Solve the fictional murder of class jock Bobby Backer during the final event of the Sunset Series on Friday, Aug. 19 at the Cape Fear Botanical Garden.
This 80's Prom Murder Mystery in the Garden will take you back to a time when hairspray was potent in the air and neon seemed to be everywhere. The students of Shermer High find themselves battling it out over grades, popularity, affection, class rankings and what they all have been focused on for years: who will be awarded the prom king and queen title?

Prom officially starts at 5 p.m. During this time, guests can mingle, drink, dance and shop from local vendors.
The prom will even feature a photo booth section that will allow couples to take photos of themselves in true 1980s fashion. There will also be three food trucks on site: Wild Sunflower Pizza, Cavity Connection, and Jaz-N-Soul.
At 6:15 p.m., prom court nominations will begin. At 6:30 p.m., the prom court is announced. Every guest is strongly recommended to arrive before 6:30 p.m.

“We really do encourage everybody to get here before the prom court is nominated at 6:30 because if somebody comes in late, they could miss out on some key evidence,” Meghan Woolbright, the marketing coordinator for CFBG told Up & Coming Weekly.

In the last murder mystery, attendees could use modern technology to gather clues and investigate the case. This time, actors from the Gilbert Theater will be there to talk with attendees and give their statements. Each actor will play a key suspect in the murder.

“We've seen that our visitors like the one-on-one type of them asking questions and our actors and actresses, you know, playing along,” Woolbright said. “That's where we've seen the most authentic experience for our visitors.”

Each visitor is going to be getting a packet with the theme and character descriptions, but a majority of the mystery will have to be solved by talking to the actors and actresses from the Gilbert Theater. From the preppie to the punk rocker, the nerd to the stud, the jock to the jilted — all are suspected, although only one is to blame.
Shortly after the murderer has been revealed, there will be a costume contest at the end of the night. Woolbright recommends that people think of the big hair, puffy sleeves on the giant prom dresses, and matching pastel suits.

“The more you dress up and the more excited you are, the better it’s going to be,” she said.

The Gardens are expecting a big turnout for this event. The last murder mystery had 100 people in attendance.
This marks the third year for the Sunset Series, a public event and fundraiser for the garden. The event is free for Cape Fear Botanical Garden members and $10 plus tax for non-members. Visit www.capefearbg.org/event/the-sunset-series to learn more.