Why are murder mystery parties great for children?

Murder mystery parties are great fun – they have everyone searching for clues, asking each other
questions about their characters and, of course, working out who the murderer is.
 
But, where murder mystery parties excel for children and teens when compared to adults, is that they
can often teach the players a bunch of skills about working as a group, analysing clues, role playing as
characters, empathising with each other, and approaching puzzles in new ways.
 
A murder mystery party is a great way to introduce children or teens with a keen interest in the
dramatic arts to the basics of acting and role-playing. Other skills that could be improved include
improvisation, reading and following a script, and playing a character.
 

The benefits of a murder mystery party compared to other parties

All parties are good for children; they’re social gatherings that include activities, engagement and group
participation.
 
However, there are ways that murder mystery parties are better than other parties. From a planning
level, murder mystery parties can be beneficial to the hosts or organisers since they offer a theme to
work with instead of having to come up with everything from scratch. They can also be tailored for
groups of any size, so the number of guests can fit with the amount of characters.
 
Murder mystery parties can also encourage children to develop their communication skills, such as
through data gathering, asking relevant questions, bargaining and negotiation, debating, and also
performing.
 
Additionally, they can encourage learning organisational skills, ranging from leadership and planning all
the way through to allocating tasks and executing plans. Interpersonal skills are key to murder mystery
parties, especially if some children form a team. As well as that, the shared experience of the murder
mystery party will have a long-term effect – something that the children have in common and can build
relationships on.
 

Murder mystery parties FAQs

In this section we will answer some of the most common questions asked about murder mystery parties.
 

What is a murder mystery party?
 

A murder mystery party is a themed event where guests play as characters in a story where they have to
solve a fictional murder, which happens during the party. They will have time to investigate and one
player will be the murderer. Players will not only have to find out who killed the victim, but also why and
how. The party will include clues to help solve the mystery and lead the guests towards the culprit.
 

Why should you use Stagecoach for your child’s murder mystery party?

 
At Stagecoach, we pride ourselves on creating immersive murder mystery parties for children and teens
of all ages. The party is all prepared before-hand so it’s easy to set up for the hosts, and our experienced
detective hosts will help guide the murder mystery to help the players reach their goals and have a good
time.
 
The process will be hassle-free – with our detective hosts taking care of all the entertainment involved
with the party, making sure that everything is safe, and that everyone enjoys themselves. Also, guests
will receive a Murder Mystery Party Pack to take home after the mystery has been solved.
 
We have a number of murder mystery scripts available, for a variety of numbers of players, all with
unique and interesting themes, from Caribbean curses to cruise ship cabarets.

Stagecoach Murder Mystery Party Scripts

  • The Mystery of "Murder at Midnight" (for 10 to 12 players)
  • The Mystery of the Caribbean Curse (for 8 to 9 players)
  • Murder at Midwinter Lodge (for 10 players)
  • The Mystery of the Cruise Ship Cabaret (for 12 to 15 players)
  • Fashion, Passion and Poison! The Mystery of Le Chateaux Noir (for 8 to 12 players)

All scripts have different combinations of male and female roles, please ask the Stagecoach Party Provider for further information.
 

How long will a murder mystery party last?
 

A murder mystery party will often take place over the course of a day or an evening. The murder
mysteries that we offer at Stagecoach will last for two and a half hours, but this will be set around a
three-course meal, so the timings may vary slightly.
 

What do I need to provide?
 

When running a murder mystery party with Stagecoach, we will provide the party invitations and an
introduction to send out to all the guests. They will all receive a character to play.
 
As the host, you will need to make sure that all attendees dress up as their character for the party. You
will also need to sort the food for the Murder Mystery. This will need to be a three-course meal, it does not, however, need to be complicated. It might even be something as simple as nachos for the starter, pizza for the main course and ice cream for dessert. The Murder Mystery script is written around this three-course format.