We have hosted hundreds of murder mystery dinners at the
Munro House Bed and Breakfast in
Jonesville, Michigan. Most of our events are open for couples to join. We need at least 4 couples to play and have always been able to meet the minimum. Some of our events are private for groups of friends. We have hosted families, clubs, and many diverse groups of people.
We have the setup down to a science. We generally use a festive tablecloth with our antique china and adorn the table with candles. We have developed a menu that includes appetizer, soup, salad, entree, and dessert. A typical meal includes shrimp cocktail for the appetizer. We make our favorite seasonal soup. In the Fall, we serve our Harvest Soup for the second course. Our new house salad is spectacular. It includes our home-made dressing, dried cherries, glazed almonds, and Parmesan cheese. The main course is a beef tenderloin steak served with potatoes and vegetables. Lately we have been finishing the evening with our chocolate caramel brownies served with ice cream.
We spend a good part of the afternoon preparing the meal, so a prompt arrival time is imperative. Many of our guests purchase the two night package, so they are already in town. For those guests who buy the one night package, an arrival before 5:00 p.m. is required. The event starts at around 6:30, so we need our guests to have been checked in so that we can finish the prep work, uninterrupted.
The evening starts in the parlor with an introduction of participants and an explanation of how the game is played while the appetizer and beverages are served. We try to get a feeling for the personalities of the guests so that they all will get an appropriate role. Those people with the biggest personalities will get the biggest parts. Additionally, each player gets a hat from our costume closet. We have collected a variety of funky head ware that helps to lighten the mood and transform our peeps into their new roles. That means that there is no pressure for guests to find their own costume for an event at our house. We take care of it, and keep it simple.
The guests then move into the dining room and play the game while the meal is served. Each person has a 3 page script with 4-8 clues on each sheet that they must get into the conversation over dinner. The clues are very interactive and include topics that many participants have comments to insert. In the first act, each person learns a little bit more about their character. In the second act, there is a lot of finger pointing and innuendo. The third act is where everyone has an alibi--some are good, some are not so good.
When all three acts are complete, there is discussion over dessert about who-done-it. One by one the participants are asked who they think did it, and why. Then, one-by-one we tell you who didn't do it, and why. At the end, the clues that incriminate the guilty party are divulged and it becomes obvious who was guilty.
We always host a murder mystery that is open to individual couples on every Saturday night in November and on New Years Eve. Additionally, we hold events on the first weekend in January and on random dates throughout the year. We will host a murder mystery dinner on any available date with at least a group of four and six weeks notice. We will then fill up the table to play with a minimum of 8 total players.
We have even offered murder mystery luncheons for private groups only. It is a lower cost event and is generally done on a Sunday afternoon for private groups only. We need 8 to play with a maximum of 14 players. 12 is the ideal size, but all even numbers between 8 and 14 make for a good game.
We enjoy hosting parties at our house. We have developed our own style and have chosen games that are fun to play. Our goal is to have our guests have a good time
whether they figure out the mystery or not. At our house it is more about laughing and having a good time than it is about studying your part and taking notes. The games we play can be figured out if the players pay a reasonalbe amount of attention to the conversation over dinner. On nights when no one does, it doesn't matter. Because this is a game, not a contest, so there is no pressure to win.
If you're looking for some good adult-themed fun with other like-minded couples, a murder mystery may be just the ticket. Check out our
website or call 1-800-320-3792 to find out more about an upcoming murder mystery.
Mike Venturini - Innkeeper
"Life is good in Jonesville"
The Presidents Day holiday is celebrated on Monday February 20 in
2012. Some employers give their
employees the day off to create a 3 day
weekend to celebrate 2 of our great Presidents--George Washington and
Abraham Lincoln. But to many workers, it's just another Monday.
With a staff of on-call spa professionals, massages and body wraps are available by appointment every day. A great selection
of local restaurants provides plenty of choices for lunches and dinners. Centrally located in Southern Michigan between Detroit and Kalamazoo, the Munro House is an option to driving all the way to Lake Michigan or the Mackinac Bridge for a Winter getaway.
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