Laura's screening with Laura Weaser

Be My Deadly Valentine (interactive murder-mystery dinner show). Directed by Tom Kay.

Care for an interactive dinner where fellow guests dispose of a diner?

‘Be My Deadly Valentine' was a date with a difference on Valentine's Day this year as the cast of The Prime Suspects hosted this comedic murder mystery dinner.

At the dinner, those who hadn't attended a Prime Suspects show, or any interactive dinner before (like me), didn't really know what to expect – how interactive would this be? (for me it ended up being quite interactive, more on that later…)

As we sat down at our beautifully decorated tables at Daniels in the Park, the ‘dinner guests' began to circulate around the room, talking to the actual dinner guests.

Older gentleman Laurence tried to pick me up while my partner was at the bar, strange cat-lady Irma wanted to show me her ‘pussy' (it was having kittens that night) and sleazy PR man Peter (with an eye for the ladies) assured us he loved his wife Moira to death (see what he did there?)

It was hilarious, and the actors were all perfectly in character.

Noisy journalist in me wanted to grill these characters, asking question after question particularly to would-be detective Johnny. He stayed in character the whole time, and it didn't feel forced or unnatural.

When the murder took place off scene/ on scene (I can't say too much in fear of giving it away…) it was very dramatic.

Guns were waved around, shots were fired, screams, and people running around like headless chickens – it certainly spiced up a romantic evening!

It wasn't just a show either, it was truly interactive without being awkward, uncomfortable or too ‘in-your' face'.

You can participate as much or as little as you wish.

Audience members were called on for legal advice and muscle to help with the murder investigation.

I too, got a great surprise when I was asked to be a part of the scene.

Having to stop a cat-fight to read a crucial piece of evidence was a little more than I expected after dinner.

It was so much fun, and even though I was extremely nervous, the cast was very helpful and it was extremely good fun.

With a real mix of couples in the audience on Valentine's Day, everyone was clearly having a great time and everyone was a real super-sleuth detecting the winner.

It wasn't easy by any means, there were some real red herrings, but at the ultimate reveal, there was a real ‘ah-ha' moment.

Truly interactive, hilarious good fun, and heaps of juicy murderous scandal, The Prime Suspects put on a fantastic show and I look forward to the next one!

Show Moments

The crowd pleaser – The whole thing was so much fun, and was something very different to anything I had experienced before. It brought my two loves together: delicious dinner and theatrical performances.

The stage dive – For once, I have nothing to complain about. If I was super picky, I would say the lack of background music while actors were addressing the audience made it a wee bit quiet. They needed to be heard, but light background music wouldn't have hurt.

Final curtain call? – Loved it. If you ever get a chance to be part of this interactive show I highly recommend it. Their new season of Pirates of the Pacific, a pirate themed show, is coming soon, so keep an eye out!