Rare Twain Short Story Dramatized on Florida Stage

Mark Twain's short story "A Murder, a Mystery and a Marriage"--written in 1876--did not see the light of day until an obscure publication in 1945. It was not widely published and distributed until 2001--which is part of the reason why it was such a novel choice to be adapted into a musical play.

That's what playwright Aaron Posner and composer James Sugg have done. The production opens tomorrow to kick off the season for the Florida Studio Theatre.

The story of a betrothal between two young lovers in a small Missouri town interrupted when the suitor comes under suspicion of murder, it has been adapted with a few alterations to make it better suited to the stage, but that apparently hasn't taken anything away from the appeal.

"There's something dear and sweet in a very good way," director Pamela Hunt told Florida's Herald-Tribune. "It's very endearing, and there's an innocent sense of humor to it."

The show premiered two years ago at the Delaware Theatre Company. Posner himself staged a production at the Two River Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey last May.

Playwright Brings Diaries of Adam & Eve to the Stage

Written toward the end of his life, The Diaries of Adam & Eve is a much darker, more cynical work than much of Twain's canon. And now Harvard theater professor Joann Green Breuer has turned it into a play which is to run at the Martha's Vineyard Playhouse, according to the Martha's Vineyard Times.

Breuer reportedly adapted the work keeping every word of the original text intact, although she has been secretive as to exactly how it will be presented.

The show runs at the Vineyard Playhouse starting next Tuesday, and wraps up on Saturday, September 6.

Students Bring Tom Sawyer to Life in Summer Stock

The Marlowe Middle School in Huntley, Illinois will be presenting "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" as a summer stock production from tonight through Saturday. With students of all ages filling more than 30 roles, it's a new take on a Twain classic.

Producer Janet Burkhalter has added never-before-seen characters and scenes, as well as a pre-show segment intended to help place the audience in the period in which the story takes place, including candy and treats of the era, as well as a chorus singing popular songs of the day. Former Marlowe PTO official Kathleen Wiedenfeld will take on the persona of Aunt Polly and sell concessions out of Aunt Polly’s store, including lemonade, penny candies and popcorn, as well as period toys and games available for sale.

"The idea was to make it seamless, so people can’t tell where Twain left off and I picked up," Burkhalter told The Midweek News.

Big River Comes to Rapid City

Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn--the musical which debuted on Broadway in 1985--is currently being presented at Rapid City, South Dakota's Black Hills Playhouse, according to the Rapid City Journal.

Based on Twain's most celebrated novel, the Rapid City production kicked off last night, and will run until July 27. For more information, call the Black Hills Playhouse at 605-255-4141.