When she was young, Zoie Tannous loved watching the 1985 comedy mystery movie \u201cClue\u201d with her brother Zachary.<\/p>\n
But the next time Zachary sees \u201cClue,\u201d he won\u2019t be watching with his sister. Instead, he\u2019ll be watching her running around the mansion trying to solve the crime.<\/p>\n
Tannous landed the role of Yvette the French maid, who, like everyone at Boddy Manor, has secrets and motives. As part of her first national tour, she is coming to Downtown\u2019s Ahmanson, a theater she frequented growing up in the LA area. Also featuring Sarah Mackenzie Baron as Mrs. White, \u201cClue\u201d will run Sept. 8-12.<\/p>\n
Inspired by the iconic board game, the 80-minute one-act is loaded with physical humor and rapid-fire jokes as the characters race around the stage looking for, well, clues.<\/p>\n
Tannous didn\u2019t hesitate to audition, and she knew the role she wanted.<\/p>\n
\u201cI find similarities between myself and Yvette and the ways I react to things,\u201d said Tannous, who praised the movie performance by Colleen Camp. \u201cI wanted to find a nice balance between how I could honor the style of the movie and how the characters interact with each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tannous was motivated to act and sing after seeing her older brother in a production of \u201cOklahoma\u201d at their school, as she also sang in a church choir. After attending UC Irvine, she moved to New York. Though she has concentrated on musical theater, Tannous doesn\u2019t want to limit what shows or roles she takes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really subscribe to the idea that being an actor is being a storyteller,\u201d she said. \u201c\u2018Clue\u2019 is so special to me, because I think it mixes that film feeling with musical feeling in a play. We talk a lot in the cast about how it feels like doing a musical. It has a very specific rhythm. There are certain lines that feel like a melody, the way that we\u2019ve created it, the way that it is so precise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like Tannous, her co-star Baron grew up watching the movie, and she had a specific role she felt destined to portray. A huge fan of the movie \u2014 most notably the performance by Madeline Kahn \u2014 she wanted to be Mrs. White.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of the things that she created are as funny as they are because she did the work to find the funniest version of it already,\u201d Baron said about Kahn. \u201cSo, who am I to come in and think I can make it funnier than her? I have to honor that, but I also have to honor myself. And it\u2019s a fun challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
The frenetic pace is one of the harder elements of \u201cClue,\u201d and Baron said that every night it\u2019s like putting the audience on a train that\u2019s going much faster than they expect. The trick is to make sure that the blocking and line delivery are exact, so they can follow each moment.<\/p>\n
One aspect that Baron likes is that the show isn\u2019t intimidating. You don\u2019t have to know about theater to have fun. On a recent tour stop, a hotel front desk worker asked if he might enjoy the show, having never seen a play. So, the company members got him a ticket.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I will never forget,\u201d she said. \u201cHe came to the show, and he was like, \u2018Guys, that was the most fun I\u2019ve ever had. I can\u2019t wait to start going and seeing more theater.\u2019 It was so rewarding to see that.\u201d<\/p>\n
What\u2019s rewarding for Tannous is being on stage at the same place where she and her brother first went by themselves to see a show \u2014 \u201cDreamgirls.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy brother was maybe just old enough to start doing things on his own,\u201d she said. \u201cI remember our parents dropped us off. I was pretty young. And I remember he just grabbed my hand, we ran and made it in. That was our first experience at the Ahmanson. It feels really cool that this time coming home he\u2019ll be in the audience, but I\u2019ll be on the stage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Clue\u2019<\/p>\n
WHEN: Various times Sept. 8 – 12<\/p>\n
WHERE: Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles<\/p>\n
COST: Tickets start at $37.95<\/p>\n