'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' musical coming to Peru theater

Feb. 21—Keep an eye on your wallets. The Ole Olsen Memorial Theatre is prepared to get down and dirty when it's theater group performs the musical "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels".

The musical is inspired by the 1988 film of the same name. The film starred Steve Martin and Michael Cane and was directed by Frank Oz and tells the story of two competing con men.

The musical debuted in San Diego in 2004 and moved to Broadway the following year.

"It's a complicated story," said Mike Putt, the artistic director. "There are a lot of subplots but basically what's going on is we've got two gentlemen who are con artists. They don't know each other at first and they run into each other and they decide that they are competing for space in the little French town, so they start betting with each other. As the show goes on, things start to escalate as more and more pieces come into play."

Both men think the other is a notorious con artists known as The Jackal, Putt said.

Dustin Huddleston and Chris Rooker play the con men Lawrence Jameson and Freddy Benson.

Putt said the play delivers a lot hilarious and shocking moments. It also includes a recreation of the famous scene from the film with featuring the character Ruprecht.

Hannah Olson rounds out the core cast as Christine Colgate, Jameson and Benson's mark.

Huddleston said the trio clicked on stage, which definitely helped with some of the awkwardness the characters find themselves in.

Combining both comedy and music was a bit of a challenge for the crew.

"It definitely takes a lot more time to put a musical together than a straight play," Putt said. "It also takes a lot more people."

The small stage in the Ole Olsen Memorial Theatre also presented challenges when it came to choreography.

"With this show there is a lot of hands on interacting with each other in funny ways," said Huddleston. "There is a lot of body movement."

"Within close proximity," Rooker added.

"Lot's of tussles," said Olson.

"But it ends up being fun for the cast, figuring out different ways to interpret the story," Putt said.

The theater seats approximately 50 people per show, so the Peru troupe performs for two weekends to accommodate more theater-goers.

Putt said they will take a couple of days off after the first weekend and then take advantage of extra rehearsal time to make improvements to the show. Audiences tend to see a rejuvenated show during the second weekend of performances, he said.

"I think the thing I am most excited to see is how this cast is interpreting the story," said Putt. "In the last week or so they've started turning this show into a story I've never seen before and I don't think anyone else will have seen before either. I think it will be a fresh story for everyone."

Due to limited space, those who want to attend a performance are encouraged to purchase tickets early.

Showtimes are Thursday, Feb. 22 at 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Feb. 23-24 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. Performances resume on Friday and Saturday, March 1-2 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 3 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $18.00.

The Ole Olsen Memorial Theatre is located at 154 S. Broadway in Peru.