Solve a Murder and Help the Red Cross

Mark your calendar and join your friends and neighbors for a thrilling night of sleuthing and intrigue.

Murder Mystery writer and American Red Cross Rogers/Mayes/Wagoner County Service Center Director Mark Ogle.

The scene is set. It is the operating room in a small doctor’s clinic. Inside the clinic lurks a horrific scene: the doctor, the nurse and the patient are all dead – murdered! The door was locked from the inside with no apparent way into the room or out. What happened? Who could have committed this horrendous crime? And why did they do it? You can help the detectives called in to investigate this murder, and help your local Red Cross at the same time.

The murder mystery, titled “Solving the Unsolvable,” is the brainchild of local author and American Red Cross Rogers/Mayes/Wagoner County Service Center Director Mark Ogle. The Red Cross is partnering with Rogers State University to offer this fun and exciting evening, with all proceeds benefitting the Red Cross. The play will be held at the Will Rogers Auditorium on the campus of Rogers State University. Dates are Friday, June 25 and Saturday, June 26. Doors will open at 6:15 p.m., with the show beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 each and will be sold at the door only.

“I have had this idea in my head for a very long time,” says Mark. “I had this crime that had no way to be solved, thus the title. But, I couldn’t figure out how to put it on stage to form a compelling play. Then, it hit me! Why not do it in the fashion of a game show?”

The mystery will come alive onstage in a very unusual fashion, in the format of a game show with three contestants. The contestants are the top three criminal sleuths in the country: a renowned mystery writer, a CSI expert from back east, and a rural southern sheriff best known for his arrest and conviction of a notorious serial killer. As you may expect, Sherlock Homes is even “channeled” for help during this investigation. “Each contestant is presented with the perfect crime, and they have to solve it,” says Mark. “The audience is watching them at the crime scene trying to figure out who could have done it. Each is competing for the grand prize of one million dollars. In addition, each audience member will have the opportunity to play detective and win the Super Sleuth Award.”  

The play should be a big success considering that Mark’s shows typically draw crowds from a four state region. Actors will be from the Claremore area, so part of the fun will be in trying to deduce who that person onstage is in real life. It could be your next door neighbor! "We have an excellent director, Dan Huey," says Mark. "Without him this play would not be possible." Rehearsals usually begin weeks in advance of the performance.

Benefitting from this show is the local Red Cross, an organization that runs solely on donations and proceeds from fundraisers such as this one. Most think of the Red Cross for their work during natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina or tornados. But, this dedicated group made up mostly of volunteers does so much more. Since Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross in 1881, they have been there whenever and wherever someone is in need. It is the largest and most expansive human services organization in the world. The Red Cross’s mission is to help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies. They achieve this through providing services and programs that include emergency disaster services, services to armed forces, health, youth and safety training, community disaster education, volunteer services and blood services.

Mark your calendar and join your friends and neighbors for a thrilling night of sleuthing and intrigue June 25 and 26 at the Will Rogers Auditorium. You won’t want to miss it!

For more information, contact

American Red Cross Murder Mystery

(918) 344-8442