<p>Members of the cast of "The 39 Steps" are (top row, from left) Ellen Jensen, Ben Van Osdol, (front row, from left), Lisa Fergus and David Sweeney. A mystery, "The 39 Steps" opens June 27 at the Coaster Theatre.</p>

For the Coaster Theatre, summer means a busy season of back-to-back plays. This summer brings Stephen Sondheim and Alfred Hitchcock to the local stage.

One of Sondheims most popular works, the powerhouse Broadway musical, Into the Woods, brings together the classic fairytale characters from The Brothers Grimm with the Broadway magic of composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim and playwright James Lapine to create a rare modern classic.

The story follows a baker and his wife who wish to have a child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the Kings festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk.

When the baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a witchs curse, they set off on a journey to break it. Everyones wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later with disastrous results.

Director Ryan Hull returns to the Coaster stage for this production, having previously directed Around the World in 80 Days at the Coaster Theatre. Before returning to Oregon he completed the actors training program at the Circle in the Square Theatre on Broadway in New York City.

Those in the cast are: Ann Bronson. as the witch;. Darren Hull, the baker; Sheila Shaffer, the bakers wife; David Sweeney, narrator/mysterious man; Lisa Fergus, Cinderella; Richard Bowman, Jack; Amanda Payne, Little Red Ridinghood; Joseph Oyala, the wolf/Cinderellas prince/voice of the giant; Sue Meyers, Jacks mother; Ellen Jensen, Rapunzel; Todd Payne, Cinderellas father/Rapunzels prince; Jean Rice, Cinderellas stepmother; Ben Van Osdol, the steward; Cindy Karr, Florinda/granny/sleeping beauty; Bree Heavenrich, Lucinda/Snow White; Cameron Lira, voice of Cinderellas mother.

In addition to Hull, the Into the Woods crew includes: Kirk Valles, vocal director; Jenni Tronier, choreographer; and Nancy McCarthy, stage manager and sound booth operator.

The 39 Steps

Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps, a fast-paced whodunit. The suave, yet bored, Richard Hannay eyes a mysterious woman at the theater but returns to his London homewhere the woman turns up dead.

With no more than that, he finds himself on the run as a mysterious spy organization alternately pursues and is pursued by him, from London to Scotland and back, as he fights to clear himself of the murder. Along the way, he is hindered and helped by the beautiful, upstanding Pamela who, despite her best efforts, ends up shackled, literally to a man she thinks is a murderer. Meanwhile, the police and the mysterious spy organization are closing in on Richard.

Actor, director, costumer and educator Patrick Lathrop directs this play. His other role is that of the Coasters executive director, a position he accepted over a year ago. Previously, he was education director of the theater for nearly four years.

The cast for The 39 Steps is: David Sweeney, who plays Richard Hannay; Lisa Fergus, Annabella Schmidt/Pamela/Margaret; Ellen Jensen, clown; Ben Van Osdol, clown.

In addition to directing the play, Lathrop also designed the costumes for both Into the Woods and The 39 Steps. Other crew members are Josh Loring, stage manager; Dmitri Swain, set designer/painter for both plays; Mick Alderman, lighting designer for both plays.

Into the Woods is sponsored by Candi and Jon Holzgrafe, The Ocean Lodge, Inn at Cannon Beach and Leland E. G. Larson. The 39 Steps is sponsored by Keith C. Schnip, The Ocean Lodge, Inn at Cannon Beach and Lodges at Cannon Beach.