DANVILLE - A suave and debonair gentleman seems concerned about his wife's well-being. Is he smothering her with kindness or torturing her into insanity?

A retired detective, still trying to solve a 15-year-old case, enters the equation. Will he get his man?

Contemporary overtones resonate in "Angel Street," the third and final show of Red Mask Players 69th season. The psychological drama, which opens this weekend, includes elements of "CSI," even though the setting is 19th century England.

The cast features both Red Mask veterans and newcomers to the Kathryn Randolph Theater's stage.

Jamie DeVore plays the gentle, sweet wife in "Angel Street." She appeared on Red Mask's stage several years ago, perhaps most notably as a leather-clad, whip-wielding dominatrix in "Communicating Doors."

DeVore and her husband, Ed, moved to Mattoon for a few years. Since their return to Danville, Jamie hasn't appeared onstage.

"Things just got kind of hectic for a while," she said. "I lost my mom (Bernice Mattis) in December. She always came to see the shows. She'd like to see me doing this.

"I missed acting very much," she added. "There's something about the release of emotion that's therapeutic."

Randy Offner makes his Red Mask debut as Devore's onstage husband. The Urbana resident plays a villain for only the third time in an amateur career that's included 28 shows.

"I'm usually the Jimmy Stewart-type of character," he said. "I play such (the opposite) in this one that I've felt compelled to keep apologizing to the rest of the cast."

Mark Learned, who appears as the retired Scotland Yard's Inspector Rough, feels right at home in his role.

"This is a morality play of sorts," Learned said. "I've been a probation officer for 21 years. I've learned that no one gets away with things. They catch up to them eventually."

Julia Reynolds and Debbie Prentice complete the cast of "Angel Street," which was produced by Mike Boedicker.

The production was not without its challenges.

"Whenever you do a period piece, most of the budget goes to costumes. We have an extensive wardrobe collection here at Red Mask, but not necessarily of Victorian pieces," director Donna Sant said.

As a result, some of the costumes came from Champaign-Urbana's Krannert Center and Dallas and Co.

Gretchen Elliott, a member of the local theater company, sewed and altered others.

"This has become my home away from home," Elliott said, referring to the Kathryn Randolph Theater. "I was part of the cast in 'Come Back to the 5 and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean.' I'll direct the children's show this spring. For this play, I was asked to do props. I wound up dressing the set and helping with the costumes, too."

This multitasking, which most Red Mask members do in one show or another each season, is typical of community theaters across the country. Every job from box office to lights to set construction needs to be filled by volunteers.

Audiences see only the actors onstage, but those same people and others devoted countless hours behind the scenes to get a show "up."

FYI

Red Mask Players presents "Angel Street" at the Kathryn Randolph Theater, 601 N. Vermilion St., Friday through Sunday, March 31-April 2 and April 7-8. Friday and Saturday performances begin at 8 p.m.; Sunday performances begin at 2 p.m. Call 442-5858 for tickets and information.