Unbound Productions presents
MYSTERY LIT: Holmes, Sherlock and The Consulting Detective
A fully-produced, immersive theatre event at the
Los Angeles County Arboretum, Santa Anita Train Depot
June 2 – July 1, 2017
Sponsored by the LA Arboretum Foundation
A theatrical mash-up of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “A Scandal in Bohemia,”
“The Red-Headed League” and “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches”
(PASADENA, CA) – Unbound Productions Executive Director Jonathan Josephson, Artistic Director Paul Millet, and Producing Artistic Director Jeff G. Rack have announced the details of the company’s first fully-realized evening-length play: Holmes, Sherlock and The Consulting Detective, which will run for 19 performances between June 2 and July 1, 2017 in and around the historic Santa Anita Train Depot at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden (159 S. Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007). The 105-minute. two-act piece will be staged as an immersive theatre event and is the first Mystery Lit production from the creators of the popular Wicked Lit series. The development of the play was originally supported with an Individual Artist Grant from the Pasadena Arts Commission.
“This is an extremely exciting time in the life of our theatre company,” said Josephson (Anansi and the Demons, Camp Mountain View – Wicked Lit 2016, 2013 Humana Festival) who also wrote the play. “The piece has been in development for several years and after staged readings at the Pasadena Central Library, The Huntington, Sherlocks in Brentwood, and last November’s event at the Arboretum, we’re thrilled beyond words to share this fully-realized show with our audiences.”
A highly theatrical piece, Holmes, Sherlock and The Consulting Detective will feature 12 actors playing upwards of 25 different characters. Audiences will physically follow three different plots through a literary labyrinth of clues and misdirection in a story that features Sherlockian mainstays, new characters, and a host of theatrical surprises.
“This is the beginning of what we hope becomes a tradition of bringing theatre to our landscapes,” said Richard Schulhof, CEO of the Arboretum who was first introduced to Wicked Lit and Unbound by Arboretum Board President Dan Foliart in 2015. “I have been very impressed by the work that this rising company has created and its ability to reimagine great literature with moving, living performing art is something I feel our members and broader community will truly enjoy.”
“We are very excited to be furthering our relationship with everyone at the Arboretum,” added production designer and set designer Rack (Wicked Lit 2016, History Lit 2016). “We hope that Mystery Lit is the first of many joint ventures together at this beautiful place.”
“People who love Wicked Lit are going to love this, too,” says Millet (Camp Mountain View – Wicked Lit 2016, The Girl Who Owned a Bear – History Lit 2016) who will direct the play. “From the most ambitious sets and costumes that we’ve ever had, to the way that the audience will move in the space, to the way that storytelling will blend in and out of a conscious theatrical reality – this is going to be a cerebral, entertaining play that folks are going to be talking about for years.”
The design team includes Rack (Set/Props/EFX), Kurtis Bedford (Production Builder), Hilda Kane (Lights) and Unbound Productions’ Ovation Award-winning designers, Drew Dalzell (Sound – Wicked Lit 2014 & 2015) and Christine Cover Ferro (Costumes – Wicked Lit 2015). Cast and crew will be announced soon.
The mission of Unbound Productions is to create immersive, theatrical adaptations of timeless stories.
Visit Unboundproductions.org for complete pricing and schedule details.
Holmes, Sherlock and The Consulting Detective
By Jonathan Josephson
Directed by Paul Millet
A theatrical mash-up of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “A Scandal in Bohemia,” “The Red-Headed League” and “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches”
It’s a Sherlock Holmes play times three! Follow three different mysterious plots through a labyrinth of literary clues and misdirection featuring Sherlockian mainstays, new characters, and a host of theatrical surprises. This production will appeal to theatre lovers and Sherlock super-fans alike. Recommended for ages 12 and up.
ABOUT THE SANTA ANITA TRAIN DEPOT
In 1970, an abandoned train station was moved from its original location a quarter mile north of the Arboretum and restored to look as it did when it was first constructed by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in 1890. A typical half-passenger, half-freight depot with living quarters upstairs for the agent and family, the Santa Anita Depot was an active local station stop for both Baldwin Ranch and nearby Sierra Madre residents. The Depot could not be moved intact, but all 100,000 of the original bricks were removed from the station as well as salvageable doors, trim, beams and even the picturesque Depot balcony. The Santa Anita Depot of today has been re-furnished with turn-of-the-century housewares and period railroad equipment to recreate the ambiance of the bustling station stop it once was. Visit the Arboretum’s website for details about guided tours of the Depot.
PERFORMANCES AND TICKETS:
June 2 – July 1, 2017, 8:00 p.m.
The performance will run approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes including one intermission.
SCHEDULE VARIES FROM WEEK TO WEEK – SEE WEBSITE FOR DETAILS
Tickets range from $40-$60
Members of Unbound Productions and the Arboretum can save $5 on tickets!
DRIVING DIRECTIONS
The Santa Anita Train Depot, 159 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007
Travel southbound on Baldwin Avenue, passing the Arboretum’s main entrance at 301 North Baldwin Avenue and turning right into the second driveway you reach, marked “Arboretum Train Depot.”
WICKED LIT PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEO
Photos: http://unboundproductions.org/photos/
Video: http://www.youtube.com/UnboundProductionsLA
ABOUT UNBOUND PRODUCTIONS
Founded in 2008 by Jonathan Josephson, Paul Millet and Jeff G. Rack, Unbound Productions is a nonprofit theatre company whose mission is to create immersive, theatrical adaptations of timeless stories. Since their first full production of Wicked Lit in 2009, over 25,000 patrons have enjoyed Unbound’s immersive theatre events at venues including Mountain View Mausoleum and Cemetery, Pasadena Museum of History, Greystone Mansion, and Strub Mansion at the historic Mayfield Senior School. The company has received commissions from the City of West Hollywood, The Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens and Pasadena City College to bring unique theatrical events to Southern California. Unbound has produced 34 world premiere plays throughout its history, some of which have gone on to be produced at venues across the country as well as Scotland, England and Cameroon. Unbound has been supported by the LA County Arts Commission, the Pasadena Arts Commission, the Spero Foundation and by over 150 contributing members. Since 2010, Unbound Productions’ designers have been nominated for seven LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards, winning four (in the same category as Center Theatre Group, Geffen Playhouse and other much larger producing entities).
