DINNER THEATER TIME — Mystery Theater Unlimited’s dinner theater show “Once Upon a Crime,” will be performed at 6:30 p.m. on May 9 at Scaffidi’s Restaurant and Tavern. Taking part in the production are, from left, Joel Nau as Big Bad Wolf Jr., Dustin Heavilin as Old King Cole, Butch Maxwell as Odd Sterling, Renee Storm as Red Riding Hood and Karissa Martin as Grandma. -- Contributed

STEUBENVILLE — Little Red Riding Hood wanders into “The Twilight Zone.” No, this isn’t the first line of a joke. It is an upcoming Mystery Theater Unlimited performance to take place at Scaffidi’s Restaurant and Tavern. The interactive, original, comedy, musical murder mystery is entitled “Once Upon a Crime,” and will be performed at 6:30 p.m. May 9 in the restaurant’s banquet room, located at 350 S. Hollywood Blvd. in Steubenville.

According to the program’s host, “You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension. A dimension between fact and fairy tale. A dimension of demented legends of folklore, gone askew of the storybook ‘Once Upon a Crime in the Twilight Zone.'” The production is about the strange creator of a spooky television anthology series, Odd Sterling.

Sterling, played by Butch Maxwell, explains, “Submitted for your approval: A hooded girl with a propensity for wearing red, now all grown up and running a courier service for fairy tale characters.”

Sterling states, “She is dispatched to the home of one little old lady know to Ms. Hood as Grandma, who is hosting party for a king. Along the way, she is followed by the son of the legendary Big Bad Wolf.”

According to Sterling, who was terrorized as a child by Grimm’s Fairy Tales, “Grandma is known to travel on broomsticks and ask advice of her mirrors. The king is not the jolly old soul he is rumored to be. It is said he is haunted by a witch’s curse, and the diminutive Big Bad Wolf Jr. wants nothing more than to avenge the murder of his father.”

Actors include Renee Storm as Red Riding Hood, Karissa Martin as Grandma, Dustin Heavilin as Old King Cole and Joel Nau as the Big Bad Wolf Jr. The Wheeling-based mystery theater ensemble has been writing and performing original comedy murder mysteries since 1996. Performances include audience interaction and the opportunity to solve a murder mystery. The performance will not take place on a stage, but with actors moving about and among guests.

Audience members are encouraged to gather clues, talk to the characters and question the survivors, after the murder has occurred. Some audience members will play small parts during the show, officials noted. Seating is limited and reservations are required through scaffidiscatering.com. For information, visit MysteryTheatreUnlimited.com.