Beauty and the Beast Birthday Mystery Dinner

For my sister Rachel’s 30th birthday I hosted a French dinner party and came up with a custom Beauty and the Beast themed murder mystery.

This mystery dinner party was set at Beast’s French chateau with amazing characters to be our guest! Below is a copy of the the murder mystery info including: setting, theme, character profiles, the crime, story plot/structure, props, clues, and menu.

Characters

I came up with several of the characters to fit with the Beauty and the Beast and clue theme (bolded below). I let anyone that wanted to come up with their own characters and wrote them into the story. Here’s a list of all our dinner guests:

1. Rachel: Nancy Drew
2. Ryan Madden: Bruce Wayne
3. Erin: Belle
4. Sarah: Ms. Marian “Blanche” Potts & Miss Scarlett O’Hara
5. Scott: Mr. Robin “Green” Bean
6. Abby: Helen Keller
7. Cory: Colonel Mustard (The BEAST!)
8. Debbie:  Duchess Kate
9. Ethan: Harry “Potter”
10. Ryan Blondo: Lloyd Christmas
11. Joy: Mary “Poppin” Swanson
12. Charity: Clara Barton
13. Rebecca: Mrs. Peacock

Clues

We staged various pictures to look like security footage to use as clues for uncovering the mystery. My sister is a math teacher, so I included math riddles for her to solve. 🙂

Here are the clues found throughout the chateau:

• Red Feathers – Lounge
• Candlestick – Guest room
• Beast hair – Hallway
• Bat – Study
• Batman mask – study
• Rose petals leading to enchanted rose – Study leading to rose on cake stand (suggests there’s a limited time to solve a mystery)
• Poison – Lounge Bar
• Goggles, Mask, Apron with blood , Biohazard bag – Behind Lounge Bar
• Snowflake/Map Book with IOU– Library
• Wrench – Kitchen
• Cat lions – Cellar
• Key – Harry’s pocket (secretly given to him by Mr. Bean)
• Bow and arrow – Billiard room
• Magic Mirror with invisible clue – Ballroom (clue leads to safe)
• Gun – Dining Room
• Umbrella – Ballroom
• Black lights (4) – Scattered throughout the house (kitchen, dining room, basement, etc.)
• Magnifying glass – Dining Room for Nancy
• Blood – on candlestick, arrow, apron
• Handcuffs – Miss Scarlett’s purse
• Note from Lloyd to Harry – found in dining room and put in Miss Scarlett’s purse (Saying he wants to kidnap Beasts to put in their “We Got Worm’s pet store to attract visitors)
• Safe – Guest room
• Revelation letter in safe – Guest room (reveals all)
• CLUE 1 – Guest room ransom letter (in candlestick, leads to magic mirror)
  • Invisible ink on letter revealed with blacklight
  • Contains the typed ransom, typed tiny letters, and hand-written “mirror mirror” clue on one side. The other side is a blank graph.
  • “You’re too late – your beloved Beast is gone!” Tiny writing is below this. Microscopic quote. Nancy to pull out her magnifying glass and discover it reads “Got a problem with it? Find me, if you’re able. I am amongst you. A dark power will reveal all!”
• CLUE 2 – Mirror phrase (invisible ink revealed with blacklight)
  • Contains the coordinates and sentence written on the mirror in invisible ink.
  • Should reveal location of the safe with golden ratio and Eiffel tower symmetry.
  • Plot half the Eiffel tower with coordinates.
  • “The safe is safe ‘neath me, an idol with a golden ratio atop a golden sea. The mirror would reflect my better half, but I’m afraid it’s no better at all.”
  • “Built to a gΦlden standard, only with the mirror may you see both my halves, and find the treasure I protect.”
• CLUE 3 – Guest room letter (folded in golden drapes on safe, leads to snowflake book with key)
  • Reads “I am forever fond of fractals. Their relentless repetition rouses me. Though pineapples and peacocks provide perfect precedents, I select the stunning white flake for my safe’s secret sheath.”

Here are the props/items used to pull off this fancy, French dinner party:

• Candlesticks
• White tablecloths and napkins
• China
• Wine Glasses
• Birthday banner (homemade with French birthday slogan – Bonne Fête)
• Character profile cards (homemade)
• Clues (see above list)

Menu

We had a four course meal with multiple options for desserts.

• First Course (Appetizers):
  • Jalapeno poppers
  • French bread
  • Olive oil bread dip
• Second Course (Salad): French Salad
• Third Course (Main Course): Chicken Cordon Bleu Crepes
• Fourth Course (Dessert)
  • Chocolate Mousse Cake (Nutella mousse)
  • Irish Car Bomb cupcakes
  • Macaroons
• Beverages:
  • wine
  • sparkling grape juice
  • apple cider
  • cold tea
  • hot tea