Beetlejuice and Elvirus will host a night of murder and mystery as Southern students discover the ambiguous killer in their midst in “Undead Again.”

The night of interactive role-playing theater and dinner will be at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Connor Ballroom on the third floor of the Billingsly Student Center. Tickets, sold in the Student Activities office, are $5 for students and $10 for faculty and community members. Students are encouraged to come dressed in costumes.

The murder mystery dinner theater “Undead Again” is hosted by Murder Mystery Players, Inc., the largest murder mystery company in the nation. Beetlejuice and Elvirus, the two professional actors coming with the St. Louis branch, will be hosting the event. The dinner theater is sponsored by the Campus Activities Board (CAB).

As the audience’s tables surround the performance, the guests, or rather the potential suspects, will enjoy their meal as the mystery unravels and the truth is squeezed out in a grim turn of political affairs.

“It’s like a clue game is what it is,” said Melanie Epperson, Student Activities secretary.

Derick White, senior history education major and CAB secretary, said three professional actors will be coming with the production company and the rest of the speaking lines or parts will be given to various audience members.

Epperson said guests won’t be put on the spot and won’t have to take a role but can be part of a crowd.

“Everyone I talked to is excited for the event,” White said.

The plot for the mystery “Undead Again” is based around the election of a new leader of the Underworld since the former one has been missing for a year. Beetlejuice and Elvirus try to bring order to the group of misfits who assemble at the Underworld National Convention while political parties such as Confederacy of Cannibals and Malevolent Mission of Mad Maestros for Musical Mayhem vie for the position which leads to a murderous mess.

Out of all the selections possible, CAB picked “Undead Again” because it was close to Halloween.

“It’s exciting because it’s interactive,” White said. “It lets students get involved with the mystery.”

In addition to the entertainment, the evening meal will consist of lasagna, salad and bread.

“There’s nothing better than a lasagna meal and entertainment for five dollars,” White said. “It’s a pretty cheap date.”

Audience members are encouraged to come in costume.

“I’m not expecting everyone to dress up, but I want to encourage everyone to dress up,” White said. “It makes it more fun.”

While Grahm Dickinson, senior finance major and CAB vice-president, doesn’t have his costume planned yet either, he is hoping to have fun at his first murder mystery dinner theater.

“I’m hoping to have a lot of interaction from the people in the crowd,” he said.

He said he thinks people who will pay the “cheap” price of $5 to come will probably interact and he hopes everyone does get involved in solving the crime.

“I’m sure there will be several different twists in the show,” White said. “It’s not going to be an easy mystery to solve.”

For questions and accommodation for a disability, call Melanie Epperson at 625-9346 no earlier than 72 hours before the event.