Stephen Sondheim Gives Back for the Friends in Deed Charity Treasure Hunt

Written by Marketing Intern Victoria Hanson

Composer Stephen Sondheim lent his talents by creating clues for the Friends in Deed charity treasure hunt, Monday October 3, 2011 at the American Museum of Natural History.  Friends in Deed, a non-profit crisis center for life-threatening illness, wanted to celebrate their 20th anniversary in a unique way sending guests through the Primitive Mammals room, the Ornithischian Dinosaurs room and the Saurischain Dinosaurs room, answering clues and hoping to be the first to find the ultimate treasure. 

Among the 300 guests in attendance including Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, 23 teams were created consisting of 12 persons.  Each participant was given a large brown envelope sealed with wax containing 12 clues on six cards.  Participants began the hunt at precisely 7:30 p.m., and had to use the clue cards to decipher which creature was being named through looking at descriptions of the animal or through looking at images of a creature’s fossils. 

These words were broken down and needed to be rearranged to uncover the final clue, “Listen to the legend of the dinosaur in the mammal theatre.”  The only advice participants received from Sondheim can be summed up in allowing for serendipity, not drawing attention when finding a clue and not using Google.  Clark Winter, an artist from Manhattan explained the task saying, “We’ve been given a list of clues and we’re trying to figure out how to attach these clues to certain dinosaurs.” 

The winners each received a Motorola Droid and a weekend getaway to a hotel in Saugerties, N.Y.  Although a seat to the event cost $1,500, each person received a three course dinner, a concert by Melissa Errico, and Raúl Esparza, and a chance to participate in a once in a lifetime charity event.