Beloit Independent Theater Experience (BITE), an organization and interest house on campus, hosts a murder mystery event annually. This year, the vampire-themed murder mystery took place on Nov. 8 at 5:30 p.m. on the second floor of Pearsons.

Eager participants arrived early and started filling the gourd and muslin-lined tables,  many already snapping into character. After settling in, participants were grouped into four separate covens: Fabulae, a coven of youngsters and drama queens, Horridus Umbrarum, mysterious creepsters, Le Cirque Magnifique, stuck-up and elegant, and Domicile Degli Inocenti, the elders, who were humorous in their memory loss. 

Following some quick icebreakers amongst covens and their elders, everyone was set loose to socialize with one another. Gaining confusion while navigating each coven and their complex personalities, the group came to the arrangement of making last-minute name tags from sticky notes and Scotch Tape. 

As the night progressed, it became increasingly difficult to keep track of the important events and instances that unfolded in relation to the story. A part of this was due to the large group of people trying to participate in a smaller room. 

Tessa Goodman ’28 (they/them) was extremely excited to be part of planning this event, as one of the key contributors to the details, including catering, decorations, and curating the space. “I was really excited to play a character that I made myself… I was able to help create character and work collaboratively with my friends.” Goodman was thrilled to share.

Main actors utilized spaces like the second-floor back hallway for essential plot points that were visible to all, as well as the top and bottom landings of the stairs for secret pull-asides and crime scenes. 

With lots of garlic strewn around the room as a vampire distraction tactic, a mystery rosary, and cross-referencing handwriting of a deceased coven leader’s note with the guest list, each coven worked diligently to bring justice to their fallen vampire companions, who were caught between the protection of coven members and downright murder due to unfit leadership.

In all, the intricate history of these covens ran deep. The atmosphere and the students who attended this event made it an entertaining excursion. One takeaway from this event that Goodman would share is the importance of events like this for the Beloit College community. They share that this event and like many others BITE offers, “introduces theater concepts to people without being on stage..Keep an eye out for the next coming years for more fun themes, more silly hijinks, and murder mystery plans coming from BITE.”

_{Featured image: Svea Jones’26}