A Killer Comedy Is Coming to Mahopac

MAHOPAC, N.Y. — Who killed Mama Souprano? You can help figure out that mystery on Saturday night, Sept. 7, at Four Brothers Restaurant in Mahopac.

“Who Killed Mama Souprano?”—the brainchild of local writer, director, and producer Elise Milner—is an audience-interactive parody/comedy that has been delighting mystery-hungry crowds for more than 20 years.

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“I wrote it in 2003,” Milner said, noting the HBO series “The Sopranos” was at the height of its popularity at the time she penned it. “It was kind of a cultural phenomenon.”

Milner is the owner and CEO of Hanging Cow Productions, which has produced more than a dozen dramas and musicals since she founded the company in 2002. With no formal degree, Milner created Hanging Cow from the ground floor.

She began her creative endeavors in the small town of Virginia City in rural Nevada. After conquering the local community, and her high school theater, the then 17-year-old Milner left Nevada and went on to study writing, acting, theater/TV production, and broadcasting for three years in San Francisco and five in Los Angeles. She has worked in every aspect of the entertainment industry, from performing on stage and in television and film to being a disc jockey and news producer. She even helped launch and develop a television pilot for Universal Studios.

When she came to New York City in 1999, Milner realized she had to create her own opportunities. She was cast as a repertory member in a small theater company where she helped develop original works on stage, all while watching and learning the ropes of how a boutique production company operated. She eventually began writing and producing her own work full-time under Hanging Cow Productions.

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“I really didn’t know where my career was headed until I moved to New York City and decided to be a producer so I could incorporate all my talents,” she said. “I wrote my first script, a holiday musical parody, at the American Theater for Actors and have been working from that theater for 22 years.”

Milner started writing dinner theater parodies like “Who Killed Mama Souprano?” and other original shows and took them on the road from New Jersey to Connecticut to upstate New York. So far, she has produced more than 300 performances of her works.

All of Hanging Cow’s shows are self-funded and self-made.

“It’s just me,” she said. “We don’t have any investors, don’t have credit card debt. We stay in the black.”

Looking to move away from musical parodies, in 2005 Milner decided to go into Off-Broadway and moved from Westchester to NYC and started doing more hard-hitting dramas, and thought-provoking stories such as her play “Angels Among Us.”

“We did that in the city four times and then brought it to Yorktown Stage in 2021,” she said, “COVID had chased us out of the city so we brought it up here and had a great four-night run.

“We still do shows down there (NYC) twice a year and now I am reviving these interactive audience performances where the audiences play a small role. It’s all comedy and it’s a lot of fun. Our community really needs them back.”

Milner, who now resides in Cortlandt Manor with her husband, produced “Mama Souprano” in Peekskill last winter and is looking forward to bringing it to a Mahopac audience. She said for these audience-interactive shows, a traditional theater isn’t necessary.

“You just need a space and a dance floor,” she said. “Not everyone wants to go to the city for a fun night out. And we use local actors and local sponsors.”

In “Who Killed Mama Souprano,” Mama is a millionaire "meatball tycoon” and everyone is after her inheritance after she dies. Milner said there are several ways for the audience to get involved in the story.

“The priest officiating her service has gone missing and we pull an audience member to fill the role,” she said. “That’s one example.

“Some of the play is improvised,” she continued. “We roll with the audience’s reaction to things. And if it is someone’s birthday or special occasion, and they email us ahead of time, we will make it part of the show (HCTheatrical@yahoo.com).”

The cast—which is currently in rehearsal—is made up of professional actors from the city and the Hudson Valley.

“We like to find local people first,” she said. “We pay them and keep it local.”

Milner said Mahopac has been very receptive and Hanging Cow has had many local sponsors step up.

“We are thankful for the support,” she said. “Community entertainment is super important to me. To be able to engage in small community theater after COVID is special and we are so grateful. People still want to support the arts.”

Hanging Cow is truly a boutique production company. Milner and her husband Christopher Berlino handle just about every task, from the prominent to the behind-the-scenes minutiae.

“We do the prop making, set building, costumes, fundraising, ticket processing, graphics for the playbill... everything,” she said. “It’s truly a small family-run operation.”

Tickets for the Sept. 7 show at Four Brothers, which starts at 7 p.m., are $85 apiece and include dinner. There are discounts for parties of 12 and up. Tickets can be purchased at www.hcptickets.com or by calling (917) 603-8765.

Even as Milner fills her days getting ready for the Four Brothers show, she continues to write.

“I am working on a new play for Off-Broady for next spring,” she said. “I also have an idea for a pilot [for a TV series] and hope to be talking to Hulu and Netflix about it.”

The only thing better than that would be a bowl of Mama Souprano’s famous meatball soup.

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