The Clearwater Cast of Characters successfully wrapped up the three weekend run of their 20th anniversary dinner show, The Viewing Room, last week.

The newly written play centers around a dysfunctional family that comes together at the wake of the family patriarch who passed away before he had a chance to make amends with any of them, including an estranged son who returns home. Comedy and drama come together as the family tries to heal old wounds.

The play moves along through various revelations and surprises, culminating with the ‘deceased patriarch’ sitting up in his casket, leaving the audience with the feeling of both angst and redemption. 

The author, playwright Mark Edward Smith, says about his play, “We all want the chance for a ‘do-over’ in life; an opportunity to say and do the things we neglected to do.”

This year’s play was directed by Kent Asheim, who’s been involved with Clearwater Cast of Characters for around 17 years both as an actor and a director.

“It was a very unique play this year,” he said. “We’ve always done comedy, but this show also includes some drama and very good life lessons.”

“Our actors are very good at delivering punchlines. The challenge this year was to use pauses to create the sense of drama as well. It was also challenging to find a casket for us to use.” 

All their hard work paid off, as one audience member was left in tears at the show’s conclusion the first weekend.

Donna Stai, who has over 40 years of community experience, is the one who originally brought the idea of community theater to Clearwater after she moved to the area in 2000. The first production was On Golden Pond, performed for just one weekend in 2005. Clearwater Cast of Characters has since grown and performed every year with the exception of 2020 and 2021, when production had to be halted due to COVID. 

This year’s cast included Jack Schulte as Chester Dumbrosky, Sandy Ernst as Florence Dumbrosky, Rick Braun as Chet Jr. Dumbrosky, Jennifer Braun as Pattie Dumbrosky, Lawrence Salazar as Stephen Dumbrosky, Trysh Tellers as Debbie Dumbrosky, Dan Braun as Matthew Dumbrosky, and Jessica Dahl as Janice Danielson.  

A 501C non-profit organization, Clearwater Cast of Characters extended thanks to Rejoice Lutheran Church for their sponsorship and the community for their support.

Aside from money put away for next year, all proceeds from the production are donated back to the community. 

Clearwater Cast of Characters is always looking for people who want to be involved, both on stage and behind the scenes. Anyone interested is encouraged to contact the group through their Facebook page, facebook.com/clearwatercastofcharacters. Auditions traditionally start in December and practice starts two days a week in January.