THE DON'S SPEAKEASY MURDER MYSTERY DINNER
FUNDRAISER for The West Yavapai Guidance Clinic Foundation
This very successful event was Produced and Directed by Terri New.
(All videos, photography and graphics for the production were created by Terri New)
"I have to say this project was a labor of love
for me. I had been in their first fundraising murder mystery with my
husband the year before. I thought it was wonderful, but I thought
‘Wow we could really kick this up a notch.’ So I took it on as a
production project. A couple of months into it the director of the
show couldn’t do it, so I ended up taking on that role as well.
When we chose the venue it had six
screens so of course the multimedia producer in me kicked into gear.
I ended up rewriting the script almost entirely and adding musical
elements because quite a number in the cast had the abilities.
Speaking of cast, I had a wonderful cast and crew… the process of
getting there not without its hiccups when certain peoples dropped
out for whatever reasons… having to pick up those pieces is always a
challenge. You have to again post and conduct auditions, find a
venue and get out notices ...on top of everything else going on.
This turned out to be about 4-5
months of work for me, luckily I had lots of good helpers. I
designed a set and had a great dependable gal, Candace Packard
who put it together! I hunted down era music and worked at
planting clues in the backdrops, dialogue, songs. Worked the PR
social media engagements, ads etc. We also put together a fascinator
workshop to get more engagement from the community and the fun
aspects of dressing up for the occasion. Let me tell you everyone
came dressed to the nines, it was a sight to behold!
I housed all the elements in a
PowerPoint. Another good fortune was in finding another great
person, Caryl Walti who handled the tech aspect with aplomb! I had
created 14 videos, and the PowerPoint had 118 slides in total and
music cues/sfx that all had to be timed perfectly. I played the
narrator/singer "Vavava Boom" and she added a few melodic interludes.
We also had Silent and Live
Auctions to add to the bank!...And an opening scene “Big
Spender” to kick off the silent auction with a flash mob with all of
the cast and our volunteers with dance moves and singing. We had a
terrific choreographer Alexa Hannah-Niekamp. Check
out our credits video to see all these stellar folks who took part!
It was great to help out this
agency that so helps our community in dealing with mental illness! "
DESCRIPTION: Please join the West Yavapai Guidance Clinic Foundation
for an evening of fun "whodunit" entertainment! Cocktails,
appetizers and merriment along with food, drink and music, guests
attending in 1920's attire could win the best costume prize! From
the minute guests arrive and step back in time at The Don’s
Speakeasy they become part of the play - and part of solving the
mystery! This fabulous event was directed and produced by Terri New,
a local multimedia producer. A fun fundraiser to raise funds for The
West Yavapai Guidance Clinic Foundation! We spread hope… We provide
help… We promote healing. YOUR SUPPORT TRANSFORMS OUR COMMUNITY!
The West Yavapai Guidance Clinic Foundation exists to raise
funds for transformational treatment programs, and to stand with you
when you or someone you love is navigating a mental health
challenge. When essential therapeutic services go beyond a client’s
financial ability, the Foundation steps in to fill that gap. We also
provide free community mental health education as well as
information about substance use disorders, and work to eliminate
stigma around mental illness
https://www.wygcfoundation.org/