It was a cold, dark and windy night, the kind of wind that slices right through a lightweight spring jacket so I had no sympathy for my partner, Mr. Hicks, whose jacket was indeed too light. After finding a parking place as close as I could to the theatre we hoofed it to The Black Box to investigate its current show. My cover was blown…Lora Adams was at the ticket desk and she greeted me by name so Mr. H and I slinked into some seats and awaited the performance of The Adventures of Sam Steele penned by Quad Cities local Jeff Adamson of GIT Improv fame. The script – a pseudo radio play – is an amusing romp reflective of and presented in the style of noir crime dramas of the Golden Age of radio, circa 1930’s and 1940’s. I found it guilty…guilty of a highly amusing, laugh-fest chock full of local color and even some local history. The show is set in the studios of WHBF radio in Rock Island.
The plot revolves around private eye Sam Steele’s investigation of the mistaken murder of a local chiropractor who was adjusting more than the spine of the wife of a local reporter for the “Rock Island Argus.” Sam is hired by the reporter who believes he was the intended victim because he was soon to publish a story about a local gambling/money laundering ring. The action is rife with local references around the Quad Cities and cheesy puns (which are, of course, the best kind!). As in the Golden Age, Steele both narrates and performs and there is a hilarious running gag whenever Steele describes a new character – portrayed by the same actor – and the description is far from flattering.
This show will entertain any age group but will appeal much more to native Quad Citians of a “certain age” because the references to some or most of the locations no longer exist; for example, the Plantation Supper Club which morphed into the original flagship of Quad Cities Bank and Trust, and Marando’s Supper Club which has completely disappeared from the Milan skyline. In fact, “back in the day”, Jim Marando was actually prosecuted for SEC violations…I know because I sat on the jury at the tender age of 26.
This ensemble cast is a family affair with the playwright Jeff Adamson taking on the role of the police detective investigating the murder, his son Patrick takes on the role of Sam, and son Jim fills multiple roles along with Jessica White and Jeremy Mahr…a quintessential quintet of talent.
This is The Black Box’s third presentation using a radio play format so they are able to recycle the perfectly minimal set and one of the highlights in this format is that we see how sound effects were accomplished back then. It was definitely low tech but authentic and effective.
I hope Adamson has more scripts up his sleeve because this one is so much fun and I would love to see more. This show runs about 90 minutes with no intermission so it’s perfect for dinner and a show downtown with family that may be in for the Easter holiday.
The Adventures of Sam Steele continues at The Black Box Theatre, 1623 5th Avenue in Moline Thursday through Saturday, April 2, 3 and 4, at 7:30 p.m.
And a great big congratulations go out to BBT which is celebrating its 10th anniversary of presenting phenomenal theatre to the Quad Cities. Huzzah!
I’m Chris Hicks break a leg.