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Antoinette May
In Columbia State Park: THE FOOD’S TO DIE FOR AT MYSTERY WEEKEND By Antoinette May The street fiddlers have gone home. The livery horses are tucked away in their stable. It’s too dark to pan for gold. Even the stores are closed. So what do you do on a chilly night in Columbia? Some people solve murders. Each winter, the state park’s historic City Hotel hosts a series of murder mystery weekends. It’s a given that someone will die and the survivors will try to find out why. For 15 years mystery buffs have been coming to the restored Gold Rush town to participate in a weekend of interactive theater. This year’s vehicle, appropriately named, “Dead Games,” runs two more weekends, Feb. 27—29 and March 6—8. The plot centers around Filo and Finch, a pair of lounge lizards. Tired of singing for their supper, they hope to open their own casino. The enterprise draws assorted characters such as Declasser De l’argent, the Riviera rogue who may bankroll them; T.L. Bryberry, a state gaming board member on the take; and Billye Sunday, the ardent evangelist who attempts to put the fear of god into everyone. Characters are introduced at a reception Friday evening in the hotel’s upstairs lounge. Under the soft glow of faux kerosene lamps, some 50 guests mingle with a cast of eight. It’s clear that some have tête-à-têted on those vintage loveseats for a long time. At first greeting, you hear quick asides—“How’s the baby?” Then the character takes over, “Dahling, it’s so good to meet you.” As I tried to sort them out, a woman with dark braids dove under my chair. “Oh! Where is it?” she exclaimed. “I’ve lost my father’s chip! Oh! There it is . . .” Rowena Pickachip, an Indian gaming rep, jumped up, grasping the chip, and rushed off. A clue? I wondered, studying Pickachip. Next thing I knew she was on the floor again, this time coughing desperately. Poison. And that was only the beginning. People were pulling out notebooks. “Ummm, you’re really into this,” I heard a young man say, craning his neck to see what a silver haired woman had written. Turned out he was last year’s winner casing the competition. It was his fifth year and he was out for blood. . .so to speak. At lunch the following day, a sheriff takes Filo away in handcuffs. The crowd speculates: Is it a red herring? Did Filo really murder Pickachip? Innkeeper Tom Bender suggests that we check local stores for clues. People scatter in all directions, scouring the tiny town. |
Columbia’s old Gold Rush-era business district has been preserved. Visitors can watch proprietors in period costume conduct business in the style of yesterday. Besides myriad shops, there’s an apothecary museum and California’s first two-story school house, a brick building filled with memorabilia that even includes a dunce cap. There’s an opportunity to rent a horse, tour a working mine, ride in a hundred year old stagecoach or pan for gold. But sleuths, not beguiled by such Gold Rush diversions, find—among other things—an incriminating letter in the old candle shop, a mysterious card at the bookstore. It’s amazing, not to mention confusing, the clues they return with. We reassemble only to learn that the plot has taken another deadly turn. In his cell, Filo hangs strangled by his own suspenders. A suicide? Dinner, as always, is an elaborate affair presented by Columbia College’s cuisine class. Their chocolate decadence takes “to die for” to a whole new level. No wonder play write Graham Green has problems with his actors. “I hold a lottery to determine who gets killed,” he says. “Nobody wants to miss the food.” Green, who’s written the mystery weekends for nine years, has other problems. “Once an actor had to rush his son to the hospital. I killed him off in a hurry and he wasn’t even scheduled to be a victim.” Despite their spontaneity, Green’s scripts are very realistic. Many times people have missed the “play’s the thing” message and called 911. Most recently a man sitting in the hotel bar spotted a bloody body and whipped out his cell phone. “You think its funny!” he exclaimed on learning about the mystery weekend. He was not amused. But everyone else seems to be. A dance follows the dinner—yes, another person is murdered. There’s more mayhem the next morning at brunch before the crimes are finally solved. No, I’m not going to tell you who done it. I wouldn’t dream of spoiling the fun. Besides, Green has a sneaky way of tweaking the scripts each weekend to heighten the suspense. Just go to “Dead Games” and see what’s in the cards for you. * * * The City Hotel is located in Columbia State Park on highway 49. Phone: 1-800-532-1479. Mystery Weekends, which include a reception, dinner, brunch, premium wine, tax and gratuities, range from $385 to $495 per couple. For “Dead Games,” guests are encouraged to bring games of their own to demonstrate. Many wear period costumes. Graham Green, director of the Murphys Creek Theater, will individually tailor mystery events for an evening or weekend. Phone: 209 743 5654. |
PICTURES ACTING—“Billye Sunday,” left, an ardent evangelist, attempts to convert a guest at the City Hotel Mystery Weekend. TOM—Tom Bender, center, general manager of the City Hotel in Columbia, briefs guests at the mystery weekend. PIG GAME—Lisa Olsen pitches her game, “Pass the Pigs,” at the City Hotel Hotel Mystery Weekend in Columbia. PIG FARMERS—Ed and Lisa Olsen dressed as pig farmers to tout their “Dead Game” entry at the City Hotel Mystery Weekend in Columbia. GOLD RUSH—Authenticity is part of Columbia’s charm.
Despite their spontaneity, Green’s scripts are very realistic. Many times people have missed the “play’s the thing” message and called 911. Most recently a man sitting in the hotel bar spotted a bloody body and whipped out his cell phone. “You think its funny!” he exclaimed on learning about the mystery weekend. He was not amused. But everyone else seems to be. A dance follows the dinner—yes, another person is murdered. There’s more mayhem next morning at brunch before the crimes are finally solved. No, I’m not going to tell you who done it. I wouldn’t dream of spoiling the fun. Besides, Green has a sneaky way of tweaking the scripts each weekend to heighten the suspense. Just go to “Dead Games” and see what’s in the cards for you. * * * The City Hotel is located in Columbia State Park on highway 49. Phone: 1-800-532-1479. Mystery Weekends, which includes a reception, dinner, brunch, premium wine, tax and gratuities, range from $385 to $495 per couple. For “Dead Games,” guests are encouraged to bring games. Many wear period costumes. Graham Green, director of the Murphys Creek Theater, will individually tailor mystery events for an evening or weekend. Phone: 209 743 5654.
PICTURES ACTING—“Billye Sunday,” left, an ardent evangelist, attempts to convert a guest at the City Hotel Mystery Weekend. TOM—Tom Bender, center, general manager of the City Hotel in Columbia, briefs guests at the mystery weekend. PIG GAME—Lisa Olsen pitches her game, “Pass the Pigs,” at the City Hotel Hotel Mystery Weekend in Columbia. PIG FARMERS—Ed and Lisa Olsen dressed as pig farmers to tout their “Dead Game” entry at the City Hotel Mystery Weekend in Columbia. VICTIM—Who killed “Stacy Procuriatzi?” |