I want to personally welcome and thank you for joining us this evening to witness Kiski Area High School’s production of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. Even with a shortened rehearsal process, the cast and crew of students who have participated in this production have given hours upon hours of hard work and dedication to bring this suspenseful and mysterious show to life. We are excited to now share this exhilarating story with you.
Agatha Christie is one of the most renowned and best-selling mystery authors and playwrights. With a collection of over 100 works, she is the most widely published author of all time, being outsold only by the works of William Shakespeare and The Bible. Her publications consist of 66 detective novels including well-known mysteries such as Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express, and The Hollow. She then went on to adapt 13 of her novels into stage plays and write 20 additional stage plays - The Mousetrap being one of them.
Based on the true story of the O’Neill brothers, Terence and Dennis, Christie drew her inspiration for The Mousetrap as an 80th birthday gift to Queen Mary. Christie originally wrote The Mousetrap in May of 1947 as a 20-minute BBC radio play titled Three Blind Mice, donating her proceeds to a children’s charity. In 1952, Christie adapted Three Blind Mice to stage, changing the name to The Mousetrap. Due to its popularity, The Mousetrap still holds the Guinness World Record for the longest-running play.
As a note from the author - once the twist is revealed and the murderer’s identity uncovered, we ask that you not share the identity of the killer with anyone outside of the theatre. Oftentimes reviews would spoil the endings of Christie's works, and this upset our beloved author to no end. We want to make sure not to ruin the ending for audience members who plan to attend future performances.
I want to express my sincere gratitude for your support of the Kiski Area High School students as they have worked tirelessly to create the production you are about to see on stage. Visual and performing arts are vital to the creative growth and voices of our students - with confidence and community they bring stories alive on our high school stage. Performing, rehearsing, and learning together - I am grateful to share their love of the arts with you. Thank you for supporting Kiski Area High School, furthering these students' passions.
I also welcome you to join us this Spring for Kiski Area High Schools production of Back to the 80’s, March 2025!
-Kaylee Dixon, Director
