“And Then There Were None,” a play based on Agatha Christie’s best-selling crime novel of all time, will grace the stage at Chino Valley High School Theatre, 760 E. Center St., from Nov. 11 through Nov. 19.

Invited by an unknown host, 10 strangers arrive on an island, each with a secret to hide and a crime for which they must pay. One by one they are picked off.

This play is based on the story that made Agatha Christie the best-selling novelist of all time, and is read the world over in more than 50 languages. The structure of the story has become the basis for many Hollywood films.

According to Dan Isenberg, theater director at Chino Valley High School, the performance is filled with a mix of new and seasoned student actors.

“This year is different because I’ve got a lot of rookies, but I saw their work ethic,” Isenberg said. “They blended in with the veterans, and I think this is going to be one excellent show.”

Actor Logan Hawks explained that the character she is playing, Madam Justice Wargrave, is a judge for the High Court of England.

“Justice Wargrave is a very interesting character because she’s very strict,” Hawks said. “She’s very kept together. She’s almost bland in a way, but she’s sarcastic. Think sort of typical know-it-all British person.”

According to Hawks, the variety of characters is partly what makes the play so interesting.

“It’s really a fun sort of cast we’ve got going on because there’s so many different characters like Emily Brent, who’s a religious fanatic,” Hawks said. “Then there’s the Rogers who are servants and who are super sarcastic.”

The hardest part of performing in this play, for Hawks, is memorizing all the lines.

“Wargrave has a ton of monologues throughout the entire play,” Hawks said. “I think there’s somewhere between 8 to 12 monologues, so that’s always a challenge for memorization.”

Hawks, a senior at Chino Valley High School, said that her experiences performing in the theatre has made her a better public speaker.

“I used to be kind of shy,” Hawks said. “Now I’m not afraid to speak in public, which is good, because, you know, you have to give presentations all the time. I believe it’ll help me in my future because I want to do community theater.”

Actor Aiden Valenzuela, explained that the character he plays, Philip Lombard is a sort of comic relief in the story.

“Pretty much any word, until someone something happens in the show, is a joke,” Valenzuela said. “He likes to flirt a lot. The hardest part is definitely the flirting, because it’s not something I’m used to.”

This performance will be Valenzuela’s second time on a stage.

“I learned that being in a show is nowhere near as scary as people think it is,” Valenzuela said. “Performing in front of people is way less scary than it actually sounds.”

Tickets for the show are $10 for adults and $5 for students, available for cash at the door.

For more information, call 928-636-2298.

Jesse Bertel is a reporter/videographer for the Prescott News Network. Follow him on Twitter @ JesseBertel, email him at jbertel@prescottaz.com, or call 928-445-3333, ext. 2043.