Harding’s Campus Players hosted Oct. 24 their first Murder Mystery Party. Participants were randomly chosen to be murderers and innocents. Innocents were required to either convict all murderers, or remain alive until the party ended, and murderers had to kill all the innocents before the night was over. Both groups could accomplish their goals by gathering coins. Coins could be won through various tasks such as finding hidden cards around the room, performing skits and songs, telling a Halloween joke, mummifying someone in toilet paper and keeping a balloon in the air.
Vice president of Campus Players junior Emma Claire Smith and junior activities director Kelsey Watrous organized the event. They covered the room with fog machines and orange lights and assembled seasonally-themed snacks. Prior to the Halloween event, Smith and Watrous also led a scavenger hunt, poetry slam and painting night.
“We try to plan every event in a manner such that it can be free,” Campus Players president Madison Soper said. “Campus Players runs entirely on donations, none of our members pay any dues.”
The club is sponsored by a representative from the theatre department, although it is open and available for other creative arts. A large portion of funding outside of donations comes from selling merchandise like jerseys and buttons.
Campus Players meet once a month for one hour.
“It’s very low commitment, not like a typical club,” Smith said. “It’s a place for creatives to come together and find common ground.”
Soper further emphasized that “the club is for all who love arts and anything that encompasses that, whether its visual, writing, music, film or any other creative avenue.”
While the club is currently composed mainly of theatre and film majors, they hope to branch out in future recruitment to encompass more art forms.
In addition to the murder mystery activity, Campus Players held a costume contest.
“I was surprised by the amount of effort put into some of the costumes,” junior Campbell Gilreath said. “I was particularly impressed by Bob Ross, Edgar Allen Poe and the Raven and Gomez Adams.”
Other fan favorites of the night included the Teen Titans, pirates, and a minion. Another major upcoming event for Campus Players is the 24-hour writing project– and opportunity for students to write, direct, act, rehearse and perform their own play created in a day.. The event was successful for the club for the past few years, and they look to invite even more people to participate next time.
