Classic Detective Story Brings A Fantastic Mystery to UpStage Artists This September

Rick Bergmann (left), who plays Joel Cairo, works on fight choreography with director John Cusumano during a rehearsal for UpStage Artists’ The Maltese Falcon.

In The Maltese Falcon, Lieutenant Polehaus asks detective Sam Spade what the titular bird is made of. Spade responds, “The stuff that dreams are made of.” That is exactly what the creative team behind UpStage Artists’ production hopes to bring to the stage—the stuff that dreams are made of. The Maltese Falcon is based on the classic detective novel written by Dashiell Hammett in 1930 and later turned into the famous film starring Humphrey Bogart.

This particular adaptation is a world premiere, adapted from Hammett’s novel by local playwright and UpStage Artists Board President John Cusumano. Cusumano says his “love for The Maltese Falcon began many years ago as a fan of Hammett’s novel.” According to him, the novel is filled with “sharp dialogue, complex characters, and a moral ambiguity that defines the story.”

The story of The Maltese Falcon seems straightforward at first. A woman walks into a private eye’s office and asks for his help in getting access to her sister, who has taken up with a criminal. What follows is a series of lies, double-crosses, murders, villains, and a mystery that will keep audiences guessing until the end. To say more would give away too many details.

UpStage’s production features many actors new to its stage, along with a few familiar faces. Dylan Hernandez, in his second UpStage production, brings a smoothness and intensity to Sam Spade. Nancy Somers plays Ruth Wonderly, the archetypal 1930s femme fatale, in her third time crossing the boards at UpStage. Vedant Sharma returns as the mysterious Kasper Gutman after previously appearing as the sympathetic immigrant Marco in A View from the Bridge and the calculating Wyndham Brandon in Rope. The Beltsville News’ own Rick Bergmann plays the villainous Joel Cairo, whose loyalty lies with only one person—himself.

The production also welcomes several newcomers to the UpStage stage: Kelly Simmons as Iva Archer, Michaela Haber as Effie Perrine, Count Momo as Lt. Polehaus, Anmol Arora as Miles Archer and Wilmer “The Kid,” and Marc Ferrera as Lt. Dundy.

The Maltese Falcon opens September 18 and runs for seven performances through September 27. Evening performances are September 18, 19, 25, and 26 at 7:30 p.m., with matinee performances on September 19, 20, and 27 at 2:00 p.m. A special talkback with the cast and director/writer will follow the September 19 matinee.

Tickets for The Maltese Falcon are just $15 and can be purchased online at www.upstageartists.com. All performances will be held at Emmanuel United Methodist Church, 11416 Cedar Lane, Beltsville, MD 20705.

This September, UpStage Artists invites audiences to follow Sam Spade into a shadowy world where everyone has a secret, no one can be trusted, and one mysterious black bird may be worth killing for.