TIPS for a Successful Murder Mystery Party

   

Useful guidelines to consider when booking your event.

           Click on each link for info - or just scroll up or down

 1.  Avoid a SURPRISE Murder Mystery Party

 2.  Don't Crowd Your Program Schedule

 3.  Choose Good Actors

 4.  Use the Right Table and Chair Setup
 5.  Don't Smush Your Audience

 6.  Avoid Standing Receptions

 7.  Plated Food Versus BUFFET?

 8.  Planning for SMALLER Parties

 9.  How to Produce LARGE Parties

10. Guests Texting During Play?

 

Tip #1: 
 

Avoid a SURPRISE Murder Mystery Party!

Yes...we know you are shocked when you hear this! Some people get the notion that a murder mystery party will be more fun if it is sprung on their guests as a SURPRISE!  Well, we hate to burst anyone's bubble, but after doing thousands of shows, we learned that enthusiasm and cooperation will INCREASE when guests KNOW IN ADVANCE about an upcoming mystery party. (But, you can still surprise your guest(s) of honor as everyone will enjoy seeing THEIR reaction.)

Creative invitations can be used effectively to make your event look fun, intriguing, and mysterious. This way, your guests will be mentally prepared to anticipate having fun. They will spend days or weeks in advance asking other people about it, and wondering if they are going to be the one that gets killed, or if they are going to be set-up with a murder rap, etc.  And as curiosity and anticipation psyches them up for the mystery party, they'll be more attentive to details of the play.

When the day of the mystery dinner finally arrives, pre-informed guests know exactly what is happening when they hear the screams: "MURDER . . . someone's been killed!".  They'll be grinning ear-to-ear when they see the "stiff" laying nearby on the floor.
 

 

Tip #2:  

 

Don't Crowd Your Program Schedule

 

Try not to "squeeze in"  any programming segments prior to OR during the Murder Mystery Play.  This will distract your guests and it destroys the mood of "suspended disbelief" that is crucial to setting the stage for a murder mystery investigation. Consider your speeches, awards and other business as the climax of the event, and wait until after the play is completely over. Trust us on this point...we have seen Murder Plays lose audience interest when the "spell is broken"! After a period of time is spent on other activities, audiences are usually reluctant to re-focus on the drama of the investigation.

 

 

Tip #3:

Choose Good Actors

The quality of any play is ONLY AS GOOD AS THE ACTORS! In cases where you supply your own actors, choose people with extroverted personalities and some degree of talent. And, if they have a good sense of humor, that is a bonus.

Volunteer actors are less effective if they: (1) haven't rehearsed their script, (2) can't be understood, or (3) speak too soft - even when a microphone is used.  Foreigners or people with accents are usually okay for speaking roles, unless their accent is so thick that audience members cannot understand them when they speak English. (However this lends itself to good-natured humor in certain roles!)

 

Tip #4: 

Use the Right Table and Chair Setup

When setting the room, make sure everyone seated at the tables for dinner can see everyone else in the room at the same time. If some tables are tucked around a corner or worse yet - in an adjoining room - then those particular guests will lose interest, get bored, and then begin conversing out loud. Once the conversation level raises, the rest of the audience will be distracted and have difficulty enjoying the show.

Also, use ROUND table configurations (or squares) instead of the rectangle 6 or 8 foot banquet tables set up end-to-end.  Long table seating prevents guests from seeing the faces of most other guests - except people directly next to them. Avoid "U" shaped table settings as this arrangement may work for speeches, but does not encourage spontaneous audience interaction during the play.  See photos and layouts for table seating. Click on> "Suggested Seating"

 

 

Tip #5: 

Don't "Smush" Your Audience

Sometimes, restaurants or banquet rooms tend to cram chairs and tables together too closely. Murder Mystery dinners need a different approach than typical dinner events. Round tables of 10 persons per table is too crowded for comfort. We recommend 6 to 8 people per 72" round table. Guests  need a little space next to their dinner plate to jot down notes on 5" X  9" detective reports. If they are jammed in too tight to the place setting on either side of them, no one will have room to take notes during the production. And, we have learned from experience that if guests cannot jot down a few notes, they will start to lose interest in the play when they suddenly feel overwhelmed trying to remember more than three facts.  If you will be using  smaller tables (round or square); a minimum of 4 persons per table is the least amount of guests you should seat per table. ( 3 or less people per table is too lonely and they won't feel like they are part of the fun.)
 

