If anyone had any doubts about the future of Clearwater Dinner Theatre, those questions have been answered resoundingly over the past three weeks.

The show had six sellout crowds for all six dates.

“We went into opening night with four nights already sold out,” said Director Suesan Betzler. “And that was two weeks before opening night.”

There hadn’t been any performances of Clearwater Dinner Theatre since the 2019 production of Fools, which was the 15th consecutive year the Clearwater Cast of Characters had put on a show for the community.

COVID put a halt to that in 2020 and 2021. But that didn’t stop the show from coming back this year, which ended up being Virgil and the City Slickers, a comedy written by Eddie McPherson. The cast had performed Virgil’s Family Reunion back in 2013.

Betzler says she read two different sequels before making her choice.

“I chose this one because it just made me laugh,” she says. “I could see Ellard (Jack Schulte) and could see Kent (Asheim) coming back as Virgil.”

But selecting a play was just one step. Betzler still had to get the actors on board.

“I didn’t make my decision until I called Jack and Colleen [Schulte] and asked them if they would be interested in coming back. They’d been off the stage for probably five years,” she said. “When they said, “yes” I started calling everybody else and said Jack’s coming back. I pretty much got yesses all around.”

After the Clearwater Estates Homeowners Association contacted her about using the event center for the production, it was time got get everybody together.

Auditions started in December. They started promoting the event in January and tickets were being sold in February. Rehearsals began early in 2022 and lasted right until opening night in late March. And the eager crowd loved every second of the play. There was continuous laughter, which was the whole point of the production.

In the production’s program, Betzler had written some of her thoughts about the experience of directing after COVID.

“This year has had its challenges, but the rewards happen with every practice, seeing the actors and actresses develop their characters. This group had me doubled over with laughter. I have laughed until I cried and have smiled more than I have for a long time. I needed this; the actors and actresses on stage have needed this, and my hope is that you leave after their performance tonight with a lighter heart and a smile on your face.”

They did.