ELTC's Murder Mystery and Playwriting Weekends Return

The award-winning East Lynne Theater Company and The Henry Sawyer Inn's Murder Mystery Weekends and Playwriting-Get-Away return this winter.

There are four opportunities guests can test their sleuthing skills with Murder Mystery Weekends: January 18-19, February 22-23, March 8-9, and March 23 and 24. Retired Philadelphia police detective Frank Smith is on hand to provide just enough information to keep the investigation going. Packages include Friday night appetizers at the inn, dinner at one of Cape May's fine restaurants, breakfasts at the inn, and a dessert reception on Saturday evening - all while guests continue to gather clues to solve the crime. Cost is $349 for two people (plus tax) in a deluxe room; upgrade to a two-room suite for an additional $50.

The Playwriting Get-Away, on March 1 and 2, focuses on the "Ten-Minute Play." In 1990, The Actors Theatre of Louisville added the "Ten-Minute Play" to its annual Humana Festival. Since then, other theaters have followed suit, finding it an excellent way to discover new playwrights. Using exercises to trigger the imagination, participants are encouraged to create their own ten-minute plays during three workshop sessions, culminating in readings of these works read aloud by ELTC company members. ELTC's Artistic Director Gayle Stahlhuth, who has taught theater and playwriting in a variety of settings throughout the country, is heading up the workshop. Organizations that have commissioned her work include the Smithsonian Institution, Theatreworks USA, and the Illinois Humanities Council. Theaters that have produced her plays include Manhattan Theatre Club and Pennsylvania Stage Company.

Not only are the rooms at The Henry Sawyer Inn conducive to the quiet needed for writing, but the parlor and the dining room will be available for individual use, as well as for the locations for the workshops. Cost is $399 for two people and $299 for one (plus tax), which includes accommodations, breakfast, afternoon tea and treats for two nights, and the workshop fee.

For those not needing accommodations, the fee is $150.

Reservations for all of these weekends are made through The Henry Sawyer Inn by calling (609) 884-5667,(800) 449-5667 or going online to henrysawyerinn@verizon.net. For detailed information about the Playwriting Get-Away, contact East Lynne Theater Company at (609) 884-5898 or online at www.eastlynnetheater.org

ELTC is just as busy in the winter as it is in the summer and fall. The company is involved two-days a week with the after-school program for Wildwood middle school students, and will once more be working with West Cape May Elementary School students, guiding them in a production of "Rip Van Winkle" that will be performed on March 13 for the community. ELTC has several productions on the road, and its "Sherlock Holmes Adventure of the Norwood Builder" returns on March 15 and 16.

Contact ELTC for information about any of the above events as well as the 2013 season, season tickets, group sales, educational outreach, and touring productions.

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