Whodunit script Archives - Off The Wall Plays

MURDER AND A SHOW – WHODUNIT COMEDY

Murder and a Show is the story of Eric, who is married to Aubrey, who is dumb as bricks, and Tom, who is married to Trixie, who thinks she knows everything about everything. These two neighbors have devised a plan to have both wives killed at Aubrey’s birthday party. Eric has hired a theater troupe to come perform a murder mystery dinner theater at their apartment, only what Aubrey and Trixie don’t know is that one of the actors is really an assassin there to kill them. Everything goes south when one of the actors turns out to be Eric’s mistress and one of the other actors winds up dead instead of the two wives. While the actors try to figure out who killed Jay, Eric and Tom try to figure out who didn’t kill their wives and why. And to make matters worse a nervous police officer shows up because of report of gunfire in the area. Tensions mount as everyone at the party scrambles to find the murderer while trying to convince the police that nothing is wrong.

This whodunit comedy show was produced and performed at Theatre 29 in Twentynine Palms, California in 2001 and was presented as a dinner theater experience. Read more about best selling playwright Mike Maxwell.

FURTHER PRODUCTION HISTORY

On Deck Players, Yuma, AZ, USA – 2017
Chugiak-Eagle River Senior Center, AK, USA – 2018
Woodbine High school, IA, USA – 2022
Diva LasVegas, NV, USA – 2022

Author: Mike Maxwell

Genre: Whodunit comedy

Type: One act play

Length: Sixty minutes

Number of Actors: Nine actors 9 (10) 5F, 4M

Ages of the actors: All adult, ages 20-60

Suitable for: All ages

Set: The William’s apartment. The front door is located stage left. There is a closet stage right. There are two bedrooms. One is upstage right and one is upstage left. There is a couch center stage. There is a counter and a mini-fridge located stage right, upstage of the closet. There is a phone on the counter.

Level of Difficulty: 7/10 – a play with fun, over the top characters

Read a Sample of the Script

Cost is $7.50 for this previously produced digital play. Just click Shakespeare!

Buy a performance license for Murder and a Show

Copyright March 2014 Mike Maxwell and Off The Wall Play Publishers

Like this play? Other medium length one act comedies:

Cancelled – award winning 1940’s farce
Internet love story and farce
Missing the Mark – when you’re the conman – and you get conned
The Mistress of Wholesome – a comedy where the mistress takes on the wife

whodunnits

PARLOR CITY NOIR – WHODUNIT SCRIPTS

It is the 1940’s – the era of hard boiled detectives and gangsters. Nick Holliday, PI and his girl Friday Dora Chase are hired by a grieving widow to find the murderer of her husband, an art gallery owner named Peter DeLucci. But as Nick and Dora soon find out there is nothing routine about this case, as they run afoul of a Numbers Racketeer and a shadowy underworld figure calling themselves the Sicilian all leading to an ending that is sure to surprise.

Endless Mountains Theatre Company November production of Parlor City Noir has been nominated for nine awards including Best Drama, Best original Production and Best overall production.

Further Performance History:

University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom – 2017
Eydon Players, Daventry, UK – 2019

Read about playwright David Schmidt.

Author: David Schmidt

Genre: Whodunit, Crime

Type: Three act whodunit script

Length: Two Hours

Number of Actors: 8, eight actors. 4M 4F

Suitable for: All ages

Set: A 1940’s style detective’s office. A large wooden desk and swivel chair are CENTER. An old chair for clients sits in front of the desk. A sofa is set against the right wall of the office. A metal filing cabinet and a coat tree can be found in another corner. On the desk is a name plate that reads NICK HOLLIDAY, PI. A window with the reversed inscription SILVER SHIELD INVESTIGATIONS NICK HOLLIDAY PI painted on it looks out upon the city. A door connecting the outer office to the detective’s office bears a frosted glass pane with the reversed inscription NICK HOLLIDAY, PRIVATE DETECTIVE on it. A bottle of scotch and two glasses are set on one corner of the desk. A bulletin board cluttered with wanted posters and other papers hangs on one wall of the office.

Level of Difficulty: 7/10 – a great amdram play with fantastic audience reviews