During the final week of freshers, SUSU hosted a murder mystery night, which The Edge had the pleasure of attending.
Hosted by the MurderedforMoney Theatre Company, who we learnt at the event was started by a Southampton graduate, the evening was staged around ‘Movies, Mobsters, and Murder!’ The characters were sauntering around the tables as guests were arriving, giving an insight into their narratives as well as the event itself.
We were given clues to help work out who was going to get killed, and who would do the killing. Drama ensued from the off and we got to see the desperation that haunted these fictional people. Some characters and their motives were more fleshed out than others, but that is common for these kinds of events. There would be small skits between characters and, after something monumental happened, the characters would saunter around again where you could ask them questions. Without giving too much away, there were enough twists and puzzles to keep you entertained, but there often were moments when you weren’t too sure exactly where to go next.
The biggest twist, perhaps, was the seemingly pointless journalist actually being a detective! Almost like murder was planned for that evening. We did have a bit of a problem with this character since he knocked over my free bottle of drink with camera and then ran off, but that did get sorted by another very confused woman. The detective called all the suspects to the stage, and the audience got faced with a microphone for a very interesting Q&A. This event really did depend on who you were with, as I was put with a confident question-asker that added a bit of audience-led comedy to the evening. One gentleman even got one character’s number and another invited her to Malta, despite her existing in 1920’s New York. That’s showbiz.
Unfortunately, there must have been some problem with the booking system. Online, the event was sold out, but inside was a different story. A larger crowd would have been beneficial to the event, as the audience played a pivotal role in both the story and the general entertainment of the night.
All in all, it was a very satisfying experience. Tickets themselves were only £3 and you also got a free drink token, meaning the entertainment was essentially completely free. While it might not have been for everybody, it was definitely a worthy way to spend an evening and I hope future iterations are a bit more popular.
