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1. 

   Janis on March 9, 2020 at 6:33 pm

   I saw your ad in the newspaper, and obviously found your website, but my little gray cells aren’t quite picking up on how this works. I am looking at the chinese takeout scenario, which reminds me of “How to host a Murder”, or what ever that game was. So do you have to be a member to partake? Do you go to the Madison ave location and “play” there? Do you have to have enough friends to fill all the roles? If not, what happens when there are too many of the same character? (How many people attend at a time? Is there more than one group playing the same mystery?) How much does this cost? Or is it included in the membership? I think it all sounds like a lot of fun, but I am perplexed on how your whole house of mystery works.

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     Adrienne Fritze on March 13, 2020 at 8:42 pm

     Janis ~ I apologize for the delay in getting to your questions.

     We produce two kinds of murder mystery dinner parties and events.
     1) Classic bookcase games like “How to Host a Murder Party” and BePuzzled’s “Murder al a Carte” – the kind with which you are already familiar,

     and more interestingly for us (and we hope our patrons!)
     2) Our original murder mystery events that my husband, myself and a small crew of other writers create for parties of 8 to 100 players. These are much more immersive for players than the Classic Bookcase Games, starting about a week out from the actual event night when players receive their Dossiers complete with character-specific props and instructions.

     We host #1) the Classics in our Game Room in downtown Corvallis; and our small originals #2) for 8 to 12 players. Tickets are sold individually, one ticket per character, so we never “overbook” a character.

     Tickets are $35/player for the Classic Bookcase parties, and $45/player for our original productions at Conundrum House. Tickets prices vary from these when we are co=-producing events with other venues, or the event is being used as an exclusive fundraiser.

     The larger of our originals are hosted at other event venues. For example, beginning in August we will be offering “Black Magic Jazz” at the Marriott on the waterfront for 48 to 90 Players. The setting is a 20’s Speakeasy, and the murder is committed using a magic trick! We’re in the process of creating the script, dossiers, props, set design and more, and are VEYR EXCITED to do this with our friends at the Marriott.

     People also hire us to bring the party to them at their location, OR they book a private play session bringing all the players with them to our location. Both the Classic bookcase games, AND our originals are included as offerings to these types of customers. Catering can be handled by us, or by the Customer.

     We also write original scripts for customers. For example, we’re creating an 8-player mystery party for a young lady about to turn 9 in May. The unfortunate victim in this story is a Unicorn–as requested by the birthday girl–and the game is filled with clue hunts, puzzle challenges, deduction and more.

     You DO NOT need to be a member of Conundrum House to buy a seat at these events, or to hire us to bring the party to you.

     However, Members DO receive discounts on ALL our productions, as well as discounts on games and merchandise we sell in our retail section of the House. Members also get monthly perks: Two Days a month of FREE All-Day-Play, and one FREE game rental. That alone has a $22 value on an annual membership cost of $40!

     And I’ve only covered the Live-Action Role-Playing events. We have a library of tabletop games, including murder mystery jigsaw puzzles, card and storytelling games, serial mysteries, and handheld puzzles we call manipulatives. We also offer team-building/family-bonding CSI/Criminal Minds experiences where teams of 7 to 11 people are tasked with solving a murder, complete with REAL forensics tools and detective techniques to put together a case for the D.A.

     We may be in a small space (750 sf) however we pack every nook and cranny with mysteries, puzzles, CSI experiences and more.

     The best way to get a feel for some of this is to come up to our place and play! We are open Wed-Sat, NOON to 8 p.m. Or if you can’t get in during those time, send me an e-mail at librarian@conundrumhouse.com or call (541) 224-8114 to set up another time to come visit.

     THANK YOU so much for sending us your questions! I look forward to meeting you and sharing our adventure with you.

     In mystery and suspense,
     Adrienne Fritze, co-conspirator
     Conundrum House

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