What if A MurDER MYSTERY story came alive and you Joined In?

 Sunset Years Murder Mystery Events are based on a large-scale immersive murder mystery play approach we have used to entertain hundreds of residents in The Villages community.  A murder has been committed. Inspector Lance is on the scene interviewing witnesses and searching for clues to find out who did it.   

Our events are "cozy mysteries." There's a surprising amount of implied hanky-panky, rivalries, personality quirks, and interpersonal conflicts in each story but nothing explicit or embarrasing.   It all creates a lot of good-hearted laughter as the audience sees members of their club acting out these funny and occaisionally scandalous roles. 

The story unfolds like an old-time four-act radio play.  Ten of your club members are up in front of the audience playing the character roles.  Each time Inspector Lance  questions one of them, he hands them a "witness statement" they read as their answer.  

In Act 4, Inspector Lance unmasks and arrests the murderer.  The audience members who identifid the correct character as murderer after all three initial acts are declared the winners. 

 
The street names, restaurants, and locations are all real places here in The Villages community.  The characters are all people you might see in your neighborhood or in our local town squares. 

The "voice actors" from your club reading these scripts have never seen them before. They also don't know  if they or someone else is the killer.  They are as surprised and amused as the audience as they read their character's lines. 

Members of the audience get involved, too!  At the end of Acts 1, 2, and 3 Inspector Lance asks everyone in the audience and playing the roles to vote who they think did the murder and discuss their suspicions with the people around them.  

Inspector Lance then goes out into the audience to see who people think did it. This always surfaces wildly funny differences in opinion about who is "fooling around" with whom, who did it , and why.   

Your members who play characters don't have to memorize anything or physically act. out the story.  They simply read the "Witness Statements" Inspector Lance hands them when he calls on them during the event.

At the one hour Casting Call meeting prior to the play, we give your "voice actor" club members a chance to practice speaking into a microphone and reading a sample script before the event. They come in ready to go on the actual night of the play.

Everything is designed to be as easy and fuss-proof as possible.   The size of your audience is limited only by the size of your room.  We have had groups as small as 50 and as large of 150.  Most groups finish the play in two hours or less.  

You and your club:

• Supply 8-11 club members to play the roles ( this varies by play)
• Have them participate in a one-hour casting call session at least a week before the play in addition to the play
• Provide meeting space for the casting call and the play - (Usually, this is the recreation center space where your club normally holds its meetings) 
• Copy and distribute  a worksheet handout to each participant they use to record their votes and take notes during the play
• Purchase at least 12 copies of Sunset Years Book-Play-Game Murder Mysteries by Frank A. Lancione from Amazon.   The cost is $20 per copy. This is essentially the same cost as if a book club asked an author to  speak at a meeting - and you get to keep the books! We'll discuss which story  you want for your event. 

 Call or text me at 703-626-7514 if you  would like to book a play for your group!