The set design by Josh Christensen is striking! The walls and floors are covered in deep blue and pink, with enough white thrown in to dazzle the eyes. It's the first clue that what you're about to see is a wild and crazy comedy.

“Shear Madness” by Paul Portner, being staged now though August 18 at Shadowland Stages is a silly crime story of a different nature, a wacky, whodunit unlike any seen before.

The play takes place in a hair salon run by an over-the-top gay guy named Tony Whitcomb (Jason Edward Cook). His assistant is the gum-smacking, wise-cracking Barbara Demarco (Kelsey Leland). Before anyone gets murdered, hilarity ensues upstage, downstage and all around the stage between these two and their four supposed customers: Mikey Thomas (Ed Rosini), Eddie Lawrence (Michael Irvin Pollard), Nick O'Brien (Jeff Haffner) and Mrs. Shubert (Marina Re).

But not everything is as it seems. There are cops on a stake-out, an antiques dealer, who may or may not be a blackmailer, fraudster or thief (you name it), a busy-body who may or may not be having an affair, and even the owner and assistant are suspect.

The murder occurs and everyone has a motive, the two cops take over and - here's where the real fun starts - the witnesses (that's us) not only get to question the suspects, but when the lead cop calls for a reenactment of the entire afternoon's events, the audience can stop the characters and either add to what occurred or call their bluff if something's not quite right.

Here's the genuine kicker - after the reenactment, the spectators get to vote on who the murderer is. So, based on motives, the audience questions, the direction the questioning takes, the suspect's alibis, the conclusions the witnesses come to, and several other incidentals, there is likely to be a different ending every single night of this show.

There are bad jokes and puns galore, twists and turns to keep you on your toes, and local references to perk up your ears, such as those about the Ellenville Police, the hamlet of Kerhonkson and the village of Ellenville, and the Shawangunk Journal. Even the Sullivan County Democrat got a mention.

To tell you anymore would give away too much information and take away the fun.

There are excellent performances throughout. Special praise to Jeff Haffner for keeping things on track during the questioning and reenactment, and to the rest of the cast for their improvisation skills. Trust me, you cannot rehearse this stuff. As much as you try to anticipate questions, it was obvious that Friday night's audience came up with some doozies that surprised even this well-prepared cast. Spontaneity reigns at Shadowland Stages!

Bravo to director Brendan Burke for giving the cast their freedom to both entertain and enjoy.

If you go:

What: Shear Madness

Where: Shadowland Stages

When: Through August 18

How to get tickets: Visit shadowlandstages.org or call 845-647-5511.