Generation after generation continues to fall in love with the hilarious ladies of The Golden Girls – Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia. But through Nov. 13, the masses will be eyeing this quartet with suspicion rather than thanking them for being a friend.
Without A Cue Productions recently launched its newest immersive experience for audiences at The Cock ‘N Bull Restaurant in Peddler’s Village – The Golden Girls Murder Mystery: A Halloween Caper.
“The girls are having their annual Halloween party. There is a special guest that shows up and it’s Sophia’s sister, who has a lot of trouble on her tail. She comes with some danger and the story evolves from there,” explained Without A Cue Productions executive director Traci Connaughton.
While enjoying cocktails, audiences must put their sleuthing skills to the test and solve the mystery. Those who deduce the clues correctly receive a prize. Throughout the show, attendees can expect cast members to be engaging and 100 percent invested in their respective Golden Girls roles.
“We have a couple of the actors who are big fans of the show and they play Sophia and are very happy to be having that opportunity,” said Connaughton.
For Connaughton, who founded Without A Cue Productions almost 20 years ago while living in Bensalem and studying for her master’s in arts administration at Drexel University, it’s a thrill to have The Golden Girls Murder Mystery be her company’s first show back indoors since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past year and a half, she switched gears to host outdoor murder mystery walking tours in Philadelphia, Peddler’s Village and Cape May, New Jersey, as well as virtual experiences.
“There was this whole other level of worrying about weather that just added another level of stress, between rain and 102 degrees,” she said. “Without fail, when we were doing the walking tours in Philadelphia this summer, every Friday and Saturday there would be a flash flood or storm. We’d gather everyone and let people know this would be an in-the-moment decision. It’s been very threatening.”
This isn’t the first time Without A Cue Productions has offered a Golden Girls event. The first – a holiday-themed murder mystery – took place about 14 years ago.
“It was so popular that we took all of the holiday out of it and then just ran it regularly as a Golden Girls show,” said Connaughton. “It has been our biggest success. Coming out of COVID, we wanted to open big and so we decided to go with Golden Girls again. This one is specifically for Halloween. It’s brand new and hasn’t been produced anywhere yet, so if people have seen our other Golden Girls shows, they have a new one to come to.”
In addition to The Golden Girls Murder Mystery, Without A Cue Productions has several other offerings happening simultaneously throughout the area.
A comedy ghost tour entitled Ghost Dusters is held every Friday and Sunday in Peddler’s Village. Guests hear six stories about Bucks County ghosts while walking around the village. Three stories are true and three are false, and they must determine which is which. Those who guess correctly win a prize. These tours are family-friendly.
Murder mystery walking tours are offered at Bolton Mansion in Levittown, Sand Castle Winery in Erwinna, and Philadelphia. Another indoor theater show that centers around vampires, Once Bitten Twice Dead, is coming soon to Fishers Complex in Bensalem. Virtual adventures via Zoom are still available for purchase.
Since The Golden Girls Murder Mystery is at Peddler’s for a limited engagement, Connaughton urged interested attendees to purchase tickets as soon as possible. The show is considered “cocktail theater” and therefore no food will be sold on-site. However, Connaughton said audiences can dine elsewhere in the village before the show, or purchase takeout and bring it with them.
If you go: The Golden Girls Murder Mystery: A Halloween Caper runs at The Cock ‘N Bull Restaurant in Peddler’s Village, Route 263 and Street Road in Lahaska, through Nov. 13, Fridays and Sundays, at 8 p.m. Visit withoutacue.com/murdermysterydinnertheater or call 215-794-4010 for tickets and more information.
Samantha Bambino can be reached at [email protected]
