Mr. Olden is dead. His adult daughter, Connie, is coming to contest his will. Among his most treasured belongings are a yacht, famous paintings and an antique car collection. But there’s a problem: Those prized possessions have disappeared “off the books” — and no one knows who has them.


Further complicating things, it turns out Mr. Olden was a bit of a philanderer — he has had affairs with three different women in recent years, all of whom later got involved with Mr. Olden’s butler.

“Who’s in Bed with the Butler?” is a comedy-mystery, and it takes the stage this weekend at West Branch High School.

Jordan Arp, who plays Susie Legere, said Mr. Olden’s will gives the generous gifts to his “bimbos,” but they don’t yet own them. And they show up looking for what the will says is rightfully theirs.

Arp’s character gets thrown in the mix when Clifton, the butler, hires her to act as his wife to try to keep the three old flames at bay.

“We’ve added a lot of stuff,” Arp said. “It should be pretty funny.”

Loren Hemingway plays Clifton, who was Mr. Olden’s butler for the last 10 years.

“I actually like the (three) ladies,” he said of his character. “But Mr. Olden’s daughter wants all the money.”

This is Hemingway’s first play, and he is in one of the biggest roles.

“It’s fun being in the cast,” he said.

Jacob White plays William Davis Jr., the hapless private detective hired to investigate the will.

“He’s a bumbling idiot,” White said of his character. “He thinks he’s intelligent, but when he tries to use big words, he says the wrong words.”

Brianna DeJong is Agnes, an old, hard-of-hearing housekeeper who is obsessed with her pet rat, Oscar.

“She’s self-centered and creepy,” DeJong said of Agnes. “And she’s sort of useless as a maid.”

DeJong said the play mixes a lot of very different characters who have to work together to figure out the mystery.

“It’s a good farce,” she said. “It’s got a good plot line.”



IF YOU GO

“Who’s in Bed with the Butler,” a comedy-mystery, will perform 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7 and 2 p.m. Nov. 8 at West Branch High School.