"The One Yardstick Rule"   

 

Allow a comfortable space between chair backs and tables when setting up the room. Stay at least 36" away from walls with the backs of chairs. The room set-up should be comfortable enough spacing so actors can walk between tables during the show and not have to bump into the backs of guests' chairs - or have accidents bumping into waiters carrying food trays. Don't forget to allow a 5' X 5' space for setting up the PA control console (microphone mixer and laptop), plus a couple small 3' square areas in the corners of the room to set up the PA speakers on tripod stands.

 

Besides the One Yardstick rule, it is okay to plan for 10% guests OVER your actual head count - for the sake of space and table set-up. Sometimes you may have more guests show up for the final mystery dinner event. Allowing a 10% extra seating arrangement won't get you in trouble. Also, the extra space may allow other guests to choose to sit at another table so they will have more elbow room.

See photos and layouts for table seating. Click on> "Suggested Seating"
 

 

Tip #6: 

Avoid Standing Receptions

An event where all your guests are standing and/or roaming the whole duration of time never seems to work for a successful murder mystery party. For example:  cocktail receptions use tall-top tables to give guests a place to set glasses on along  with appetizer plates. Tall-top table events are used specifically to encourage guests to slowly roam and engage in many conversations. These are perfect if used ONLY for cocktail hour prior to the start of the mystery play and dinner.

The reason why this type of set-up is so ineffective is that guests are all on a "peer level", looking eye-to-eye with everyone else in the room. They cannot see actors whom are performing and speaking from various vantage points around the room; sitting OR standing. Once your guests lose touch with seeing the actors speak, they quickly lose interest in the whole play and begin talking to their closest neighbor. A room full of assorted conversations spread out everywhere is literally the WORST scenario for conducting an effective Murder Mystery Play. 

If a standing reception is the only configuration you must use, then a Murder Mystery play is not for you, and you should consider using a different entertainment format. However, talk to us first and maybe we can offer a solution.

 

Tip #7: 

 

Plated Food Versus BUFFET?

 

FOOD Buffets DO NOT WORK  FOR  MURDER  MYSTERY  DINNERS!!

It is impossible to start a Murder Mystery Play in the middle of all the chaos of 150 guests standing up in long lines waiting to fill plates of food.  Our plays last from 70 minutes to 100 minutes.  In buffet situations, the first group of guests stand in a buffet line, get their food, and then sit down to eat.  BUT, after they are done eating, they still have to wait another 15 to 30 minutes for the rest of the buffet guests to wait their turn in line, get their food, and then they all sit down to eat. 

 

Unless you have 30 or fewer guests, Buffet lines are L-O-N-G and S-L-O-W and they can waste up to 45 minutes. Here are the problems that can result:

(1) Too many guests are standing and deeply engrossed in conversations in the food lines and at the tables. Too much noise pollution means Actors cannot be heard - even with amplified microphones.

(2) When the last half of your guests finally sit down to eat, the first half of guests are already done eating and they get restless and want to stand up, go for a walk, send a text message or take a bathroom break, etc. 

(3) When our actors stand up to perform their dialogue, the buffet line of guests waiting to be served will visually distract the audience from paying attention to just the actors.

(4) Food sugar "highs and lows" sets in with the first half of guests who ate 30 minutes ago and they are the first group to get drowsy before the play's action can even begin.

 

 

Tip #8:

 

Planning for SMALLER Parties

Small, private murder mysteries of 10 to 20 people is always a fun event among close friends, work associates or relatives. But note: the key word is "CLOSE". In other words, people that know each other well are more prone to being outgoing and uninhibited when it comes to asking questions, or making funny wisecracks (which are always welcome ...in fact encouraged!). Small gatherings of strangers tend to be more reserved. Case in point: funny moments in a script that usually generate laughter from most audiences may go by without any kind of reaction when strangers are too shy to laugh or contribute adlibs of their own. One remedy is to use the Sodium Pentathol affect (truth serum) - in other words, serve "cocktails" for added "lubrication" of outgoing personalities to rise to the surface.

Table and seating can be much more flexible for smaller parties. Often times, these take place in a private home in a living room or on a patio. The rules for table and seating layouts can be relaxed, although we still recommend using round top tables and space between guests' place settings.  Whether a large or small party, guests don't like to be squeezed together too tightly like sardines in a can!  Rectangle or square tables are okay for groups of up to 20 or 30 people.

