There aren’t a lot of plays about blind folks, and the ones that have blind characters — or those with any other sort of condition that makes them differently abled — usually relegate these roles to secondary characters who add flavor to the overall story. They are the parsley on the overall plate of theater out there. It is sort of sad since such character conditions certainly add complexity to a storyline that able-bodied characters can’t muster.
There are few notable exceptions, and one of them is on the stage at Olympia Little Theatre through the end of the month.
The theater is staging Frederick Knott’s classic blind-woman-goes-good thriller Wait Until Dark, where a blind woman and a young girl find themselves fighting for their lives as they seek answers to why a trio of criminals will stop at nothing to get them.
This 1960s suspense thriller starts out like most crime stories — with a crime. Con man Harry Roat (played by Ward Glass) and his two sidekicks pull off the perfect crime and then fall into the path of a recently blind housewife, Susy Hendrix (Amy Hill). The story quickly turns into a mind game with high stakes as Roat first charms and then terrifies the woman in his effort to gain control of a doll that has a story of its own to tell.
A parade of clues and suspense march their way through the play like a parade of ants following bread crumbs for the audience to find and piece together for a full meal of entertainment. Knowing that Knott also wrote Dial M for Murder provides audiences with a bit of a taste of what they should expect from this show since that play too has plot twists and turns as it rolls through the clues.
Most folks will know the show from the movie adaptation by the same name starring Audrey Hepburn, Alan Arkin, Richard Crenna, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., and Jack Weston.
The 1967 film is ranked 10th on Bravo’s 100 Scariest Movie Moments for its final scene that puts the blind housewife at a clear advantage over her attackers.
The show experienced a Broadway revival a decade ago starring Marisa Tomei, Quentin Tarantino and Stephen Lang.
[Olympia Little Theatre, Wait Until Dark, through Nov. 30, 7:55 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 1:55 p.m., $10 to $12, 1925 Miller Ave. N.E., Olympia, 360.786.9484, olympialittletheater.org]
Also on stage
- Stardust for Christmas: One of the most anticipated holiday traditions at the Dunkelberger household is the annual Stardust show at Harlequin Productions in Olympia. The theater stages an original work every year that centers on the goings-on of a troupe of lounge singers at the Stardust Club in the year leading up to, during and immediately after World War II. Singers find themselves in uniform and ship out to fight the Axis powers. Other singers get married only to receive telegrams that all is not well on the front lines. The story of these performers plays out in this play within a play year after year.
This year’s installment is Stardust for Christmas, the 14th in the series of freestanding, but ultimately linked, stories. Set in December of 1941, this show takes audiences to the beginning. The nation is in shock after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the holidays are coming.
[State Theater, through Dec. 29, 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, with special added dates, $34-$38, 202 E. Fourth Ave., Olympia, 360.786.0151, www.harlequinproductions.org]
- A Tribute to the Rat Pack: Nothing beats a tribute show. A Tribute to the Rat Pack, a benefit with legendary Las Vegas performer Gary Anthony presents the best of the Rat Pack, with performances by Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martin, to benefit All About Hope — helping people in tough economic times.
[Washington Center, Sunday, Nov. 23, 7 p.m., $35-$65, 512 Washington St., Olympia, 360.753.8586]
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