3x3 Three Minutes, Three Questions Pamela Marks

The cast of “Granny’s New Beau” will play murder for laughs Saturday at the ARC in Bella Vista. The play evolves around the mysterious death of a hot young gigolo who has been favored by dear Granny Grantham.
The cast of “Granny’s New Beau” will play murder for laughs Saturday at the ARC in Bella Vista. The play evolves around the mysterious death of a hot young gigolo who has been favored by dear Granny Grantham.

Pamela Marks says she came up with the idea for Tableside Theater "after directing some mystery dinner theaters for the Village Players when I served on their board of directors."

"I had such a great time doing the shows, and then The Village Players were no longer doing them," she explains. "I came up with the name Tableside Theater because I wanted a concept that simply include food paired with theater."

FAQ

‘Granny’s New Beau’

WHEN — 7 p.m. Saturday; doors open at 6:30 p.m.

WHERE — Artist Retreat Center in Bella Vista

COST —

INFO — 268-6463

This Saturday, that idea will be served up at the Artist Retreat Center in Bella Vista, which is expanding its offering from classes and concerts to theater for the first time. Busy getting ready, Marks answered these questions for What's Up!

Q. What kind of shows are most popular? Are they all original?

A. People really enjoy the mystery dinner theater shows. They are very funny, and the audience enjoys solving the mysteries. I always ask people to write down an explanation for their choice of suspect and to be creative. They come up with some hilarious reasons and scenarios for who did it and why, and the cast shares those with the the audience. We also have a comedic one act called "Laundry and Bourbon" that is a crowd favorite. It has some very lively, physical comedy in it but also some poignant moments. We've really focused on comedy for the sake of having a light-hearted, fun evening, but we are open to all kinds of material.

Most of what we do is original. Local writers Michael Mondl and Jennifer McClory have written for me. Jenn was there for me when I was first getting Tableside off the ground, and she really supported me and helped me get launch it. I've been given a lot of creative freedom to customize the scripts, and I'm very grateful for that. I would love to share work from more local writers. We have such a great talent pool here in Northwest Arkansas.

Q. Is there a company of regular actors or do they change by show?

A. I have some regulars that have been in many of my shows, but I'm always adding new talent and faces. I like [to] include new people while working with my great friends that have been with me since I started this. I absolutely couldn't do this without the help of my very dear friend, Hope Holmes. She has been involved with every show in some way. She is an extremely talented, dependable, lovable ball of energy! Another friend, Kim Eckert, has jumped in and saved the day on numerous occasions when I needed someone fast, even when she hadn't planned to do a show at the time. She is very talented, versatile and willing to do whatever we need. I have amazing people who support me and make this possible.

Q. How long is the show? And how do you interact with the audience?

A. The show is about an hour; that's the length of most of our shows. We perform very close to the audience. We don't have that 20 foot separation between stage and audience that is normal for traditional theater. It's what one of my friends calls "in-your-face theater." The audience isn't part of the show, but the cast does break the fourth wall to play to them at times. And of course, the audience will be casting their votes for who they think did it, and we will share their funny, creative answers. We never pull someone into a show without first making sure that they are someone who who would be comfortable with being included. We don't ever want to make anyone uncomfortable. Tableside Theater is about having a fun, relaxing time while enjoying good food.

-- Becca Martin-Brown

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NAN What's Up on 06/24/2016

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