A Theatrical Journey into Cape Cod’s Haunted Lore

Every autumn, as the full moon rises, a fire flickers to life in the hearth of Samuel Smith’s long-abandoned tavern deep in the woods of Great Island. The flame is a summons — calling forth the lost, forgotten, and restless souls of Cape Cod to share their chilling tales.

This October, Dark Tales Told on a Cold Autumn Eve returns to Cape Cod stages. Written by Jim Dalglish and co-directed with Jennifer Kangas, this immersive theatrical experience combines original storytelling with reimagined legends of Old Cape Cod. Audiences will encounter pirates, witches, mooncussers, politicos, selkies, and more in a series of haunting tales that are equal parts eerie, entertaining, and unforgettable.

Critical Raves…

“‘Dark Tales’ is intelligent, ambitious and entertaining… a great way to celebrate the spooky season!” — Carol Panasci, Cape Cod Times
“Like a super creepy Brigadoon… An evening well spent.” — Joanne Briana-Gartner, Cape Cod Times

Four Venues…

Academy of Performing Arts (APA)
120 Main Street, Orleans, MA 02653
October 3, 4, 10, 11
(Fridays & Saturdays at 7:00pm)

APA Tickets

Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater (WHAT)
2357 State Highway Route 6, Wellfleet, MA 02667
October 16, 17, 18, 19
(Thursday - Saturday at 7:00pm, Sunday at 4:00pm)

What Tickets

Cotuit Center for the Arts (CCftA)
4404 Falmouth Rd, Cotuit, MA 02635
October 23, 24, 25, 26
(Thursday - Saturday at 7:00pm, Sunday at 1:30pm)
Tickets to the CCftA shows will be available soon.

CCftA Tickets

The Provincetown Inn
1 Commercial St, Provincetown, MA 02657
October 29 & 30
(Wednesday & Thursday at 7:00pm)

Ptown Inn Tickets

Creative Team…

Directed by Jennifer Kangas & Jim Dalglish
Sound Design by Geof Newton
Poster Image by Jackie Reeves

Cast…

Tate Seidewand as Sam Smith
Geof Newton as The Fisherman
Bonnie Fairbanks as Maria
Samantha McMahon & Denise Page as May
Samantha - Oct. 3, 4 (APA); Oct. 16 (WHAT); Oct. 23, 24, 26 (CCftA); Oct. 29 (Ptown)
Denise - Oct. 10, 11 (APA); Oct. 17, 18, 19 (WHAT); Oct. 25 (CCftA); Oct. 30 (Ptown)
Jacob Rabold as Tony
Ian Ryan as Elliot
Matt Whelan as Dale
Dahlia Viprino as Lorelie
Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick as Madame X

Why You Shouldn’t Miss It…

If you’re looking for a perfect Halloween-season night out — one that’s equal parts chilling, macabre, and thrillingly theatrical — Dark Tales is for you. Audiences are transported to eerie Cape Cod settings like White Cedar Swamp, Horseleech Pond, Nauset Moors, and Provincetown Harbor, where the line between history and myth dissolves into ghostly encounters.

Playwright’s Note…

“I set out to create a theatrical experience rooted in the land and lore of Cape Cod — a place haunted by its past. These stories are my love letter to its shadows: a mix of myth, history, satire, and good old-fashioned horror. I hope audiences come away frightened, entertained, and perhaps even inspired to tell a few ghost stories of their own.” — Jim Dalglish

Team Bios…

Featured

Jim Dalglish

Jim Dalglish — Playwright / Co-director / Founder Helltown Players

Jim is a playwright, director, filmmaker, and producer with more than 30 plays and films to his credit. These works have been produced and screened around the world and have won awards in New York, Boston, London, and Dublin. A few of his plays have been anthologized in best play collections. Jim has directed more than two dozen theatrical productions, six of which he also independently produced. He has been employed by a variety of theaters in New England as a managing director, marketing director, and box office manager. Jim has a master’s degree in creative writing/ playwriting from Brown University. His thesis advisor was Paula Vogel. He works as the Director of User Experience Research & Strategy at OHO Interactive, where his clients include Harvard University, Yale University, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont, CIEE, and others. Jim is also the Founder/President of Helltown Players, the Cape’s newest theatre collaborative. When he isn’t busy writing, directing, or producing plays and films, he and his husband Rob Phelps enjoy sailing Delphina – their 17-foot O’Day Daysailer – along the sheltered harbors of New England.

For more about Jim and to read and download his plays: www.jimdalglish.com

Jennifer Kangas

Jennifer Kangas - Co-Director / Lighting Designer

Jennifer has a B.A. in Education and 20+ years of teaching music and coaching. Along with teaching music K-6, she directed several musicals. Most recently she directed Oliver! at the Academy Playhouse (APA) and was musical director for Nauset Regional High School’s performance of Drowsy Chaperone and the APA’s Winnie the Pooh, Red Riding Hood, Lion King, Kids, Into the Woods, Jr. and Little Mermaid, Jr. She performed with the Champlain Valley Oratorio Society, the Octavio Singers, Cape Cod Opera Company, and in many productions at The Academy Playhouse, Chatham Drama Guild, Harwich Junior Theater/Cape Cod Theater Company, Eventide Theater and Cotuit Center for the Arts. She is currently the resident light and sound designer at APA. When not involved in the theater arts or spending time with family, Jennifer enjoys travelling around the world (from the Arctic to Antarctica, Australia to Africa and everywhere in between). She is a licensed massage therapist, using gentle touch to help ease chronic and acute pain at Kangas Myofascial Massage in Chatham.

