Superhero! is Toronto’s Mysteriously Yours’ latest dinner-theatre murder-mystery

In the world of theatre, a certain unofficial hierarchy of “importance” is known to exist and – we should probably all acknowledge – murder mystery dinner theatre tends to get ranked toward the bottom of the Serious Cultural Events scale. As the one who had to sit through Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia last fall, I can tell you for certain that while Superhero! A Bam! Zap! Pow! Murder Mystery might be less important, it’s certainly a lot more fun.

The show begins with dinner, and while the food isn’t going to win any Michelin Stars, it is tied for the best dinner theatre food I’ve ever eaten. Everything was flavourful, nothing was overcooked, and even the vegetarian option looked appetizing. A nice surprise, for sure.

Much the same could be said of the show itself – as dinner theatre goes, this is pretty great and a lot of fun. Those who are game and good natured and ready for a silly good time with friends or family, will certainly enjoy it. In this particular mystery, the conceit is that attendees are at a convention of superheroes, and one superhero is murdered.

During the pre-dinner hour, we meet Frozina (an opportunity for many puns and references related to Disney’s Frozen), Axoria (a labrys-wielding Amazon time-traveller with a truly barbaric yawp), Wondering Woman (the sublime apotheosis of every wifty new-age adherent you have ever met, times ten), El Chihuahua Furioso (disappointingly racist), and The Canadian Shield, whose super powers are politeness and something else that he is too modest to mention. We also meet The Rat, who isn’t exactly a super villain, but more of an annoyance. Nevertheless, he gets many of the best lines in the show as he advances the plot.

Here are several things you will definitely experience if you attend: borsht-belt humour, extreme cheesiness, flagrant overacting, jokes older than you, and an alarming amount of audience participation. This is where your good nature and good company come in. Like many frolicsome pursuits, hyperbole adds to the fun, if you are in the mood for fun. Superhero! A Bam! Zap! Pow! Murder Mystery is clean enough that you could take your Aunt Petunia, cheerfully Canadian, very slightly snarky, and generally just in all ways exactly what you would hope for superhero murder-mystery dinner theatre. If that seems at all like the sort of thing you would enjoy, you will enjoy this.

Details

• Superhero! A Bam! Zap! Pow! Murder Mystery plays at Mysteriously Yours Dinner Theatre (2026 Yonge St) until November 7th.
• Ticket prices range from $41.50 to $87, depending on the day of the week and whether attendees prefer to have dinner or only see the show.
• Tickets may be purchased online or by calling (416) 486-7469 / 1-800-NOT-DEAD

Image provided by the company