In Columbus, an evening of dinner and a mystery need not take place in front of the TV screen.
How does one find these opportunities? Elementary, my dear reader.
Cloak and Dagger Dinner Theatre
Columbus’ oldest dinner theater company started in 1992 and currently resides at Shane’s Gourmet Catering near German Village. Its shows require light audience participation and are inspired by popular culture, with the menus themed to the shows.
Cloak and Dagger operates Fridays and Saturdays. Currently, its Friday show is Spyballs: Death of a Secret Agent and its Saturday show is Mayhem at the 5 Aces Casino. Guests are given “sleuth sheets” to fill out with their theories as to the culprit, and the person who guesses correctly and gets the most details right wins a prize.
“Everybody likes dinner theater,” says Artistic Director Steve Emerson.
Mayhem & Mystery Interactive Dinner Theatre
Attendees at Mayhem & Mystery’s Tuesday night outings are encouraged to dress up, and any of them could play the victim or the culprit in the evening’s whodunit. Each show takes place at Spaghetti Warehouse in Franklinton.
The company started in 1999 and writes six scripts per year. On the schedule now is Country Club Craze, running through Aug. 27.
“I believe the more that patrons get involved, the more fun they seem to have,” says Artistic Director Tamra Francis.
Creative Dramatics
Chile Verde Café in northwest Columbus has been the home of Creative Dramatics since 2000. The company circulates five scripts per year.
At each show, audience members are given cue cards that assign them tasks during parts of the show, keeping the action moving. The next show scheduled is Talk Shows Can Be Murder on July 21, followed by Four Suspects at a Funeral Sept. 15.
“It’s not Shakespeare, but it’s a great time,” says Artistic Director Michele Williams.
Murder Mystery Company
Though it’s the new kid in town, the national Murder Mystery Company has been in business since 2002, its shows currently taking place at the Morgan House in Dublin. Its mysteries rotate every two months, though they vary slightly from night to night.
“The same information is delivered each night, but in a different way,” says Vera Cremeans, the company’s Ohio director.
In addition to actors, a few patrons are selected to play certain suspects in the shows, which take place Fridays and Saturdays. The current show is Wanted Dead or Alive, a western thriller.
Brandon Klein is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
In Columbus, an evening of dinner and a mystery need not take place in front of the TV screen.
How does one find these opportunities? Elementary, my dear reader.
Cloak and Dagger Dinner Theatre
Columbus’ oldest dinner theater company started in 1992 and currently resides at Shane’s Gourmet Catering near German Village. Its shows require light audience participation and are inspired by popular culture, with the menus themed to the shows.
Cloak and Dagger operates Fridays and Saturdays. Currently, its Friday show is Spyballs: Death of a Secret Agent and its Saturday show is Mayhem at the 5 Aces Casino. Guests are given “sleuth sheets” to fill out with their theories as to the culprit, and the person who guesses correctly and gets the most details right wins a prize.
“Everybody likes dinner theater,” says Artistic Director Steve Emerson.
Mayhem & Mystery Interactive Dinner Theatre
Attendees at Mayhem & Mystery’s Tuesday night outings are encouraged to dress up, and any of them could play the victim or the culprit in the evening’s whodunit. Each show takes place at Spaghetti Warehouse in Franklinton.
The company started in 1999 and writes six scripts per year. On the schedule now is Country Club Craze, running through Aug. 27.
“I believe the more that patrons get involved, the more fun they seem to have,” says Artistic Director Tamra Francis.
Creative Dramatics
Chile Verde Café in northwest Columbus has been the home of Creative Dramatics since 2000. The company circulates five scripts per year.
At each show, audience members are given cue cards that assign them tasks during parts of the show, keeping the action moving. The next show scheduled is Talk Shows Can Be Murder on July 21, followed by Four Suspects at a Funeral Sept. 15.
“It’s not Shakespeare, but it’s a great time,” says Artistic Director Michele Williams.
Murder Mystery Company
Though it’s the new kid in town, the national Murder Mystery Company has been in business since 2002, its shows currently taking place at the Morgan House in Dublin. Its mysteries rotate every two months, though they vary slightly from night to night.
“The same information is delivered each night, but in a different way,” says Vera Cremeans, the company’s Ohio director.
In addition to actors, a few patrons are selected to play certain suspects in the shows, which take place Fridays and Saturdays. The current show is Wanted Dead or Alive, a western thriller.
Brandon Klein is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
