents as the menacing ringleader. But the trio could stand to pick up the pace a bit from the Friday show I saw.

The action starts rather slowly, and it seems the crooks like con games a little too much: "This is like old times. We con 'em out of it!," Carlino says with glee. It might've been easier to simply call Sam and politely ask for the doll.

But if they did that, there wouldn't be a play, and that would be unfortunate. Because while "Wait Until Dark" isn't CLC's best production of late, it's certainly one of the most ambitious and fun, and it makes me want to check out the movie.

Grade: B+

JOHN HANSEN, entertainment editor, can be reached at john.hansen@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5863.