The Shadow Mountain Players will again take the stage in the Saddle West Showroom with another play as part of the Wild West Extravaganza scheduled for Sept. 20 and 21.

They have changed their style for this year's presentation. In the past, the play has been a tongue-in-cheek melodrama with the never-ending good versus evil plot and good always the winner in the end. This year, although there are some characteristics of a melodrama in the character's names, the play is a musical entitled "Inspector Incognito and the Kansas City Kid." OK, so the name of the play is melodramatic as well.

When asked about the plot, Director Gayle McCaslin said, "Well, in this play there is no one bad guy -- the whole town is bad."

The plot revolves around the forming of a small town in the West, namely Prescott, Ariz.

When a wealthy benefactor, also named Prescott, donates a large sum of money to build the supposedly "wonderful" town, the plot takes a turn for the worst in human nature.

The mayor, takes charge of the funds and begins placing all his friends and relatives in positions of authority or well-paid positions in the town. The sheriff turns the jail into a "chicken ranch," and the town, "run by crooks," is never built, the funds dwindle and when the wealthy benefactor decides to send an inspector to check on the progress, he (or she) is incognito.

The play, chosen by Gayle McCaslin, is full of crooked politicians, an unscrupulous sheriff and characters on the take. McCaslin said, "People have asked me how I always pick something that so closely parallels Pahrump."

The plot line is reminiscent of the Death Valley Scotty story as Scotty was backed by a wealthy insurance magnate who was heavily invested in Scotty's search for non-existent gold. That story ended with the inspection of progress as well, but the result is the castle standing in the Grapevine Canyon portion of Death Valley National Park.

Not so in the inspection of Prescott. The "inspection" leaves the hoax laid bare and justice is served as those who had lived well on someone else's money being replaced with upstanding citizens. The bad guys have their destiny reduced to subservient positions in the community.

The music for the play is rewritten lyrics to familiar tunes that McCaslin said "will have you tapping your toes and drumming your fingers and cursing us for weeks after the show is over."

The Shadow Mountain Players have been rehearsing since the first of June in the Saddle West Showroom and McCaslin said, "Even the workers setting up the theater ... we hear them singing along with us in the back of the showroom."

A buffet dinner of build-your-own burgers, baked beans, coleslaw, salad, watermelon and coffee or tea is part of the ticket price for two of the three shows.

The show will be on stage at 6 p.m. Sept. 19 and 20. The tickets are $20 and the price includes the meal. A matinee is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21 that does not include a meal. The ticket price for the matinee is $5.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce.