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SPEAKEASY is an audience participation Mystery Dinner Drama set in a suburb of Chicago in the year 1929. The dinner is held in costume, with participants playing the parts of gangsters, flappers, waitresses, entertainers, federal agents, and corrupt politicians; each with his or her own secrets and motivations.

It's more like stepping through a time machine than attending a conventional theatre.

You will receive a Playbook with a detailed description of your character's background, goals, and resources.
The Playbook also contains information on the Pre-War Era, a summary of historical events of 1929, a
dictionary of detective slang, and a list of all the other characters.

During the Orientation, you will receive additional props. These may include hand cuffs, stage money,
magazines, or a 1929 newspaper.

There are a number of plots unfolding simultaneously, and you may be involved in one or more of these plots.
The roles are arranged in order of difficulty, from simple parts which require little experience to major roles
which are much more involved

Soft focus your eyes back to 1929, don a fedora and wide tie,
and tell the bouncer "Big Mike sent me."

Prohibition has been in effect for nine years, and bathtub gin is a national craze.
The stock market is booming. Al Capone is boss of Chicago's gang- land.
Tonight, gangsters, flappers, and federal agents are gathered at Mike Shagnassey's Speakeasy - each wondering the same questions:

WHY is Jason Cardonna's arch-enemy eating dinner at the Speakeasy?

WHO is the beautiful and mysterious Olga Von Bork?

WHEN will Woodford Howe inherit his millionaire uncle's fortune?

WHAT really happened to Lori Michels' sister the night of the campaign party?

WHERE are the fabulous missing Van Armitage diamonds?

HOW will it all end ? --
Not even the authors know for sure!

Explore the actor within you.
Who knows ... you might knock 'em dead.


 

 

Character List

Male Characters

*

Bartholomew, Stanley - The Gambler

*

Brinkley, Scooter - The Newsboy

****

Burke, Anthony - The Scotland Yard Man

**

Cabrini, Bruno - Jason Cardonna's Gorilla

****

Cardonna, Jason - The Gangster

**

Carpenter, Tom - The Stage Magician

*

Chambers, Nick - The Truck Jockey

*

Crocker, Bob - The Local Cop

**

"Daddykins" - The Sugar Daddy

**

Deutch, Ian - The Man of Mystery

**

Elliot, Frank - Freddie Matthew's Torpedo

**

Enrico, Edward - The Rum-Runner

****

Howe, Woodford - The Stockbroker

**

Howlett, Geoffry - The Handsome Stranger

****

Keldane, Dr. William - A Dentist from Back East

***

Krabbe, Mayor Howard - The Local Mayor

****

Le Boeuf, Pierre - The Lumberjack

*

Malone, "Chauncey" - Mike Shagnassey's Bouncer

****

Matthews, Freddie - Chief of the Derby Gang

***

McCrae, George - The Home Builder

*

Olafsson, Harlan - The Sawmill Owner

**

Owens, Galen - The Trapper

*

Puccini, Antonio "Weasel" - The Lawyer

**

Sotello, Luigi "The Gyp" - The Gunsel

*

Trumbo, Tony - The Muscle

**

Vanacelli, Guido - The Bartender

 

 
Female Characters

 

****

Christy, Janet - The Authoress

*

Coleman, Millicent - The Flapper

*

DuMont, Meredith - The Movie Queen

**

Genovese, Betty - Jake De Mora's Frail

***

Giovanni, Theresa - The Moll

*

Gordon, Mary - The Industrialist's Daughter

***

Gordon, Robinette - The Wild One

****

Johnson, Dorthea - The Dynamite Socialite

***

Jones, Peg - The New Waitress at the Speakeasy

*

Kane, Jennifer - The Only Girl

**

La Fontaine, "Bee-Bee" - The Gold-Digger

*

Marsh, Lena - The Pawn Broker

*

McCrae, Lucinda - The Daddy's Girl

****

Melbourne, Mrs. La Verne W. - The Curmudgeon

***

Michels, Lori - A Young Waitress at the Speakeasy

*

O'Grady, Susan - The Next-of-Kin

*

O'Malley, Roxanne - The Brothel Keeper

****

Pendleton, Linda - A Dame from out East

*

Prentiss, "Nattie" - The Waif

*

Taylor, Ruby - The Floozie

**

Torino, Angela - The Bookkeeper

*

Wendt, Harriet - The Chaperone

***

Wheeler, Geraldine - The News Reporter

**

"Yvette" - The Torch Singer

 

SPEAKEASY BRIEF CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS

 

Stanley Bartholomew
The Gambler

Bartholomew gets around town quite a bit. He's a pro gambler. Poker's his game, but he can deal a mean hand of Blackjack. He's got other talents, too.

(This part requires some skill at card-playing.)

