Longtime dinner theater’s new shows involve audience for pop culture mysteries

For generations of Atlantans, Agatha’s – A Taste of Mystery was the place to celebrate birthdays and to impress out-of-town guests. Opened in 1988 across from the Fox Theatre the dinner theater was listed in just about every guidebook for visitors, even attracting celebrities for five-course dinners and interactive performances. The 1996 Olympics bid — and the international attention it would bring — were still years away, but you wouldn’t know it on any given weekend at Agatha’s. 

The dinner theater became a place where rising thespians could get their start. Actors would remain on the cast for years, even after finding larger roles in local theaters such as Dad’s Garage and the Alliance Theatre or in Georgia’s growing film community. Agatha’s alumnus Randy Havens, for example, would go on to appear on Stranger Things, and Amber Nash lent her voice to the popular animated series Archer.

“We’re all independent, working actors based in Atlanta. Between us, we’ve logged years in professional theater across Georgia, and many of us also rack up credits in film, TV and voice-over,” said Katie Kneeland, also an alumna of Agatha’s.

After a brief foray into Toco Hills at the restaurant Petite Auberge, the theater operated from Peachtree Center from 2005, featuring framed celebrity photos that covered every wall. Following a year-long pause during the pandemic, Agatha’s shut its doors for good in mid-2021, leaving fans and actors unsure of what would come next.

“It was just a bunch of uncertainty, honestly,” recalled actor Jamie Moore, who joined the company in 2010. “When the shutdown happened, we didn’t think Agatha’s was going to fold because we had no idea.”

But, thankfully, that wasn’t the end of the Agatha’s family. By September 2021, the group moved to The Bourdeaux Room at Petite Violette in Brookhaven, a 50-year-old restaurant which merged with Petite Auberge in 2016. The eatery was already renowned for its fine French fare, and the dinner theater component was a natural fit. 

“I had performed there for years and was serving as artistic director when it shut its doors,” said Kneeland. “I actually got approached by Petite Violette through Cat Angerami, who used to co-own Agatha’s – A Taste of Mystery with Ricky Warren.” 

“I’ve been in every show since at Petite Violette because it’s the same core group of creatives who were carried over,” added Moore. 

Now known as Murder, Mystery, and Mayhem, the three-hour dinner theater performances are twice every weekend, with shows that rotate quarterly and typically highlight some element of pop culture, including, most recently, a spin on the Marvel Cinematic Universe titled Revengers Disassembled, which runs through mid-November. Audience participation is also a big part of the experience. The next show at Petite Violette, a holiday performance called Murder on 34th Street, starts on November 14. 

“Everyone has something to do, even if it’s a group part. And the stage itself is the entire dining room. So it’s complete immersion inside the story,” said Moore, who writes and directs some of the productions. 

“What makes us stand out and even more fun is that we don’t just do mysteries. We satirize the shows and movies everyone’s talking about. From superheroes to streaming sensations, we take what’s in pop culture and give it a mischievous twist,” noted Kneeland. “Our cast isn’t just the two professional actors you have in the room with you. Every night, the audience becomes part of the story. They take on roles, help move the mystery forward — and, honestly, no two shows are ever the same.”

Moore said there’s no one type of customer for the dinner shows. 

“We see so many different people from so many different backgrounds. And our demographic depends a little on our show. We have had people who have come because they saw us at Agatha’s or didn’t even know we were there and sort of found out.” 

Kneeland agreed. “In a world where there’s more content to choose from than ever before, that’s the challenge we love as artists. We’re creating something you can’t just binge at home. You must come here, sit down, eat well, laugh a lot and help us solve the mystery.” 

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Caroline Eubanks is an award-winning travel and culture writer from Atlanta. She’s the author of two books, including A Boozy History of Atlanta: People, Places & Drinks that Made a City. Her work has also appeared in Atlanta magazine, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Garden & Gun.