Asheville School Drama presents "The Mystery of Edwin Drood"

Asheville School Drama will perform Rupert Holmes’ adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel of the same name, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” on Thursday, Feb. 23, and Friday, Feb. 24, at 7:15 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 25, at 2:30 p.m. 

If you have always wished directors would listen to your theories on how your favorite shows should have ended, this musical is for you. In this hilarious murder-mystery, the audience gets to vote on the ending based on evidence presented throughout the course of the show.

“A rollicking good time will be had by all at this telling of Charles Dickens’ last, unfinished novel,” said Director John Crawley. “At the point when Charles Dickens quit writing, the audience is asked to vote on several key plot points. Each performance has the potential to have a different outcome based on the audience’s whims.”

The students involved in the production are excited for the unconventional performance and recommend coming to more than one showing.

“The audience gets to be in the show, which is really cool,” said Asheville School junior Gelsey Beavers-Damron. “It is definitely worth coming to watch…it is a fun show for everyone, the choreography is great, the set is great, and it is going to be really good.”

Holmes’ “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” debuted in 1985 and won five Tony Awards in 1986, including Best Musical and Best Original Score.

“The Mystery of Edwin Drood” will be directed by Director of Music and Drama John Crawley and Dance Program Director Kathy Leiner; it will be performed in the Walker Arts Center’s Graham Theater. The shows are free and open to the public. Click here for directions.

Asheville School alumna Hallie Boyd ’10 is the show’s technical director.

The production stars the following Asheville School students: Hudson Dickinson, Gelsey Beavers-Damron, Mac Waters, Journey Dreyer, Elizabeth Thomas, Addie Trivers, Kate Cavanaugh, Willz Lyon, Max Milnor, Steffi Voigt, Atticus Sessoms, Jack Mulwee, Karen Mason, Emma Lane, and Amelia Leaphart.

The ensemble cast includes: Peyton Campbell, Annie Mainwaring, Celia Grace Sandoval, Ivana Xu, Mary Alice Faunce, Lily Formato, Sophie Zimmerman, Lily Fishman, Isoken Omoregbee, Karel Koon, Kerry Koon, Caroline Bleick, Ahlita Gopal, Vivan Yin, Cher Liu, Cynthia Li, and Emily Zuo.

Ella McIntosh is the stage manager and Marie Tankard is the assistant stage manager. Sean Bang, Andrew Bleick, Audrey Gee, Jack Karegeannes, Virginia Moore, Maddy Phillips, Ann Caton Smith, Oliver Smith, and Kerin Tsui make up the technical crew.

Asheville School is a nationally acclaimed co-ed, college preparatory boarding and day school for students in grades 9 through 12. The 289 students enrolled at Asheville School represent 20 states and 16 countries. Recent graduates have been accepted to Amherst, Columbia, Davidson, Duke, Elon, Emory, Furman, Georgetown, Harvard, NC State, Rhodes, Sewanee, UNC-Chapel Hill, University of Virginia, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, William & Mary, WashU, Wofford, and Yale among others.