Wait Until Dark

Frederick Knott's drama Wait Until Dark has been a staple of community theater since its 1966 Broadway debut. Given the public's familiarity with the plot (and the ending), it's hard to keep up the suspense the story requires. And yet, the production now on stage at Carmichael's Chautauqua Playhouse does the job nicely. The six-person cast, directed by Dean Shellenberger, exploits the best elements of Knott's story about a blind woman who becomes the target of three con men searching for heroin hidden in a doll her husband Sam (Chris Celestin) innocently transported home from a business trip. Taylor Fleer plays the blind Susan perfectly, still tentative about her newly acquired sightlessness. Th, F 8pm; Su, 2pm. Through 9/27.Chautauqua Playhouse, 5325 Engle Road, Carmichael (inside La Sierra Community Center); (916) 489-7529; www.cplayhouse.org. Through September 27. J.C.