Irrational Masters provide community with live shadow viewing of ‘Clue’

By Sophia Phillips

DeKALB | Friday night set an atmosphere of fog and mystery for the showing of the movie “Clue” featuring the live shadow cast, the Irrational Masters.

The 1985 movie “Clue” is a comedic mystery film inspired by the board game and features many of the same characters from the game such as Mrs. White and Professor Plum.

The movie is now a cult classic, and some groups across the U.S. are doing shadow cast performances of the movie, similar to “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”

One of these groups is the Irrational Masters, a local “Rocky Horror Picture Show” shadow cast that performs at the Egyptian Theater, 135 N. Second St.

“Rocky Horror Picture Show,” often referred to as “Rocky” or “Rocky Horror” by fans, is a comedy-horror musical film from 1975. Groups across the U.S. put on shadow cast performances alongside the movie.

Josh Chesser, the Irrational Masters’ director, explained that a shadow cast acts out a movie scene-by-scene in front of the movie being projected onto a screen, according to an Oct. 31, 2016, Northern Star article.

For three years, the Irrational Masters have performed “Clue” in January. This show is a change of pace for the cast.

“The first time [we performed ‘Clue’] was kind of just a break from ‘Rocky’ because we do get into a rut with it,” Chesser said. “Doing ‘Clue’ gets everyone’s creative juices flowing.”

The show changes the pace for the cast not only because it is a different show, but also because they can get a different crowd. “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” isn’t appropriate for all ages because it has adult themes in it.

Chesser said the cast used to not perform in January, but since the Egyptian Theater was available, they took the opportunity to do a family-appropriate show and to get more of the community to attend.

“[Performing ‘Clue’] just pushes our limits a little bit more, makes us be more creative, [have] more thought process[es], and just changes things up,” said Jeffrey Stout, cast member and former director.

Stout, who directed the cast’s first performance of “Clue,” said they chose it because it’s a cult classic and anybody, including families, can enjoy it.

“I remember the first year that we [performed ‘Clue’],” Chesser said. “There were several scenes in the movie where kids in the audience were just laughing at us and at the screen, and it wasn’t even like a joking moment.”