Something wicked, and very funny, is coming to Hope Mills this October. Artist Village Community Theatre will open its 2026-27 season with Witches!? In Salem?!, playwright Matt Cox’s darkly comic retelling of the Salem Witch Trials. Performances are scheduled for Oct. 23-25 at Thomas Campbell Oakman Chapel, 3715 S. Main St. in Hope Mills.
For Artist Village, the production represents something of a departure. Past productions have included War of the Worlds, It’s a Wonderful Life, Dracula, Peter and the Starcatcher, and Nunsense. This year, Executive Director Teresa Davis said the company wanted to venture beyond the genres its audiences have come to expect.
“This season, we really wanted to shake things up a little,” Davis said. “We wanted to step outside of that model, try some new genres, and also look at casting in a different way.”
Witches!? In Salem?! certainly accomplishes that.
“It takes something very serious and approaches it in a completely unexpected way,” Davis said. “And for us, it’s a first — we’ve never done comedy before, much less dark comedy!”
Written by Matt Cox, creator of Puffs, the two-act comedy takes audiences back to Salem Village in 1692. The play is described as a darkly comedic and “mostly historically accurate” examination of the Salem Witch Trials. An eighth-grade narrator, Jenny Anne Bishop, guides the audience through the history surrounding the trials while pointing out where history and theatrical interpretations part company. That mixture of history and irreverence is central to Artist Village’s production.
Davis describes the show as an evening filled with “dark humor, historical mayhem, physical comedy, courtroom chaos, unexpected twists and a whole lot of trouble.”
The script, she said, shows the influence of comedy such as Saturday Night Live and Monty Python, using satire to poke holes in widely accepted beliefs. Yet underneath the comedy is a historical event with very real consequences.
The Salem Witch Trials began in 1692 amid accusations of witchcraft that spread through several Massachusetts communities. Cox’s play incorporates historical people and events while openly acknowledging when it takes dramatic liberties. Artist Village's production uses its young narrator to help audiences distinguish among documented history, Arthur Miller's famous interpretation in The Crucible and Cox's comic version. That relationship between history and storytelling is one reason the Salem trials remain compelling more than three centuries later.
For Davis, the story continues to resonate because the emotions behind what happened in Salem are not confined to the 17th century.
“When people are afraid or uncertain, it’s often easier to look for someone to blame,” she said. Jealousy, resentment, suspicion and fear all played roles in the events, she added, making the story recognizable even to modern audiences.
“We may not be accusing people of witchcraft, but that same tendency to fear what we don’t understand, divide ourselves into groups and look for someone to blame is still there,” Davis said. “It gives us a chance to look at what happened in Salem, but also to look at ourselves and ask, ‘Are we really that different?’”
Turning that subject matter into comedy has presented a new challenge for Artist Village's performers. Comedy depends heavily on timing, and satire can be particularly unforgiving. A misplaced word or a beat that lasts slightly too long can cause a joke to fall flat, Davis explained.
“All comedy writing relies on rhythm,” she said, “and much of the work with the cast is finding the rhythms of each scene to make the comedy flow.”
The production features a 14-member cast ranging in age from 13 to their early 70s, including four performers making their Artist Village debuts. Some cast members have appeared in only a handful of productions, while others have participated in nearly every show the organization has produced. For Davis, that mixture of ages and experience levels reflects an important part of community theatre.
“This show is challenging everyone in different ways and giving each of them an opportunity to explore their creative side, stretch themselves a little, and grow as performers,” she said.
Audiences shouldn't expect Artist Village to reveal all of Salem's secrets before opening night, either. Davis is deliberately keeping details about costumes, scenery, props and other visual surprises under wraps.
“It is a Halloween show, after all,” she said. She did offer one tease: “The last five minutes or so are a real treat. It is quite fun and quite surprising.”
And for someone encountering Artist Village for the first time through Witches!? In Salem?!, Davis has a simple suggestion: leave expectations at the door.
“You’ll get a little history, a lot of humor, some questionable decision-making, and, of course, plenty of witches!” she said. “It’s historical, it’s dark, it’s funny and hopefully you’ll learn something along the way.”
“Come expecting the unexpected,” Davis said, “and you just might leave pleasantly surprised, entertained and looking at the Salem Witch Trials in a whole new way.”
And there is one final reassurance for anyone nervous about visiting Salem.
“We promise not to accuse you of witchcraft on the way out!”
Witches!? In Salem?! runs Oct. 23-25 at Thomas Campbell Oakman Chapel, 3715 S. Main St., Hope Mills. The production contains adult language and Artist Village recommends it for ages 12 and older. Tickets and additional information are available through ww.artistvillagehm.com/home.

(Image courtesy of Artist Village)