Dakota Discovery Museum hosts ‘whodunit’ theater

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Love is in the air — along with a little foul play — on Valentine’s Day weekend as the Dakota Discovery Museum hosts a murder-mystery dinner theater.

The “whodunit” production “Till Death Do Us Part” will be at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 17 and 18, at the museum in Mitchell.

Guests will be part of Hanna and Harry Heart’s Valentine’s Day soiree, an event the fictitious couple hosts for their family and friends each year.

Tickets for the dinner theater are $40 apiece and are available at the museum. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and the phone number is 996-2122.

Tickets include a catered three-course meal, complete with complimentary drinks, appetizers, Chicken Cordon Bleu and dessert.

The show’s plot follows high school sweethearts Hanna and Harry Heart. She was the all-star cheerleader and he was the state-champion quarterback. Today, Hanna is a cheerleader for the NFL and Harry is a star of the St. Louis Lambs football team. This year they’ve chosen to hold their annual party at Mio Amore Café, in the heart of downtown Amorville.

The festivities are interrupted when a guest collapses and dies, forcing the rest of the party-goers to figure out who the murderer is before the police arrive.

Once reservations are made, guests receive a formal invitation from Hanna Heart. In the invite, guests will find out what character they will play at the dinner theater and receive suggestions on how that particular character might act. Costumes are encouraged but not required.

Dianne Carr, a board member for the Dakota Discovery Museum, said guests may be cast as the victim, murderer or innocent bystanders. Each guest also will have clues that may lead to or deter the solving of the crime.

“There’s really no advanced prep needed,” Carr said. “Just some enthusiasm.”

She added that the dinner theater will allow guests to see the museum in a different light and hopefully become more familiar with the facility.

Proceeds from the dinner will go toward the ongoing costs at the museum, including supplies for kids’ activities, storage for artwork and other components for exhibits.

“There’s a variety of things that need to be done besides heating and lighting the building,” Carr said.

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