LINN — Linn High School graduate Samantha Brandt Temmen leaned forward in her chair, script in hand, as student actors worked through a scene during Sunday’s rehearsal for the upcoming production of “Murder Runs in the Family.”

Temmen and her mother, Sarah Brandt, are directing the high school play, continuing a second year of leadership for the program as performances approach next weekend.

“We just kind of call ourselves directors, assistant directors, co-directors — whatever the heck we call it,” Temmen said with a laugh. “We don’t really know.”

Performances are scheduled for Friday and Saturday, with an additional Saturday afternoon show featuring an understudy cast. The production represents months of preparation, with script selection beginning in the fall and rehearsals starting in January.

“We started looking at scripts back in September, October, something like that,” Temmen said. “Then we had auditions in January and started practice about two weeks after that, so it’s about three months of practicing and prepping that goes into it.”

Selecting “Murder Runs in the Family” was driven by both student strengths and community interest.

“These kids are very good at comedy, and this community loves comedy,” Temmen said. “Anytime theater around here has tried something other than comedy, it doesn’t hit as well.”

Murder mysteries have also proven to be a reliable fit.

“The school has always done a murder mystery almost every single year,” she added. “And they’re fun — the kids love them.”

Unlike the previous year, when the Drama Club presented “Just Another High School Play!”, directors had a clearer sense of their cast when making the selection.

“This year, I knew they were going to love it,” Temmen said. “Just reading through it, the kids instantly loved it, and it made it a lot more fun.”

Play selection also depends on the number of actors required to pull it off. “Last year we did not have as big a cast, so that determined the play we would present,” said Brandt. “This year, we have more than enough, so we’ll let the younger kids have their own show. They need to get that experience in front of an audience so when they come back next year, they’re better prepared.”

The mother-daughter dynamic has become a strength in shaping the production. “It’s the best thing, because it’s one of those things where you don’t have to worry about tiptoeing around somebody else,” said Temmen. “We just say what we need to say, and that’s kind of the end of it.”

Their differing perspectives also play a role in refining performances.

“A lot of the time, I’ll be running practice, and she’ll sit back and watch and tweak things,” said Temmen, adding that she sees it more from a theatrical perspective, whereas Brandt sees it more from the audience’s perspective. “So it makes it a good way to see it.”

Much of the set and props were sourced creatively, reflecting the realities of a small-school program.

“The hard thing that people don’t realize is finding costume stuff cheap,” Temmen said. “Because that’s the hard thing — stuff starts to add up a lot, especially whenever you’re in a small school. We don’t have a large budget for the play.”

Some items were donated, others repurposed, and additional costs — including performance rights — add to the challenge.

“We had to pay for the rights to the play, which is really expensive too,” Brandt said.

The school recently upgraded lighting and sound equipment, providing a boost to this year’s production.

“We didn’t ask for that, but it made our production process easier,” said Brandt.

For Temmen, directing involves more than blocking scenes — it’s about building confidence.

“The first part of it is learning lines,” she said. “Your script is your crutch, so the big thing is getting that script out of their hands. Once you do that, it’s then getting them confident in themselves to know the lines.”

Temmen set deadlines to remove scripts from rehearsal, followed by a week of practices in which she feeds lines to those who forget. “I told them at the beginning the day that scripts would be taken away,” she said. “Starting last week, I told them, they were on their own. And then, I was like, ‘You guys have to know the play well enough that if someone forgets their line, you can fill in and help each other.’ Some of them are very good at doing that, and it’s a big thing.”

Once lines are memorized, the focus shifts to delivery and trust among cast members.

Managing nerves is another key component, particularly for students new to the stage. “The big thing is just keeping them confident in themselves,” Temmen said. “Any director will tell you they’re going to get nitpicky, but that’s the whole point.”

Brandt offers a different approach, drawing from her own experience performing. “I always tell them I give my nerves a name, and I tell her to sit in that chair backstage,” she said. “Then I go do what I need to do on stage and come back to her.”

Temmen and Brandt intentionally introduced distractions during rehearsal to simulate real performance conditions.

“We want the nerves out now, not coming out the night of performances,” Temmen said.

That includes unexpected observers and background activity during scenes to test focus.

“They have to be prepared for distraction,” Brandt said. “If I’m banging on something over here and they can keep doing their lines, that helps when you have an audience.”

On the night of the play, Temmen has games planned to burn off nerves. “We have a couple of games, and another thing I do is have them shake out everything. It sounds stupid and silly, but they’re very good ways just to calm your body down and get through that.”

Temmen added that breathing techniques help students slow down and deliver lines intentionally, instead of sounding like they’re rushing through it. “Comedy requires good timing,” she said. “It’s really difficult to teach the kids they need to speak slowly, because no matter what you do, they’re going to speak faster if they’re nervous.”

One nice thing is that the stage lights are so bright that actors cannot really see the audience unless they look for someone specifically and intentionally. “If they’re looking for their uncle, or their best friend in the audience, they’re going to miss cues,” Brandt noted.

Students will also perform in front of the school before opening night, a long-standing tradition that helps expose issues early. “We always have something go wrong,” Temmen said. “But I always say it’s better for that to happen in front of the school than in front of a paying audience.”

This year’s production includes both experienced performers and newcomers. “We have a lot of seniors who have been in plays previously, and they really shine,” said Temmen. “They’re amazing, and they’re very helpful with the younger kids too.”

At the same time, underclassmen are stepping into larger roles.

“We’ve had some younger students — sophomores and juniors — who have stepped up really well this year too,” said Temmen.

To allow more students to perform, the directors added an understudy cast.

“If they’re putting in all the work, they deserve to get the time to actually perform,” Temmen said.

Now in their second year leading the program, Temmen and Brandt have helped sustain a long-standing tradition of student theater at Linn.

While much of the work happens behind the scenes — from sourcing costumes to managing rehearsals — the result will take center stage next weekend as students bring months of preparation to life.

Friday’s presentation begins at 7 p.m., with a Saturday showing at 2 and another at 7 at the fieldhouse.

“I knew they were going to love it, and just reading through the script, the kids instantly loved it, so it made it a lot more fun,” said Temmen. “We would love for the community to come out and see the play. These kids have worked very hard to get ready.”

Cast members are: Carson Shockley (Jack Sparks), Anna Plume (Heather Pallfeather), Lane McKim (Montgomery), Nyx Sankey (Mirium Pallfeather), Leo Massman (Claude Purdy), Sydney Skirvin (Patricia Purdy), Irene Curry (Maxine Pallfeather), Karson Wallenmeyer (Kathleen Pallfeather), Kylie Messenger (Aunt Zelda), Brady Brandt (Theo Burdett), Grace Roberts (Messenger), Abigail Hubecky (Policeman/understudy), and understudies April Everett, Peyton Stockman, Zaida Peoples, Leah Thompson.