Murder Mystery Dinner Party Games

Planning Your Murder Mystery Dinner Party

• The easiest way to organize a party is to use a purchased kit. These are available in hobby or book stores or on-line and contain invitations, character booklets and tips. These can be designed for as small as a six-character dinner party to a large 100 guest affair suitable for classrooms, family reunions or corporate retreats. The parties are constructed in such a way that the characters can play off each other revealing clues and accusing each other. Of course, many of the clues are red herrings (meaning they have nothing to do with the solution of the mystery) to try to throw off those amateur detectives trying to solve the mystery. Assign the main characters in the mystery to guests who are willing to commit to attending the party, or there will be last-minute scrambling to cover the parts. If guests are not interested in wearing costumes, suggest they bring props or wear hats, stoles or other character-appropriate garments. The host does not have to play a character since he will be busy serving dinner and keeping the mystery running. Hosts can play an important role paraphrasing clues and highlighting bogus information.

Tips for a Successful Party

• Extra guests without a character to play can ad-lib a role as a detective, butler or wine steward. For a fancy party (or one that is pretending to be) have a helper announce arriving guests as a butler would do. If the butler uses character names rather than real names, the party will get underway smoothly. Suggest that guests play a character of the opposite gender. Advise guests not to bring any real weapons.

  Use recipes and music from the era of your mystery's story to add ambiance and authenticity. Your public library can help with cookbooks and compact discs.
  When scheduling a murder mystery, aim for a time of year when people are not busy. It's crucial to have certain guests covering the major players in the mystery, so you'll need more of a commitment from them than is likely at holiday time or the summer season.