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Here's what people are
saying...
"What a great show! We had a
great time. Congratulations and thank you for making our so
wonderful."
Michelle,Malin., Eastman Kodak Corp.(about their
holiday party for a group of 225)
"What a great show! Brandin and Magdeline were
great. Congratulations and thank you for making our so
wonderful."
Kathy B., WJ Cox Insurance (about Murdered By The
Mob for a group of 150)
"A to Z loved it all. Had a fun great time."
Stewart
B., Parish Irish Days Festival (about Wake Me When I'm Dead for a group of
60)
"I've never been to one of these shows before. Saw it in the
newspaper and it was really good. Good plot twists and lots of laughs.
I'll be sure to come again."
Brenda S., Hannibal (about Wake Me
When I'm Dead)
"We loved everything!! Loved the Irish Singers
too."
Dr. & Mrs. Branson, Fayetteville (about Wake Me When I'm
Dead and Merry Mischief)
"Meal and a
Mystery"
The Post Standard, Monday,
February 19, 2007
By Erica Littlefield, Contributing
Writer
Going to a dinner
theater isn't always as simple as sitting down, eating a meal and watching
the actors. Sometimes you are part of the action.
Acme Mystery Company and Bright Star Productionz are among
several local theater companies that specialize in interactive dinner
theater, which adds a twist to the dinner and theater concept....Read More...
"Thank you to Bright Star ProductionZ for making our year end
event such a blast. It was so entertaining and well put together. The
between acts mingling was fun.We will definitely come
again."
Fabian R., East Coast Resorts, Parish (about Murder
Ahoy)
"Hi. We attended your Murder Ahoy dinner in August, 2006 and
had a fantastic time! (We were the ones in garb on Saturday - great
picture on the website). We would like to highly encourage you to consider
putting on another Pirate show. November would be good *grin*. With enough
notcie we can probably fill the place with friends and other
pirates!"
Lorie, Rome NY (about Murder Ahoy)
"I just wanted to say you did a FANTASTIC job with the
Bridie Manor Pirate Show. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and what a
surprise to see our picture on the opening page of your website. It will
make a lasting memory for all of us. We will certainly keep up with your
schedule and attend as many events as we can. We truly enjoyed the
experience."
Chris (the second "Pirate" from the left in the back
row) (about Murder Ahoy - to
see their picture click on this link)
Positively Parish
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
"Many thanks to Laura Vannah of Bright Star Productionz and her
talented crew for their outstanding performance at Merrill Town Park’s
nature trail. The youth of Parish Summer Recreation certainly enjoyed the
mystery hike.
Mary Lou G. (about Merlin's School of Magic Youth
Mystery Hike)
"What a
great show. I especially like the guest dance for the
audience!"
Lauren B.,
Syracuse (about Death By
Disco)
"Thanks for maing Janice's
birthday last Friday a memorable event for our family. We all enjoyed your
excellent performance and a pleasant setting and meal."
Paul S.,
Oswego Health (about Death By
Disco)
"Fabulous cast and great storyline!"
Donna G., Rochester
(about Marriage Can Be
Murder)
"It was very interactive. Great use of the audience and improv. I'll
keep returning to see what this group does next!"
John Krauss,
General Manager of WRVO (about Murder Under The
Mistletoe)
"I got roped into a small
part but it was ok! Very entertaining! Great job!"
Mike K., Mexico NY (about Murder At The Monster
Bash)
We all enjoy our 'theater nights' immensely. Keep up the
great work.
Kate B., Mexico
NY
Impressed By
Local Talent
Independent Mirror,
Wednesday, November 22, 2005
Who knew that Mexico, N.Y. was such a
center for talented acting? I recently attended two different shows in our
town, and was very impressed with the performance of many.
On Friday, October 28th, I attended "Murder At The Monster Bash",
a mystery dinner theater show at the beautiful Arena's Eis House. The
interactive show was a product of Bright Star ProductionZ, locally
produced and directed by Laura Vannah, and assistant director Betty Green.
Five talented actors put on a great show for the 100 plus "costume party
guests", and gave us a great murder mystery to solve. According to the
website, a Christmas show called "Murder Under The Mistletoe" will be the
next performance of Bright Star ProductionZ.
Brandin Greco, Tammy Balamut, April Andrews, John O'Brien, and
Laura Vannah (a last minute replacement for Debbie McCoy, who was under
the weather on show night) were the actors that entertained us for the
evening. O'Brien really stole the show, however, and his 'death' scene
will be remembered for its comic genius. I hope he's okay. The three
course meal that accompanied the show at Arena's Eis House was also very
good, and kept everyone well fed. I've attended many functions at the Eis
House over the years, and have always found the food and service to be
excellent.
