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"Always be welcome to fresh ideas": Playwright of Muse Theatre's murder mysteries explains his craft

Tyler Bryant is the writer behind Murder with Friends, a theatre group who performs murder mysteries in all across Central Georgia.

PERRY, Ga. — There is something exciting about a good murder mystery, but it takes a certain creative mind to come up with each twist and turn.

Tyler Bryant is the artistic director of the Muse Theatre, but he also is a member of Murder with Friends, a theatre group founded in 2014 who perform murder mysteries across Central Georgia.

Bryant is the creative mind behind the group's many exciting moments. 

“Well, I just love a good mystery to solve anyway. My wife and I love to watch murder TV, and so that’s a lot of fun,” Bryant said.

The group now has a permanent home at the Muse Theater and is currently putting on their newest murder mystery called "A Killer 80’s Prom."

Bryant said he began writing in the second grade when his teacher would often have the class write a synopsis of what they were reading in their reading logs.

He says he’s been writing ever since.

Now, Bryant has written three books and several plays, one of which was published and performed at Warner Robins Little Theatre last December, “But the murder mysteries are probably my biggest baby and I love them so much because it’s so much fun to do something new and exciting each time,” he says.

When Bryant begins his next murder mystery, he asks his previous cast what they would love to see next and writes the new characters with certain actors in mind.

Once he has the overall theme, he begins to think of who the victims are and how the murderer will ultimately be revealed.

Bryant says the actors are encouraged to come up with their own character backstories as well.

He says the key is to not pick the person who is an obvious target but maybe someone whose actions are only a little suspicious. 

Because the show is interactive, even the audience members might find out that they have secrets to hide.

“It’s so much fun to listen to them and to hear them squabble amongst themselves to try and figure out the killer, and it's fun because our actors, sometimes, they don’t even know who the killer is sometimes,” Bryant said.  

For their newest show, there will be a different killer every night to keep the audience on their toes.

Bryant’s advice for people who want to get into playwriting is to have an idea for where you want to the story to go and then to not be afraid to trust your gut.

He says he has also found a lot of inspiration from talking to other people.

“Always be welcome to fresh ideas, fresh eyes, and to bring new experiences to your writing,” Bryant says.

"A Killer 80’s Prom" will be premiering in March. For ticket sales and more, you can check out The Muse Theatre's website.

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