Back in February, I drove home for a weekend to celebrate my 21st birthday with my family. While I was home, one of my older sisters threw a murder mystery dinner party with family and friends, and it was one of the best birthday parties I’ve ever had. The whole thing was so fun, and as I helped her set up a bit, I was honestly shocked at how easily it all came together. So, whether you have a birthday party coming up, want to prepare for Halloween, or you’re just a big fan of murder mysteries and want to have one of your own, here’s your step-by-step guide!
- The Guest List
-
Obviously, for any type of party, you need guests! Your total amount can vary, but I’d suggest at least four or five people minimum, so that you have plenty of suspects and other supporting characters. At my own birthday party, we had about 9 people total, and that felt like a good amount, but I’ve also been to a murder mystery dinner party with way more. All in all, just make sure that your guest list has everyone you want to include, and enough people for whatever script you have!
- Script
-
Speaking of a script, I personally think having a script is the best way to have a murder mystery dinner party, unless you’re celebrating with a bunch of improv professionals. If you have a friend who likes to write and is up to the task, they can ensure that everyone is included and even throw in some inside jokes to make it personalized. And if everyone wants to be surprised, I learned from my own party that Etsy (and other platforms, I’m sure) has murder mystery script bundles you can buy. This way, everyone can take part in the murder mystery and discover the plot all at the same time, even the murderers themselves!
- Costumes and Decorations
-
While not total requirements, a little bit of dressing up never hurt anybody. The best part of any themed party is seeing how people dress up, and a murder mystery party is no different. Encourage everyone, including yourself, to truly embody their character as much as they can, and feel free to be silly with it! Then, as far as decorations go, it’s truly up to you. My sister taped up a handful of murder mystery decor, put together some party hats, and hung up a happy birthday banner, and it was perfect. As I said, neither of these are requirements for a party, but they definitely make it more fun.
- Food and Drinks
-
Since it’s a dinner party, dinner is definitely a requirement, but luckily, a very flexible one. You can make this as chill or extravagant as you want. At my party, we just picked up a pizza and some lemonade and called it a day. Though at some point, either before or when everyone arrives, you should decide if you want to eat and then start reading the script, or if you want to read the script and periodically break to eat.
- Have Fun With It!
-
It may be a bit corny to say, but have fun! The most memorable moment at my birthday party was finding the ‘dead body’ (aka, some clothes laid out) lying on the floor, and I started laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes. So don’t be afraid to try some improv, throw in a funny accent, or even start accusing everyone. Who knows? You might just become that core memory of the night!