 

Scooter Brinkley
The Newspaper Boy

Dis kid must have printer's ink in his veins instead o' blood. He sells papers on the sidewalk in da mornings, works as copy boy in da afternoons, and helps out as a printer's devil in da evenings. He takes pretty good photos for a squirt. Sez he wants to grow up ta be as good a reporter as Hilda Jackson.

 

Carol Brown
The Piano Player

Carol's the girl-next-door type. Wholesome, ya know? She needs a stack o' dough for college or somethin'. Big Mike just gave her a job ticklin' da ivories at da Speakeasy.

 

Anthony Burke
The Scotland Yard Detective

Burke just blew in from Jolly Olde England. Wonder what a fancy Scotland Yard dick is lookin' for in Kane County.

 

Bruno Cabrini
Jason Cardonna's Bodyguard

Jason Cardonna's gorilla. A tough guy, sleazy and mean as a junkyard dog; big and ugly and carries a rod. Ex-Prizefighter and Extortionist. Ya don't mess with Cardonna's torpedo.

(This part requires a large, muscular man.)

 

Jason Cardonna
The Gangster

He's da head of da Kane County Mob. Dey've been part o' da Capone organization for a couple o' years now. Cardonna handles a lot of Capone's loan shark operations now dat Scarface is in da slammer. Jay Cardonna has plenty of smackers. He collects art an' stuff like dat. Supplies da booze to Mike Shagnassey.

(This is the most challenging male part in Speakeasy.)

 

Tom Carpenter
The Stage Magician

Tom's between jobs right now. He's an okay guy, ya know? Got a nice girl. Maybe he'll make something of himself someday.

(This part requires good communication skills and the ability to successfully fool people. Knowledge of a few simple magic tricks would also help.)

 

Nick Chambers
The Truck Jockey

Nick's a truck driver outta Moline. He's been hanging around da Speakeasy while his rig gets worked on in Chi Town.

 

Janet Christie
The Authoress

She turns out mystery books da way Ford turns out automobiles. But she ain't just a pen pusher. She's upper crust, a socialite and art critic. Quite a lady, dey say.

 

Millicent Coleman
The Flapper

Millie's a stenog at some insurance office in da loop an' lives at Mrs. Meer's Hotel for Single Young Ladies. But she ain't no stick-in-da-mud. She's got a gleam in her eye dat says she wants to step high, wide, an' handsome.

 

Bob Crocker
The Local Cop

Bob's worked for the Kane County Sheriff now for eight years. He's an okay guy. He enjoys a nice drink and a good book after work. He's honest, ya know. He might get somewhere if he worked harder. He always says, "Let the Feds handle Prohibition. After all, it's a Federal Law, ain't it?"

 

"Daddykins"
The Sugar Daddy

Dis guy's pretty close-mouthed. I hear he put his wife in some asylum while he collects stamps. He must have a lotta dough 'cause BeeBee La Fontaine hooked him. (Boy, watta stamp!) She tagged da old guy wit' da moniker "Daddykins" - dat's the only thing I ever hear him called.

 

Ian Deutch
A Man of Mystery

Dis guy looks like he just stepped outta da Society Page an' he talks like some bigshot Englishman. Dey say he loses big-time at Monte Carlo, but where does he get all his dough? He got no visible means of support.

 

Meredith DuMont
The Movie Queen

Last year Miss DuMont was a star of da Silent Silver Screen. But now Talkies are here, and dis doll has a voice like a frog. Wit' da right script and da bucks to film it, she thinks she could make a comeback. Yeh, mebbe ....

 

Frank Elliot
Freddie Matthew's torpedo

Frank's a tough guy, but smart. He's Freddie Matthews' enforcer, and he got fists like rocks. Dresses pretty fancy for a hood but ya don' wanna cross him.

(This part requires a large, muscular man.)

 

Edward Enrico
The Rum-Runner

A slimy character if ever ya saw one. Eddie blew into town from da Big Apple. I hear he works for da Mob out there. Don't know much about him, really.

(This part is versatile; it can be played as a 3-Star or 4-Star Character.)

 

Betty Genovese
Jake De Mora's frail

Betty's a classy dame who's high up in da Capone organization. She goes with Jake De Mora, who's been running most of Capone's business while Scarface is in da slammer.

(This part requires subtlety; it can be played as a 3-Star Character.)

 

Theresa Giovanni
Cardonna's Gun Moll

Dis is one tough lady. When Cardonna met Giovanni, she was runnin' her own protection racket on the South Side wit' two Greek torpedos. Jay gave her a job riding shotgun on his whisky shipments to Wisconsin. From dere, she wormed her way into his heart, his organization, and his pocketbook ....

