When Offshoot Productions’ new play, “Audition for Murder,” premieres in November, a strong cast, each boasting a rich theatrical background, will take stage.

Written by Paige Steadman and Susan M. Steadman, this audience-participation show features four meaty roles, including three actors auditioning for a play and one director with questionable credentials.

Vivian Fern, an experienced actor and seducer of men, is portrayed by Wendy Fulton-Adams, who has previously performed in several of the company's productions. Fulton-Adams holds a B.F.A. from the Professional Actors’ Training Studio, University of Illinois, Champaign, and also studied at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre, The Goodman Theatre and Second City.  Among her Chicago credits are roles in the opera “Dedo,” “Oedipus Requiem,” “Blood Relations,” “Threepenny Opera,” “Company” and “Uncommon Women and Others.”

Anne Griffins, who is trying to make it in theatre but has a day job as an investment counselor, is played by Nico Ward, whose stage credentials include plays for TellTale Theatre, Star Entertainment, Little Palm Theatre and elsewhere. She has appeared in a half dozen films, and has a long list of radio and television work. This is Ward’s first appearance with Offshoot.

The character of Toby Greene, enacted by Justin Sims, is an accomplished actor and flirt with a day job as waiter. Sims has appeared in many plays with Offshoot including two Shakespearean works and a number of children’s participation shows, and has served as fight choreographer. He holds a B.A. in theatre, film and media from the University of Georgia.  Other Atlanta-area theatres at which he has performed include the Process Theatre and Theatre Decatur.

The fourth character, Dr. Marcy Masters, is a stressed but professional director who is holding auditions for a murder mystery called “Every Actor’s Nightmare.” This role is filled by Parks Stamper, who earned a B.A. in theatre from the University of Tennessee and apprenticed at the Barter Theatre in Virginia. Stamper is an on-air talent for WFSH FM 104.7. Her stage experience includes “The Exonerated” for Jack in the Black Box, and plays in a variety of venues including Theatre with a Mission, Stage Door, and Knoxville Dinner Theatre.

“Audition for Murder,” which is a fundraiser for Offshoot’s educational and outreach programs, plays in dessert theatre November 3-11 at Tyrone’s Roger Spencer Community Center, 145 Commerce Drive. Shows are 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 3 p.m. on Sunday, November 5. After its initial run, the show will be available to other organizations for fund raisers, conventions, corporate functions and special occasions.

Tickets, which are $15 each and include dessert and beverage, will be available in advance at the Peachtree City Library, 201 Willowbend Road; by mail from Offshoot Productions (P.O. Box 2462, Peachtree City, GA 30269), or online at www.offshoot.org.

For additional information, contact Offshoot Productions at 770-631-2362 or offshoot pr@aol.com.

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