Murder on the Wine Train Express

Years back, I performed with the actors that brought to life a cue to cue script that guests on the Napa Wine Train could participate in. It was your standard ‘Who Dunnit’. So, depending on casting availability, I played either the Ingenue or the Grand Duchess. Traveling in the car from San Francisco to Napa for one of the gigs, I found out that that day I was playing the ingenue/‘actress’ instead of the Grand Duchess. What?! I had brought the wrong costume. The producer was in the car with us and said, “just make do.”

Well, my Grand Duchess wore a stand up high collared, lacy, sedate blouse with an imperial hat. For the actress role, I wore (which I didn’t have with me) a low-cut, red, revealing top. The jewelry (costume) could be reduced. OK, so I wore the black and white striped cotton T that I was wearing. The floor length skirt was fine, it was 1920 after all. Although something flap-perishIn would have been better.

In the mix and mingle, to warm up the audience before boarding the train, I dropped my Russian accent and replaced it with a street-wise American one. A kid about 11 years old proclaimed loudly, “You don’t look like an ACTRESS!!! I replied very Bronx-y, “And what makes you look like a Kid?” Boarding call.