No "real" murders in Marshfield

MARSHFIELD – It wasn’t real.  There was no murder in Marshfield this month.

Bodies under sheets, “chalk” outlines, police tape, weapons – all were part of a photo shoot for the UW-Marshfield/Wood County Symphony’s production of “The Murder of Marsha Field.”  (Get it?  Marshfield?  Marsha Field?)

“We were taking pictures for posters and a slide show,” said Melissa Lake, who wrote the script and song lyrics for the production. “The story features local businesses as crime scenes, so we were chalking bodies up and down Central for the last couple of weekends.”

“The Murder of Marsha Field” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 16 and 17 in the Helen Laird Theatre at UW-Marshfield/Wood County.  The symphony, under the direction of Timothy McCollum, will be joined by a nine-member cast and chorus, featuring such illustrious characters as Hugh Itt, Sherry Township, Spencer Loyal and Neal S’ville.

“This is clearly not a terribly serious production,” said David De Lyser, assistant professor of music.  De Lyser has spent most of the summer chained to his keyboard, composing all of the music for the production.  “It’s a reading musical, similar to a live radio show.”

The story begins with the discovery of the body of Marsha Field at the foot of the dragon along Veteran’s Parkway.  Pedestrians walking by the dragon and sheet-covered “body” during the Sept. 9 photo shoot seemed remarkably unconcerned.

Thimbleberry Books, 166 S. Central, is the second crime scene. 

“They chalked a body with carpet deodorizer on the rug in front of the fireplace,” said Kim Hartley, owner.  “It looked very realistic. And when they were done, they vacuumed the rug!  You can’t beat that.”

Northside Computers, 907 S. Central Ave.; and Feddick & Associates SC law office, 252 S. Central; are two other crime scenes.  Attorney Alanna Feddick will be playing the part of Lindsey Granton in the production.

“I’m excited about the whole thing,” Feddick said. “It’s really going to be a fun production. Twisted, but fun.”

Tickets for “The Murder of Marsha Field” are $10 in advance; $12 at the door.  Call the Campus Box Office at 715-389-6534.