Dinner theater to benefit museum

Proceeds of murdermystery production to help Finnish Heritage Museum

The Finnish Heritage Museum in Fairport Harbor Village has created an original production for the organization’s next murder mystery-themed dinner theater fundraiser.

“Murder on Walnut Hill” to take place Sept. 14 is based on historical facts about a pair of bodies discovered buried on the hillside behind what is now the Finnish Heritage Museum, itself, at 301 High St., according to museum President Lasse Hiltunen.

“It’s about Fairport. It’s about something that actually happened in Fairport, with a little creative license taken, of course,” Hiltunen said.

“There were actually two bodies found on Walnut Hill and there was a big mystery about it.”

He said the storyline running through the interactive fundraiser, taking place in the Hungarian Culture Club at 633 High Street in Fairport Harbor, centers around a scenario related to that 1930s discovery.

“All these people are meeting at the Hungarian Culture Club to discuss the 1937 Mardi Gras, when an inspector comes in and says: ‘We’ve discovered a couple of bodies, and it’s linked to you folks so we’ve gotta investigate this thing now.”

Hiltunen said this is the Finnish Heritage Museum’s third such event, having presented its first murder mystery on Nov. 18, 2011. Its second — “Dead Ringer,” which played on Oct. 25, 2014 — involved a story surrounding the erosion rings once positioned along the beach in Fairport Harbor.

He said this third murder mystery will feature a cash bar, raffle baskets and a dinner catered by Rego’s Brickhouse Pizza, with chicken, beef and cabbage rolls, among other things.

Hiltunen said there are a few other updates to the affair since it last played out.

“We also have a situation where we’re paying it forward because we had museum members who couldn’t make it to the actual event,” he said. “So they’ve gone ahead and bought tickets, anyhow. So, we’ve given those tickets to people who want to go, but who couldn’t otherwise afford the ticket price.”

Tickets are $35 a seat, he said.

“Another thing we’ve added is there’s eight to a table now, with the option of having a table captain,” he said. “So, when purchasing a whole table, it’s either $5 off for each person, or it’s $35 each and the table captain gets a free ticket.”

He said they’ve sold several tables like that already. There are still dozens of tickets available, all of which are pre-order only, so organizers can plan accordingly with the caterers, he added. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets may be purchased from the Finnish Heritage Museum.