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Party games, dressing up and acting ridiculous might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it certainly is mine! My parents know this about me, and thoughtfully presented this murder mystery game from Talking Tables last Christmas. It took a while to finally pull it off, but my husband and I (a.k.a. Carey Baggs and Ali Abord) hosted a 1930’s-themed get-together the other weekend, and I can’t remember the last time we laughed so much!
“Murder on the European Belle Night Train” offered a fun twist on a traditional dinner party, giving everyone an opportunity to dress up and be dramatic! If you’re looking for a unique entertaining idea, consider taking a stab (couldn’t resist) at hosting your own murder mystery. Read on for a few suggestions based on our experience.
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- Invite your most dramatic friends and send themed invites to set the tone. A murder mystery party that requires guests to dress up as characters and play a part isn’t everyone’s idea of fun. You’ll want to invite good sports who actually enjoy this type of thing. Guests from different friend groups also keep things interesting, making it easier to pretend that everyone’s a stranger and a murderer is on the loose! I modified this evite to fit our theme and provided guests with details about our voyage aboard the “European Belle Night Train.”
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2. Opt to have your party catered or select items that can be easily refrigerated, reheated and served. I had the delusional idea that I’d make fourteen individual chicken kiev, braised vegetables and homemade creme brulee before coming to my senses five days before the party and calling a local catering company. Picking up the food the night before and being able to store everything in the fridge gave me much-needed time to make the house semi-presentable and whip up double batches of themed cocktails (see Tip #3).
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3. Welcome guests with a themed cocktail (or two). Who doesn’t appreciate walking into a party and being offered a drink? Whether it’s an iced tea or something a bit more boozy, a cold drink in hand encourages guests to relax and unwind. We chose to embrace the European Belle theme and offer two options to celebrate our pretend voyage from Paris to Moscow. Porter Carey Baggs served as the train’s bartender, greeting guests with a crisp French 75 in a vintage champagne coupe or a Moscow Mule, depending on their preference.
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4. Enhance the 1930’s ambiance with vintage music and sound effects. In addition to playing bartender, that Carey Baggs cued up our Google home speakers to play 1930’s jazz music throughout the party. He also had the idea to periodically broadcast the sound of an old-fashioned steam train to signal transitions in the game. At one point during the evening, a horrific scream echoed throughout the house making guests aware that a murder had taken place aboard the European Belle!
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5. Completely embrace your role as host and encourage guests to do the same! When you’re hosting a murder mystery party, it’s up to you to steer the game and help move the story line along to its final conclusion. I had a great time as ticket inspector/conductor, and let my imagination run wild. I may have even invented a sordid relationship between myself (Ali Abord) and Carey Baggs that wasn’t part of the script.
All in all, it was a lively evening filled with fake accents and unexpected intrigue, impromptu press-ups and arm wrestling “to the death”….and, most of all, lots of laughter! If you’ve done one of these murder mysteries in the past, do share in the comments. If not, I hope you might be inspired to host your own!
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Sandy
Your description of this is so inviting and I would love to create something like this for my friends! How did you build a structure for the game? Did you just make it up?
Lori Winkler
SandyWe had so much fun with this, and all the instructions and basic elements were included with the Talking Tables game. We have the “Murder on the Night Train” version, but I’ve seen different themes. https://www.talkingtables.com/collections/host-your-own