By Samantha Swindler / Managing Editor

Authors are dropping dead onstage during Corbin High School’s latest theatrical production, “Murder by the Book.”

In CHS’s first performance of the season, nine members of The Raven Society, assuming the persona of their favorite authors of classical literature, have arrived for their annual weekend retreat in which they review new mystery novels and award one the coveted Smoking Gun Award. 

The worst novel is given the Dagger Award, in which a dagger is stabbed through a copy of the book. 

The public, it seems, trusts the suggestions of the mysterious Raven Society — last year’s top choice, “Quill of Death,” made millions and is on its way to becoming a major motion picture. Last year’s loser, “Army Corpse of Engineers,” however, did miserably in sales and was effectively killed by the society’s criticism. 

At the onset of this year’s meeting, the author-impersonators receive a letter threatening to put each of them “out of print.” And within minutes, the first author falls dead. 

Even after the murders begin, the characters never reveal their true identities and continue to act as their author personas. The play presented unique problems for some of the young cast — many of whom were unfamiliar with their characters’ work.

“I had never heard of her before, which is pretty sad because she’s the best mystery writer of all time... but I did research on her,” said senior Michaela Ousley, who portrays Agatha Christie. “There are a lot of references to literature and some of it we didn’t understand because it’s so old, and I actually had to do research in order to understand my character and learn how to say some of the lines so that they made sense.”

Kyle Kimball takes on the role of Samuel Clemens, known widely by his pen name, Mark Twain. Kimball, a senior, rejoins CHS Theatre after taking a few years off to play basketball; a torn ACL keeps him from the team this year. 

Kimball, clearly one of the most dominating voices on stage, was the easiest to cast, said Director Schann Mobley. 

Sophomore Martin Jones, in his sixth CHS production, is the poet Edgar Allen Poe, and also the founder of the Raven Society. Poe teams up with Agatha Christie to identify the murderer. 

“It’s not the typical murder mystery where it’s a rich person and a crazy person, that’s what a lot of murder mysteries are,” Martin said. “This is actually unique and I think everyone will really enjoy it. 

Mobley said “Murder by the Book” is longer than the school’s past dinner theater productions. With a running time of about an hour and a half, it also has a “pretty intricate plot” that will keep the audience guessing until the end, she said. 

Donning a wig and period clothing, Evan Baylor portrays the womanizing William Shakespeare. Heidi Clark is Louisa May Alcott, author of “Little Women.” Taylor Moody is Mary Shelley, who penned “Frankenstein” by age 19. Jessie Asher portrays Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, writer of the “Sherlock Holmes” books. Myranda Carpenter, Mobley said, bears a striking real-life resemblance to her character, “Jane Eyre” author Charlotte Bronte. 

Dakota Dean is Emily Dickenson. This is Dean’s first CHS production but she started on stage at a young age, joining University of the Cumberlands’ cast in “The Sound of Music” as a young child. 

Katie Noble portrays the only character not based on a famed writer — the housekeeper called on duty during an unfortunate weekend when the guests are getting murdered.

The play was written by Craig Sodaro in 2001. Mobley has taken on the production with the help of assistant director Candy Jones. 

And though the play pulls inspiration from classic authors, Mobley insists that audience members with even limited literary knowledge can enjoy the show.

“Because their characters are so distinct, they have such big personalities, it creates a lot of drama and some really interesting situations, and so as the play progresses, there’s a lot of action,” she said. “... the plot becomes really intricate and interesting, and even if you don’t know who any of these people are, it’s a really fun show to watch.”

This is Corbin High School’s third dinner theater, which has traditionally kicked off the school’s theatrical season. Upcoming performances include “The Nutcracker” Dec. 10-12 and the musical “Annie” April 15-17 and 22-24.  

Tickets for the 6 p.m. dinner have sold out, but tickets for the play, which starts at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, are $10 and can be purchased at the door. For more information, visit www.redhoundtheater.org.