Continuing their 79th season, the Butler Little Theatre prepares to stage the mystery “An Inspector Calls” written by J.B. Priestley. The show opens on March 13 at the theatre at One Howard St.

Set in an English manufacturing town in 1912, “An Inspector Calls” portrays the impact of an inspector's visit to the Birling family, turning their engagement celebration upside down.

The play takes place on a single night and is presented in three acts.

The show is under the direction of Dennis Casey, who intends to rock the show and the audience a bit. “I want blocking, action, appearance and interaction of the players to all be slightly 'off.' I want the audience to 'feel' this awkwardness and note something was different, perhaps without really knowing what exactly was affecting their perception,” said Casey.

While the show is fairly famous in England, it is not a common offering locally.

“The Butler Little Theatre is excited to bring 'An Inspector Calls' to our stage for the first time since it premiered in 1945,” Casey said.

He is thrilled with the period sets and the fine actors bringing the story to life.

The inspector in the play is named Goole and is being played by Stefan Lingenfelter of Butler.

Lingenfelter describes his role as “the mysterious title character.”

“He is an enigmatic man who crashes the party of the wealthy Birling family and surgically tears down their walls of perceived class supremacy,” Lingenfelter explained.

He said he relishes the role. “It is such a beautiful work with so many nooks and crannies, as an actor you want to make sure you discover all the subtextual gems,” he said.

Ironically, Lingenfelter auditioned for this exact play on Broadway, receiving a callback for the role of Eric. While that role didn't work out, the current one could be epic. Audiences will have eight shows to decide.

The role of Gerald Croft is being tackled by Casey Bowser of Center Township.

“I try to find any honest approach to any character I play. I decide what his relationship is to the other characters and build up from there,” said Bowser of his approach not just to Gerald but to all roles.

He attempts to be so natural at the nuances of his character that the audience won't notice. “That's something you don't hear all the time — I'm trying to do something so well you don't notice; it's something only burglars say,” said Bowser.

The role of Gerald's fiancée, Sheila Birling, is being portrayed by Sarah Altomari. The play opens immediately after the engagement dinner of Gerald and Sheila.

“The evening gets interrupted when an inspector stops by to ask a few questions about a recent suicide in the town,” explained Bowser.

“The Inspector goes from character to character putting up a mirror and letting them determine if they like the look of their own reflection. The play is less of a 'whodunit' and more of a 'why'dithappen,' ” Bowser noted.

Playing the role of family patriarch Arthur Birling is Bob Meals of Butler.

“He is a wealthy, 'hard headed businessman' whose actions begin the chain of events that are revealed in the course of the show,” Meals said.

“He's a rather ruthless captain of industry. He is self-centered and egotistical. The challenge is always to make bad guys seem real,” he said. “If people like to come out of a play with a sense of mental whiplash, this is the show for them,” said Meals.

Nedra Casey of Butler is playing the role of Arthur's wife, Sybil Birling.

“I'm confident with my English accent, but I am finding it difficult to keep my hand gestures small. Dennis always says if you tie my hands I cannot speak,” said Casey.

The Birlings' younger son is being played by Maxwell Medford of Butler.

“I play Eric Birling, a young man who is trying to get through a rotten family dinner, drowning his sorrows and boredom in drinks,” said Medford, who is the youngest actor in the cast and learning how to play a bad guy.

“A real moral question that came up during this production was, 'how do I play a bad person?' Not a villain, twisting their mustaches at the damsel tied to the tracks — just a young man going about his life and being vaguely aware that most of his actions are reprehensible,” he said.

Medford said he was drawn to this show because it is about people who are unaware. “I believe that is very important for people to realize that their actions have consequences, now more than ever,” he said.

Denise Johnston of Butler Township is cast as the family's maid. “The family has many secrets, and I have to turn a blind eye to them to keep my job,” said Johnston, who is making her debut at the Butler Little Theatre.

She said in order to perfect her accent she watched a video of the play several times.

“ 'An Inspector Calls' is a show that I think people will talk about when the curtain closes. People will not have the same opinion about it,” said Bowser. “It should encourage discussion and if it does that we are going to be successful.”

WHO: Butler Little TheatreWHAT: “An Inspector Calls” written by J.B. PriestleyWHEN: March 13-21, with curtain at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, and at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and ThursdayWHERE: BLT, One Howard St.TICKETS: $13 online at ButlerLittleTheatre.com or at the door 45 minutes prior to curtain.