I also attended two performances of
"The Pink Panther Strikes Again". at the striking Mexico High School
auditorium, presented by the Mexico High School Drama Club. The show was
directed by Miss Jean E. Maxon, and performed exclusively by students at
the Mexico High School. These students worked very hard on this show and
it showed! I find it amazing that these students can learn and perform so
flawlessly throughout a two plus hour show, in addition to the work and
requirements of being a high school student.
Thank you to all
of the producers, directors, tech and lighting, and backstage crews, and
especially the performers for providing all of the quality entertainment
and laughs, right here in our Mexico, N.Y. I had no idea how many talented
neighbors I have. And I"m not just saying that because my wife April was
in the "Monster Bash", and my daughters Lacey and Chelsea Andrews were in
the "Pink Panther"....
Jay Andrews, Mexico,
N.Y.
A Whole New
Respect For Dinner Theater
The Post Standard, Friday, November 4, 2005
Jeff Kramer, Contributing Columnist
Bad on
both fronts. That's the rap against dinner theater. For reasons having
more to do with snobbery than quality, stage plays performed in front of
audiences slurping pasta Alfredo and steamed veggies rarely get their due
at Tony time.
My friend Doug, a columnist out West, summed up the dismissive
attitude toward dinner theater when I told him I was debuting in a local
performance that very night, despite having not attended rehearsals or
even knowing what the play was about.
"That's good," Doug said. "From
everything I know about dinner theater, rehearsal only makes it worse." Read
more...
Bright Star ProductionZ does it
again!
Independent Mirror, Wednesday,
November 16, 2003
Being in the entertainment field for over 40 years, I
guess one could say I have seen it all, until last week. I was asked by
Laura K. Vannah, owner of Bright Star ProductionZ, to do a photo shoot of
"Murder At The Monster
Bash" which was being presented by her interactive murder mystery
dinner theater company on October 27, 2005. I was amazed by what I
encountered - the professionalism that I saw was tremendous; the manner in
which each actor took their parts beyond any expectation was remarkable as
well. Laura even stepped in to play one of the characters four days before
opening night because one of her cast members was not well. Then to my
surprise I was told that this opening night show was being performed at no
cost to the church where it was being presented. The performance was a
benefit to raise money for the Food Pantry of the First Presbyterian
Church in Mexico NY. It was open primarily to church members who were
served a home cooked Italian meal by the Greco family. Noreen and Fred
Greco, along with their daughter Hope and a few others, sweated in the
kitchen all day to make this night memorable for all. All the proceeds
from the show went to support the over 60 families dependent on its
existence in Mexico. I know first hand the cost of such a performance and
Laura produced it as she would an does any other 'for profit' performance,
sparing no expense.
Laura, her cast and crew then took this show to Arena's Eis House
the next night, October 28, 2005, and performed it again to an almost sold
out room. I want to commend her actors for trusting in her abilities and
following her lead. For Debbie McCoy, who successfully ran the lights and
sound for both shows, and John O'Brien, this is their third time
performing with Bright Star ProductionZ. Betty Green, having performed in
Laura's summer endeavor, "Let's Kill The Boss",
became her trusted ally and Assistant Director, smoothly running
rehearsals while Laura was attending school in New York City. Brandin
Greco, who also performed beautifully in the summer production, returned
for his second time; and April Andrews and Tammy Balamut were the new
comers to her company.
It filled my heart with joy to know that there are
still kind and generous people in this world. With great admiration, I
wish to thank Laura and her awe-inspiring theater company for awakening my
heart to a new joy.
Respectfully, Donald Blackfox
Blackfox
Productions, Pulaski NY
Dear Laura,
I would like to express my continued
appreciation for your doing theater in Mexico NY. It is very gratifying to
see someone prove that good theater does not have to be limited to large
metropolitan centers. My regrets to you that I again will not be able to
participate in your productions as I am in London doing a semester of
theater abroad. Do keep me posted about the state of Mexico's own local
theater scene though. Thanks so much,
Omen Sade, Actor, Mexico
NY
Gus - a few batteries shy of a
full flashlight
Carlotta - a few grapes shy of a bunch
Larry - a limp noodle shy of a cassette
Lena - a
shimmie shy of a shake
Harriet - a few garters shy of a good
support
From
an Anonymous client at the August 11, 2005 production of "Let's Kill The Boss"
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