Lying in wait to be revealed in the basement of Hatcher Hall is a complex murder mystery with gripping political undertones.
LSU Theatre will preview J.B. Priestly’s “An Inspector Calls” tonight at 7:30 in Hatcher Hall Theatre.
“This is a play that has received international acclaim,” said Vastine Stabler, head of marketing and public relations for LSU Theater.
Stabler said Priestly wrote the play in the early 20th century, and it gained popularity when it was revived on Broadway in the ’90s. “An Inspector Calls” has won 19 major awards in New York and London.
The play opens when an engagement celebration by the Birling family is abruptly interrupted by a knock at the door. The caller is Inspector Goole, played by theater junior James Rieser, with news of the death of a young woman. The plot thickens as Goole begins to uncover the murder, entangling every character in a complex whodunit mystery, and no one is safe from questioning.
“It really is a psychological thriller,” Stabler said. “The unraveling of exactly what is going on is intriguing in itself. It really shows how interconnected the world is.”
Stabler said Theater Department chair Michael Tick was so pleased with the progress of the play that he canceled the final practice to allow the actors to rest.
“Believe me, he would not have done that unless he really believed this play was ready,” Stabler said.
The opening of “An Inspector Calls” is tonight at 7:30 in Hatcher Hall Theatre. The play will run evenings at 7:30 and end with a matinee on April 2 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $8.50 for students.
 
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