 

If you would like some good ideas on how to break the ice with these type of smaller parties, call us. We have "ice-breaking" techniques that warm up audiences before the play gets under way.  
 

Tip #9: 
 

How to Produce LARGE Parties

The first point is that with larger audiences, there will be plenty of  party personalities that will contribute life and humor to the play. Extroverts don't care if they say something in front of 10 people or 250 people, and that's a "beautiful thing" in this business! Ask any comedian if they would rather have 20 or a 100 people watch their show and you know what their answer will be: MORE PEOPLE! More people means a bigger laugh when something funny happens.

One drawback with larger events of  175 and more people is that your guests tend to lose their connection with the actors whom are seated several tables apart - or as much as 150 feet away from the next nearest actor's table. In this large scale setting, guests who see actors stand up and speak can barely see their faces and expressions beyond 60 feet away.

                                      . . . Solutions . . .

For big events, our first suggestion is to cut down the size of the show by dividing it into two separate groups for two performances (either one right after the other, or one day after the next). But, if you can ONLY do one show, then we can still add theatrical tricks and techniques so a larger audience can still hear and see well. INTIMACY is the key to a successful mystery play, otherwise we risk losing the audience's attention. Review the "Party Tricks" below to help your large event:

 

Large Party Trick #1:
Consider using live video playback  with one or two camera people strolling about the entire room during the play, and zooming in on the actors for close-ups so even the furthest seated guests can identify with each actor. Place one or two projection TV's aimed at 10 foot BIG SCREENS so everyone has a good vantage point to view the action.

 

Large Party Trick #2:

Add a couple of "Microphone Runners" so that the microphone can be handed to each actor from the closest Mic runner. In large ballrooms, this will save lots of wasted time waiting for a microphone to be hand delivered to the actor from the detective. They can be standing by the room perimeter in two different locations and patiently awaiting the need for someone to gain access to a wireless mic. The runners can be dressed like C.S.I. police personnel.

 

Large Party Trick #3:
Add another 2 to 4 PA speakers to encircle the room. These will diversify the amplified sound and give everyone's ears more clarity at less volume. That way, the guests won't feel detached from the main action of the play and won't get bored and start talking at their tables which are located too far away from the speakers. Adding more speakers ALSO avoids having to turn up speakers TOO LOUD, thereby disturbing the guests seated closest to the speakers. And, a side benefit is that the chance of microphone feedback is greatly reduced.

 

 

Tip #10: 

Guests Texting During the Play?

Sometimes, an annoying distraction with Mystery Show audiences is the fad of   “TEXTING”!  

During the past couple of years, we occasionally notice certain audience members disengage from the fun of the play. They are always obvious, since they have their heads bent down and their thumbs are going like mad, trying to send and reply to electronic messages. Most mature folks consider this to be "RUDE" behavior and when guests engage in this activity, it may be perceived as an insult to the party host who invested much time and expense in planning the party.  

When "TEXTERS" choose to shut out the world around them, the overall crowd reaction, applause and laughter is negatively affected. They seem to selfishly disengage from their surroundings, no matter how much fun other people are having with the play. But, it is worth noting that  texting is hardly ever a problem WHEN GUESTS PAY THEIR OWN TICKET PRICE for a dinner and show.

We recommend addressing this potential distraction when sending your dinner invitations. Also, you could display a placard at the check-in table on the night of the event. On this placard, you can display your "rules" in a simple and respectful way: 

"For the maximum enjoyment of our Murder Mystery Dinner Show, we request your cooperation and courtesy to others by turning off your digital devices until the show is over."

    PLEASE:  NO TEXTING, CELL PHONES, IPODS, PDA's or TABLETS 

 

 

 

. . . Summary . . .

 

The tips and suggestions listed above are guidelines for you to follow when booking your event. If you ignore these tips, there is always the risk for "Murphy's Law" to intervene and you might have less than a 100% successful play.

HOWEVER.........we also believe there are times to compromise when booking our events!  We want you to look good by hosting a SUCCESSFUL event. Call us for more information so we can assure you will obtain positive results!   

 

Scott Ebright, Owner    
Copyright February 2011, All rights reserved.