Can’t join us live in the club? That’s ok, check out our immersive, interactive radio adventure!!
Also, actually Kellian Pletcher from Green Door Labs. But Kit Hollingsworth is a way cooler name for a vintage show.
A note to our Drosselfans from Club Drosselmeyer’s creative director, Kit Hollingsworth:
Hello Drosselfriends!! We find ourselves in a challenging and historic time: Who knew that a year after the war began we’d still be preparing for air raid drills and pulling our blackout curtains, making sourdough starters, crafting wartime facemasks and stretching our spam rations? But trying times call for creative solutions and we won’t be downhearted!
That’s why Club Drosselmeyer will open for our 5th season with the Club Drosselmeyer Radio Broadcast! We know you Drosselfans like a good mystery, a swingtime adventure, some challenging puzzles, a great outfit, a nice drink with friends and of course, our incredible original, danceable Nutcracker Suite by Danny Fratina played by our own 8 piece swing band headed up by singer, Elise Roth.
We can’t all crowd into the club this year but the Club Drosselmeyer Radio Broadcast won’t be a distant shadow of the club we’re not in. This year’s show is a whole NEW type of engagement that uses a vintage radio show format, digital audio, choose-your-own pathways, telephones, live actors, a custom box of puzzles and Drosselgoodies, player roles to share the experience with your friends in other households and a completely unique answer tracking system that we built JUST for you to play in 1943! The engagement will be focused on an audio story with paper and object interactions because we, and we suspect you, have some serious screen fatigue.
This is a holiday season we’ll all remember and we’d like to make some good memories! So buckle up folks, prepare your outfits, sharpen your pencils, get your dance shoes. It’s gonna be another great year of CLUB DROSSELMEYER!
Oprah Magazine and Ars Technica love Club Drosselmeyer!
Winners of the 2020 Room Escape Artist Golden Lock Award for best Escape Rooms of the Year!
Winners of the 2020 Bullseye award from Escape the Roomers, “Most innovative escapes of 2020”.
Winners of the 2022 No Proscenium Audience Choice Awards for Outstanding Ensemble Performance
"Never bet against Club Drosselmeyer.”
Room Escape Artists
“I was absolutely blown away by the show. I loved every minute of it.”
Puzzle Nation Blog
“This year, my friends and I made it through our run of The Club Drosselmeyer Radio Broadcast of 1944 feeling jolly and bright. “ No Proscenium
who will you meet at Club Drosselmeyer?
Dr. Clara Stahlbaum is an expert in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics with her PhD from MIT. Now, she works with her uncle at Drosselmeyer Industries as lead scientist of a promising new military technology: Project Nutcracker, Version Echo.
Herr Drosselmeyer is a scientist and inventor, a magician and a man of mystery. He’s been asked to explore the application of a recent scientific discovery that could make his “toy soldier” invention, Project Nutcracker, into the most powerful weapon ever seen.
Fritz Stahlbaum is 4-F due to a childhood concussion but he serves the war effort managing his uncle’s club. He wants to use the family’s name to do some good: raise war bonds or maybe even use the club’s connections to hire people fleeing the war in Europe.
Rhett “the rat” King is one of the most creative “entrepreneurial” minds of Boston. Unfortunately, Boston has an increasing number of entrepreneurial families who are getting… territorial. What alliances can be trusted in complicated wartime Boston?
Ginger Lamarr is back again to lend her voice and glamour to our 8 piece swing band. She’s glad see her old friend, Herr Drosselmeyer and she’s pitching in wherever she can for the war effort, including donating contents of her expansive closet to raise troop morale (and have them look fabulous in the process).
The Ratbot3000S has had his day as a rank-and-file robot. After many upgrades and system reboots, it may be time to take matters into his own hands. Vera Kane has been developing her own new technology, the RatWeb, which gives Ratbot access to untold amounts of information.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Club Drosselmeyer?
