The Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site will be transformed into Garrison Manor for the upcoming Candlelight Theater performance of “Murder at the Manor.” The interactive murder-mystery invites attendees to try and solve the case by interrogating suspects and putting clues together.
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There’s been a murder at the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site — and everyone is a suspect.
Could it have been the estate’s owner, who was dismayed at what was happening to her beautiful Old Northside home? Or was it the cousin who would stop at nothing to see the manor transform into a thriving hotel? Was it one of the hotel guests gathered for the night?
With the mystery deepening and the police no help, it’s up to the audience to find the killer.
“Murder at the Manor,” which opened Friday at the Benjamin Harrison site, is a completely unique kind of theater experience. Audience members become key cogs in the story, moving from room to room in the historic presidential home to interview suspects and gather clues.
Justice depends on how well people suss out the truth.
‘The people who come to the show are involved with the police to find out who the real murderer is,” said Hazel Gillaspy, a Greenwood resident who plays Lady Agatha Garrison in the show. “You get to be involved and use your skills to solve the murder.”
“Murder at the Manor” is part of the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site’s Candlelight Theatre program. Each year, the site stages performances within the wall of Harrison’s historic downtown Indianapolis mansion, with the program’s actors bringing a combination of mysteries, comedies and thrilling historically-inspired tales to life.
In the fall, the shows focus on a different ghostly tale. Spring productions follow a salon theatre format, using the mansion to share intimate one-act mysteries and comedies. Holiday performances focus on carols and the Victorian-era decorations and items belonging to Harrison, Indiana’s lone U.S. president, and his family.
This fall, things take a different approach.
“We typically do not do this type of theater. We have a salon, where you watch a play while seated in the site, or we have progressive plays where you move from room to room to see vignettes of the play,” said Donna Wing, director of the show.
The story behind “Murder at the Manor,” written by Jo Smedley, follows the grand opening of Garrison Manor, a traditional Old Northside Indianapolis home that, after extensive restorations and renovations, has been reborn.
The estate had been owned by Lady Garrison, who had given control of it to her nephew, Mark Garrison. In doing so, he went against her wishes to turn it into a luxury hotel.
Attendees to the performance are arriving for the grand opening of the hotel.
“On that day, he’s murdered. Every one of us are suspects,” Gillaspy said. “I’m one of them because I had taken a pot-shot at him earlier in the day. So there are several people who as suspected of killing him.”
Complicating matters is the fact the police are on strike. So ticketholders will work in teams, interrogating suspects and gathering clues throughout the mansion to solve the crime.
“My character has the suggestion that since the guests are stuck there … maybe they can help us solve the crime,” Wing said.
Gillaspy has been a part of Candlelight Theatre for several years. The interactive nature of “Murder at the Manor” has been unlike anything she’s gone through in the past.
“The whole atmosphere of the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site, it’s a very intimate theater experience, because you’re in various rooms in the house. You get to see some of the house as well as the performances by the actors there,” she said.
Each performance lasts more than an hour, with up to 40 attendees moving through the house to interview six suspects. At the end, the teams write down who they think committed the crime, then get to see if they’re right in the big reveal.
“There’s a finale, and then some small prizes for the winning team,” Wing said.
IF YOU GO
“Murder at the Manor”
What: An interactive murder mystery show being staged among the rooms of the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site.
Where: 1230 N. Delaware St., Indianapolis
Show times: 6 to 7:30 and 8 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Oct. 20, 21 and 28; 2 to 3:30 p.m. and 4 to 5:30 p.m. Oct. 29.
Tickets: Starting at $19.95
Information: bhpsite.org/events/murder-at-the-manor
