Marquette Theater Company’s production of “Clue,” a murder mystery, debuted yesterday and will run through Sunday.

Rebecca Blindauer, MTC director, said she’s excited for the new, innovative design of the play.

“We’ve never done a murder mystery before,” Blindauer said. ”So that’s interesting, but it is kind of more of a comedy than a mystery. It’s not really scary. It’s very funny and silly.”

Blindauer also made the decision for the play to run straight through without an intermission.

“We wanted to compact the story and finish it all in one swoop,” Blindauer said. “Despite the changes, the cast has been very adaptive.”

Blindauer also noted the variety and strengths of the cast.

“They’re so great,” Blindauer said. “We have some new people, and we have some veteran members of the theater company. It’s been a really nice mix of old and new, and passing the reins to younger actors. Their comedic timing as well, like comedic sensibility and knowing how to deliver a joke has been really strong with this group.”

Riley Gregory, sophomore, who is a female understudy, is a veteran at MTC, having played in “Pippin” as well as “Legally Blonde.” She expressed immense confidence when talking about the cast.

“It’s a lot of new people,” Gregory said, “and people that I’ve never actually met before. But I think everyone was really really well casted. And they’ve all pulled together really nicely.  

As an understudy, Gregory has to practice for her ensemble role while simultaneously preparing to sub in when needed. 

“I was told to learn all the female parts,” Gregory said. “Remembering lines was hard for all of us, especially for those with larger parts.”

Kara Miller, junior, plays the role of Yvette, and said the biggest issue with the production thus far has been building the set.

“The set was really hard to put together,” Miller said, “and when it was put together, it kept breaking. We’d be moving a room and it just wouldn’t move, or wheels would pop off. We have these big walls that are supposed to move, but they slide along the ground, so they make a huge noise whenever we move it.” 

Despite this, though, Miller said she enjoys the faster nature of the play compared to others she’s worked in.“The acting is really quick,” Miller said, “and it’s mostly really comedic. Everything happens really, really quickly.”

Tickets can be bought for $8 at lunch or at the entrance to the theater during the showings, which will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.