 

Mary Gordon
The Industrialist's Daughter

Mary's one of Chi's society gals. Her old man owns a bank or two. She's been dating Tom Carpenter a lot. Dat's a laugh, 'cause Tom just ain't high society. He's a small time grifter, an' Mary thinks she can reform him. Dat's another laugh.

 

Robinette "T.R." Gordon
The Wild One

Dey don't call dis doll "Terrible Robbie" for nuttin'. One time she borrowed a copper's pony and crashed City Hall. She had to take it on the lam and see the world. Now she's back home, and she ain't changed a bit.

 

Woodford Howe
The Stockbroker

Woody's a two-bit stockbroker. He's got an office inna back room at Mike Shagnassey's Speakeasy and does a fair trade. I hear he's gonna inherit a lotta dough from his dead uncle.

 

Geoffry Howlett
The Handsome Stranger

Howlett just got to town. Talks like he come from out East - Boston or Big Apple or someplace like dat. Seems okay. He buys drinks for his pals.

(This part requires a sharp thinker who is good at solving puzzles.)

 

Tillie Jackson
The Geneva Songbird

Tillie's been around a bit, but she's still a sweet kid. She's the backup act when Yvette is too boozed up to go on, which happens about as often as the wind blows off da lake. Tillie used to call herself the "Chi Canary" - till one o' da guys in da rackets told her a "canary" is somebody who sings to da cops.

 

Dorthea Johnson
The Dynamite Socialite

Her old man is big out in Baltimore or some place like dat. I mean real big - like da Vanderbilts and Rockefellers. She's new in town. What a classy dame!

(This is the most challenging female part and requires a great deal of imagination.)

 

Peg Jones
The New Waitress

Peg's been haulin' drinks to da customers at Mike Shagnassey's Speakeasy for da past couple o' weeks. She works hard but don't say much. Maybe she don't enjoy da job.

(This part requires a sharp thinker who is good at solving puzzles.)

 

Jennifer Kane
The Only Girl

Jennifer's a doll. She's young, smart, beautiful, rich, and lives in a penthouse on Lakeshore Drive. She's class right down to her toenails - da kind of gal you'd fall in love with at first sight. She looks a bit nervous about somethin' lately. But what's a dreamboat like her got to be worried about.

 

Dr.William Keldane
The Dentist

A high-class jaw cracker from out East. Da guy just come to town. Nobody knows him. He seems da nervous type. What's a dentist got to worry about?

 

Mayor Howard Krabbe
The Local Mayor

Da mayor of Aurora, Illinois - a small town Boss Tweed. He got his fingers in everything in Kane County. He gives Jay Cardonna protection, ya know? Scratch his back and he'll scratch yours ('til it bleeds). Likes his booze and likes his women.

 

"Bee-Bee" La Fontaine
The Gold Digger

What a doll! Pretty as a pedigreed pussycat, and just as finicky. She looks up at a guy and says, "You'll take care of your little snookems Bee-Bee, won't you?" Da guy jumps through hoops an' gives her all his moola. She takes it, leaves da guy flat, an' goes lookin' for da next chump.

 

Pierre LeBoeuf
The Lumberjack

Pierre's a big, tough Frenchie outta da Wisconsin loggin' camps. He's got muscles o' steel an' a way wit' da ladies. One time I seen him chop down a tree wit' an axe in each hand. Looks like a hick in dat red an' black flannel shirt an' stocking cap, but I wouldn't say dat to his face.

 

Lena Marsh
The Pawnbroker

Lena makes a hard-boiled dick look soft poached. She's da toughest dame in da business. O' course, her "business" is a lot more 'n just pawn broking.

 

"Chauncey" Malone
Mike Shagnassey's Bouncer

Chauncey is da muscle man who checks you at da door. Big Mike don't like riff-raff in da Speakeasy. (Except for his own boys). Chauncey is a guy you'd hate ta meet in a dark alley. Strong as an ox, dey say, an' almost as smart.

(This part requires a large, muscular man.)

 

Freddie Matthews
The Bookie

Freddie's da boss of da Derby Gang which has been part of Capone's organization for a couple a years now. Freddie runs a lotta Scarface's bookmaking operations. On da side, Freddie manages da Hotel Delphineum.

 

George "G.T." McCrae
The Businessman

George went ta da dogs after his sawmill burned up along wit' his daughter. Dove into a bottle of booze and ain't come out since. Too bad; he used to be a straight-arrow kind o' guy.

 

Lucinda McCrae
Daddy's Girl

Lucy's been da backbone o' da McCrae family ever since her old man dove inta a bottle o' booze. She tries to look after him, but he just won't settle down.