Geof Newton

Geof Newton — The Fisherman / Sound Design

Jackie Reeves

Jackie Reeves - Poster Art

Jackie Reeves is a Cape Cod based artist best known for her multidisciplinary artwork that blends figurative and abstract elements through mixed media paintings, animation and large-scale installations.

Bonnie Fairbanks

Bonnie Fairbanks – Maria

Bonnie is thrilled to reprise the role of Maria Hallett in “Dark Tales” for the Helltown Players; she originally appeared in the role in the 2018 world premiere at Cotuit Center for the Arts. This marks Bonnie’s fifth time partnering with founder/director/playwright Jim Dalglish and third performance with Helltown, having appeared as Alice B. Toklas in “Portraiture” (May 2025), as well as in “Little Devils I” as Mary in “Double D”. She also performed the role of Principal Edwards in the video-drama “Teacher of the Year” (2021) – another world premiere, and both written by Jim.

Bonnie has also regularly appeared in productions at the Falmouth Theatre Guild, Eventide Theater Co., the Woods Hole Theater Company, and Cape Rep. Recent performances include Emma Arkadina in “Stupid Fucking Bird” (Cotuit, 2024), Marty in “Grease” (Cotuit, 2023), Mrs Martini in “It’s a Wonderful Life, the Musical” (FTG, 2023), and Theresa in “Circle Mirror Transformation” (Cotuit, 2022), among others.

Bonnie’s performance is dedicated, as always, to The Parentals.

Samantha McMahon

Samantha Mahon – May

Samantha is delighted to be returning for this production of Dark Tales! She previously portrayed “Madame X” in the debut of the show in 2018, and is thrilled to be taking on a new role. She has been performing for 20 years, with favorite roles including The Emcee in Cabaret, Go to Hell Kitty in Chicago, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet and Pamela/Margaret/Annabella in The 39 Steps. Samantha resides on the Cape, where she is a high school Theater and English teacher.

Denise Page

Denise Page — May
Denise is thrilled to be making her debut with The Helltown Players for this production of Dark Tales! Recent and favorite stage credits include: Lindsay in Godspell (APA); Rose in Gypsy (APA for which she was also Assistant Director); Nancy in Oliver! (APA); Mrs. Gibbs in Our Town (Cape Rep Theater); Miss Hannigan in Annie (APA), Ado Annie in Oklahoma! (APA). Denise is an acting teacher at the Academy of Performing Arts and performs at various concerts on the lower and outer cape, including the ‘Great Music on Sundays at Five’ series in Provincetown. A native of Provincetown, she currently resides in Wellfleet with her amazing family of the human and pet variety and fun fact - has ancestry dating back to the Mayflower!

Jacob Rabold

Jacob Rabold — Tony

Ian Ryan

Ian Ryan — Elliot

Ian Ryan is a Cape Cod–based actor, playwright, director, and producer whose work spans more than two decades of regional and community theatre. As a performer, he has appeared in over twenty-five productions, including roles such as Babette in La Cage aux Folles, Schultz in Circle Mirror Transformation, and Ralph in Our Country’s Good (CapeRep). His play 19DEF, first developed in Cape Rep’s Playwriting Lab, was later produced by Helltown Players and invited to the International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival. Ian also co-directed the award-winning Lines in the Sand with Jim Dalglish, which has been staged in Massachusetts, Dublin, and New York. As Secretary/Treasurer and Trustee of Helltown Players, he champions new works by writers with ties to Cape Cod, fostering collaborative and inclusive storytelling while continuing to develop his own practice across acting, writing, and directing.

Tate Seidewand

Tate Seidewant — Samual Smith

Tate is a Cape Cod native who received a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Theatre from the University of Tampa. He is excited to make his debut in community theatre with the help from Jim and Jennifer on this wonderful yet dark production. Tate developed a love for acting after being a background character for a feature film that was shot on Cape Cod during his early years of high school. His first role in theatre was Pepper in Mamma Mia! during his senior year at Nauset Regional High. He is excited to further his acting career in the future!

Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick

Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick — Madame X

Dahlia Viprino

Dahlia Viprino — Lorelie
Dahlia is a performing arts student at Cape Cod Community College. They are excited to work with so many new theaters throughout the run of Dark Tales. Recent credits include Cha-Cha (Grease), Kaylee/ Alyssa U.S (The Prom), Mrs. Johnson (The Minutes), Silly Girl (Beauty and the Beast), and Kristin Holub (Night Chills). She would like to thank her boyfriend for introducing her to this show and being so patient driving her to rehearsals, and Jim for writing and directing such a wonderful show. You can look forward to seeing Dahlia perform again this winter in Newsies at CCFTA.

Matt Whelan

Matt Whelan — Dale

Matt Whelan is a performing arts major at Cape Cod Community College. He's been doing theatre for a little over a year now, credits include Kenickie in Grease, Mr. Breeding in The Minutes, Nick/Ensemble in The Prom, and Roger in Grease. You can see him next as Bunsen/Newsie in Newsies at Cotuit Center for the Arts, opening November 25th. He would like to thank his family and friends for their continued support, as well as Jim Dalglish and Jen Kangas for the incredible opportunity to work on Dark Tales!