It’s perhaps the most senseless and tragic case in the mixed-up world of nursery rhymes.
One minute, Mr. Humpty Dumpty, a large egg-shaped fellow, was just innocently sitting on a wall, minding his own business.
The next minute, Dumpty’s found sunny-side up on the ground, shattered in a million pieces.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again.
The only thing left to do is examine the scene and figure out if it was an accident, suicide or fowl play?
Did someone hatch a plot against Humpty Dumpty?
That question will finally be answered as the Oxford Middle School Drama Club presents the comedic play ‘Law and Order: Nursery Rhyme Unit? on Friday, April 29 and Saturday, April 30.
‘It is one of those scripts that makes you laugh out loud just reading through it,? said OMS teacher and director Jack Gray. ‘This play is a fast-moving spoof on the whole crime drama genre. The show barrels through at a lightning pace thanks to quick and witty dialogue.?
Both shows begin at 7:01 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults. Students are free with a paying adult. All tickets will be sold at the door.
With Dumpty, played by Ben McBride, in pieces, it’s up to Detective Green (Chloe Straub) and The Punnish Sir (Jacob Westover) to crack this messy case.
Throughout the play, Detective Green does most of the actual investigating, while his partner scrambles to make puns as rotten as his name.
Together, these investigators follow leads to the homes of Jack Sprat and the Old Woman who lived in the shoe. They also visit a support group for nursery rhyme characters called L.O.S.E.R.S.
A veritable who’s who of classic nursery rhyme characters are featured in the play including Georgie Porgie (Steve Collins), Jack Be Nimble (Logan Mace), Beautiful Swan (Chase Donaldson), Jack Sprat (Greg Marshall) and his wife Mrs. Sprat (Sydney Ramey), Little Bo Peep (Hannah Mazurek), Little Boy Blue (Julian Messina), Mary Had a Little Lamb (Brittany Kleinschmidt), Mother Goose (Brook Viviano), the Old Woman Who Lived in the Shoe (Casey Wright) and Simple Simon (Mike Dobies).
‘There are some great moments of physical comedy and of course, quirky takes on well-known characters,? Gray said.
Other characters include one of the king’s horses (Mia Paese), the defense attorney (Aaron Smith), Doctor Foster (Alexis Hall), Judge Mental (Riley Brantley), the prosecutor (Gabby Barber), the narrator (James Todd) and Sal, a hard-boiled forensic scientist played by Hannah Briggs.
Will justice be served? Is somebody going to fry for Humpty Dumpty’s alleged murder? Is anyone else in the mood for breakfast? Head to the show and find out.