Wendy and I are currently rehearsing for Union Street Players’ production of Night of January 16th penned by acclaimed author Ayn Rand (Atlas Shrugged, The Fountainhead). It’s a Law & Order-esque courtroom drama about a sensational New York City trial in the mid-1930s. A Donald Trump type business mogul with no scruples and many enemies is found dead. His secretary and jilted lover is accused of the murder. The fun thing about the play is that the jury is seated with 12 members of the audience and they decide the ending of the play with their verdict.

Because it is a courtroom drama, most of the characters in the play do not interact with one another on stage. So, to have a little fun the show’s director threw a party on Friday night. Each of us were to dress for the party as our characters might dress in today’s fashion. For the first hour or two of the party, we interacted with one another in character and mingled, trying to learn more about each other. After a while the director called us together to take a little quiz with prizes going to those who could identify certain facts about the most characters.

It was a fun evening. Wendy plays an exotic dancer and I play an Irish gangster and crime boss. We had a fun time hanging out and chatting with our fellow cast and crew members, both in character and as ourselves.

The show is Thursday, March 29th through Sunday April 1st. Tickets can be purchased on-line at www.unionstreetplayers.com.