GreenMan Theatre’s ‘Smoking Gun’ to target film noir parody

Jim Zervas had always been a behind-the-scenes man, whether doing production or other camera work — until he stumbled upon an acting gig many years ago. Although he's never had any formal training, the Elmhurst resident took up acting as a fun hobby. He works in the production business for a living, but finds it interesting to occasionally take center stage.

Among the performance groups he has performed with is GreenMan Theatre Troupe, which is about to present its annual interactive murder-mystery dinner, a film noir parody with music called "Smoking Gun." Zervas portrays private eye Sam Spade. The Los Angeles detective will sift through clues as he contends with a loyal secretary, an ex-wife, mobsters, police officers, showgirls, movie studio chief, mailman and other characters.

Audience members will have their chance to share guesses about the culprit's identity during dessert. All winners' names will be thrown into a hat, and the person selected receives a prize. Guests are encouraged to dress according to the show's 1930s time period, with a prize in the offing.

What makes 'Smoking Gun' something out of the ordinary?
This is an entirely original script. The director, Carolyn Thomas-Davidoff, and co-writer Carl Zeitler … work on (a mystery) throughout the whole year. The show is also entirely interactive. We perform in the middle of the room, and characters are making entrances and delivering lines from all over. At some point, you'll have an actor or actress walk by you and deliver a line from right by your table. We don't make the audience do anything. Some guests think we will pull them out of their seats and make them dance or something, but we don't.

What is your character, Sam, like?
So here's a little backstory … What the writers do is they try to write characters who are obviously based on historical figures or figures from famous Hollywood movies from that time period. Sam Spade was actually created by the author Dashiell Hammett. (Our) writers still have the freedom to do whatever they want with the characters. I've been watching Humphrey Bogart in 'Maltese Falcon' … (for) his speech patterns and how he moves. He has this interesting posture. I try to pick up on characters, and how they use their body language and voice. I've been reading Hammett's books, because it's a very similar time period to what we're performing. The books are great, because you can get into the head of a detective a little bit.

What are you most looking forward to?
I enjoy performing. Really, I can say that my favorite time in a show is usually the opening weekend. The feeling of going out and performing and finishing a show up that everyone knows was a great show, a great effort. You get that feeling at the end, when you take a step back and see what you've all accomplished together. I also recognize how much work goes into it aside from the actors — the music, costumes, lights, stage managers and assistant stage managers. I like the community feeling and teamwork that goes into it. I also look forward to the improv side of things.

Cast members
The cast also features Carolyn Larsen and Carl Zeitler, both of Glen Ellyn; Marilyn Connolly, Courtney Knysch, Alice Rebecchi, Tom Hughes and Mario D'Agostino, all of Elmhurst; Derek Dillon of Buffalo Grove; Jimmy Harper of Elgin; Stan Kosek of Villa Park; Jerry Moore and James Silverstein, both of Lombard; Emily Nelson of Alsip; Amanda Raudabaugh of St. Charles; Vicky Giannini, Megan Hescock and Shazad Mehta, all of Chicago, and Erick Sosa of Franklin Park.

See the play

What: GreenMan Theatre Troupe presents dinner-mystery 'Smoking Gun," filled with song and dance, comedy and suspense

Where: Angelo's Ristorante, 247 N. York Road, Elmhurst

When: 6 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Feb. 22,  23, March 1 and 2; 5 p.m. Sunday, March 3; opening social hour has cash bar

How much: $50 for show and dinner

Contact: www.greenmantheatre.com, 630-464-2646 for required reservations