Club Drosselmeyer is an Interactive Nutcracker in swing-time! For the last four Decembers, we've delighted Bostonians with a WW2-era nightclub and our own live, swing-time version of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite played by our 8 piece swing band. In the club, players dress their 1943 best, solve puzzles, work together, watch our floor show, listen to the excellent band and dance the night away! It's amazing... but 150 people in a club is just not going to cut it this year. That's why it's time for the Club Drosselmeyer Radio Hour.
That's right folks, we're cooking up all new new mysteries and adventures in 1943 with your favorite characters: Herr Drosselmeyer, Dr. Clara Stahlbaum, Rhett "the Rat" King, Sugar Faye and Project Nutcracker that you can interact with right from your radio. That means this year not only Bostonians and intrepid travelers can enjoy an evening with us: people from all around the world can join us from the comfort of their own home and hearth!
How does the game work?
The Club Drosselmeyer Radio Hour will have three parts: the Radio Show, the Drosselmeyer Industries Switchboard and the Puzzles. As a player, you can plan the ultimate holiday evening gathered around the radio and interact at whatever level you feel comfortable. There will be no video camera watching you (no Zoom!) and our Drosselmeyer Switchboard will respond to how you play. Engage with all three parts of the production, or only with some of it- however you'd like!
The radio show will sound a lot like a 1943 radio show: songs, skits, performances and commercials. (Think of the Jack Benny or Bing Crosby Radio Hour.) However, there may be some surprises during the show and you'll be called upon to help out.
Puzzles and quests that you can download yourself or have mailed to your house will move the story along. Complete all of the puzzles or only a few: the choices you make and the puzzles you solve will change the way your story unfolds and the end of the show!
The Drosselmeyer Industries Switchboard will manage all your interactions with characters in the show with a unique call-in system (yes, real phones!). There will be a combination of prerecorded messages and (for the live show) live interactions with the actors as you get to the bottom of this mystery! Most excitingly - the radio show will respond to the puzzles you solve and the choices you make to keep you and yours busy for the entire show. Listen to the broadcast, call to interact with Club members and help them out by cracking codes and solving puzzles. There's always a lot to do at Club Drosselmeyer!
Note: Playing this game will involve making phone calls (617 area code), so please be aware of any fees which may be charged by your phone carrier. Also, Caller ID will be used by our system to track state, so phones with Caller ID blocked will need to temporarily disable it while playing. For international players, we suggest using a cheap VOIP service (like these) to avoid racking up long distance fees and since a 10-digit phone number is required!
What should I buy?
Any purchase (other than an Extra Drosselbox) includes access to the game! So you just need to decide how you’d like to receive the game materials and whether or not you want to participate in a live show!
If you get the Digital Only version, you’ll get access to printable PDFs of game materials
For the Drosselbox Standard version, you’ll also get a box shipped to your door with all of the materials printed
In the Drosselbox Party version, extra character cards, multiplayer interactions, cocktail recipes, vintage clothing guides and everything you’ll need to party like it’s 1943!
The game materials will include things like an Air Raid Warden Handbook, maps, custom Drosselmeyer coasters, and envelopes sealed with materials that should only be opened when instructed!
The live shows will take place at a specific time and date: December 12th at 7:00PM EST and December 13th at 2:00PM EST and 7:00PM. If you’ve signed up for one of the live shows and play during your selected time:
You’ll have a chance to interact with the actors live when you call to the Drosselmeyer Switchboard!
Live “operators” will be standing by to help you out with hints if you need them!
You can join us for a post-show digital afterparty where you can meet the creators and actors, and talk with other players!
If you don’t choose to do a live show, you can play at any time (once the game is released!), through the end of 2021! Live show ticket holders will be able to do this as well, if you want to re-play the game to get a different ending!
Note: The radio show broadcast will change based on the decisions you and your team make, so the actual broadcast will not be live. Due to capacity constraints, most phone interactions will be with an automated system. Live interactions will occur at selected points in the game (e.g. when you achieve a particular goal). If you are experiencing a longer than expected wait, you will have the option to skip the live interaction and hear a pre-recorded message instead.
Other questions? Contact us!