The Chagrin Valley Little Theatre will kick off it’s 92nd season this September with an unprecedented and experimental web-based fundraiser. Murder by the Falls: “Nursery Crimes” is an online event set for Friday, September 10, wrapping up with an optional reception / season kickoff party on Saturday, September 11. Murder by the Falls has served as the venerable non-profit’s major fundraising event for a few decades. The format usually consists of an original two-act murder mystery / comedy paired with drinks, food, and a hunt through the shop windows of downtown Chagrin Falls to look for clues, including the interrogation of on-the-street characters. The pandemic led to the cancellation of this popular event for the first time in many years last fall. When it came time to plan ahead for the 2021 edition, the unpredictability of public health guidelines and questions about audience comfort with close quarters left the event’s status uncertain. However, brother and sister team Andrew and Greta Rothman rose to the challenge, offering to concoct an online version of the game.  Their original story, Nursery Crimes, involves nursery rhyme inspired characters living in modern day Chagrin Falls. Many of these characters have a reason to dislike Humperdinck T. Dumpty, who is the co-founding Editor in Chief of “The Nursery Times” newspaper and the victim in the tale.

On the evening of September 10 at 7 PM EST, registered players will be emailed a PDF containing clippings from the fictional “Nursery Times”. Within these pages will be a dozen keywords for the audience to find – some hidden in obvious ways and others far less conspicuous. Once a secret word has been found, the player will enter it into a box on the provided web page to unlock a recorded scene featuring characters tied to the plot, including security camera footage, private Zoom meetings, recorded phone calls, and so on. Having revealed the clips, participants will submit a form explaining who they think killed “Hump” T. Dumpty, how they did it, and what their motive was. The game officially ends at 12 PM EST on Saturday. The first player or team to submit the correct (or closest to correct) solution will receive a cash grand prize.