 

Mrs. LaVerne W. Melbourne
The Curmudgeon

Old lady Melbourne's ancestors came over on da Mayflower. Or mebbe she did; she looks old enough. She's a scarey old bat. I bet Mr. Melbourne was glad to cash in his chips - just to get away from her! She's so rich, she's got a fancy yacht she bought offa duke an' sails around da Mediteranean every year. Even Mayor Krabbe kowtows to her.

 

Lori Michels
The Young Waitress

Lori waits tables at Mike Shagnassey's Speakeasy. A nice-lookin' gal. Comes from down by Galesburg. A swell kid an does good work - but she'll smack ya if ya get fresh.

 

Susan O'Grady
The Next-of-Kin

Suzie is one o' George McCrae's daughters. She's a widow - her kid was born a couple o' months after his old man drove into da Fox River inna flivver. She's a sweet kid and stands on her own two feet. Things was tough for a while, but now she's doin' okay wit' her dressmakin' business.

 

Roxanne O'Malley
The Brothel Keeper

"Dutchess" O'Malley used to be a real ah-ah madam; she ran da best sportin' house in Dubuque. Now Roxie's in solid wit' Freddie Matthews, an' she's a grand lady, don'tcha know? A bit jaded - but, hey! Ain't everyone in her line?

 

Harlan Olafsson
The Sawmill Owner

Harlan's a Norwegian from da Wisconsin woods. He don' talk much - just cracks his knuckles. George McCrae used to be thick wit' him - til the sawmill burned down. Dey ain't spoke since.

 

Galen Owens
The Trapper

Dis guy is a hick from so far out in da sticks dat he thinks any building wit' two stories is a skyscraper. Galen looks like somethin' the dog drug in, with dat red-and-black checkered jacket and a cap with ear flaps. Da lunk walked 200 miles to deliver a letter. Ain't he heard o' the US Post Office?

 

Linda Pendleton
A Broad from out East

Dis dame just got to town; says she's looking for work. Don't know much else about her. Seems like a nice kid.

(This part is a particularly challenging one.)

 

Natalie "Nattie" Prentiss
The Waif

A cute little brat who hangs around da Speakeasy. More trouble than a load of six-toed kittens. The kid gets into everything, but who can say 'no' to a face like dat?

 

Antonio "Weasel" Puccini
The Lawyer

Weasel's a shyster dat works for Jay Cardonna. He's got his fingers in a lot of pies, ya know? If he had smarts, he might be dangerous.

 

Mike Shagnassey
The Boss

"Big Mike" owns da Speakeasy. He's a mick. Used ta run with da O'Banion Gang, but he ducked out when Hymie tried ta ice Scarface; Mike ain't no dummy. Went inta business for himself. He's a nice guy, but he don't take no guff.

 

Luigi Sotello
The Gunsel

"Louie the Gyp" is a rat-faced little twerp. He rattles a coupla dice in his left hand when he's nervous. Which is most of da time. I heard he's got a doll at home, but she never goes out.

 

Ruby Taylor
The Floozie

Ruby's lookin' for a new "sugar daddy." If she don' find one soon, she'll hafta skip out on da rent over at Mrs. Flaherty's Rooming House. Tonight she's been makin eyes at Howie Krabbe.

 

 

Angela Torino
The Bookkeeper

Torino takes care of Jason Cardonna's account books. She makes him look as clean as a hound's tooth when he's really crooked as a dog's hind leg. A real smart cookie - mebbe too smart for her own good.

 

Harriet Wendt
The Chaperone

A high-class old lady who carries a rock in an old sock in her handbag. She's da aunt of da Gordon sisters and just got home from chaperoning Robbie around da world. Dat's a job I wouldn't take for ten gees, but she looks pretty chipper. Harriet's motto is: "Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks. I learn something new from Robbie every day."

 

Tony Trumbo
The Muscle

Tony runs wit' da Derby Gang when Roxie O'Malley don't need him. Last summer he took a slug inna shoulder for her outside a South-Side gin joint. Tony says he hates fightin'. Maybe dat's why he takes out his opponents before dey know what hit 'em. Especially if anyone is bothering "da Duchess."

 

Guido Vanacelli
The Bartender

Guido's an okay guy, so long as ya don't cross him. Don't let dat homely mug fool ya - dey say he's got a Chicago Piano behind da bar. But ain't nobody checkin' ta see. Da last guy dat fooled around wit' Guido wound up sleepin' wit' da fishes in Lake Michigan. O' course, Guido was out of town at da time, but still ....

 

Gerald (or Geraldine) Wheeler
The News Reporter

Wheeler works for a newspaper out in da Big Apple. Came to Chicago to do a story on crime and justice in da Midwest.

 

"Yvette"
The Torch Singer

Dis sweetheart's from back East. She's huntin' for some old beau but ain't had no luck. Looks like an angel, sings like a nightingale, an' drinks like a fish.

(This part requires a certain amount of singing talent.)


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