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This Fall Great Pumpkin LumiNights will take place at Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta, Georgia. 2021 has proved to be the park's biggest opening season yet, and with its success, park officials have decided to add the new Halloween event. Great Pumpkin LumiNights will feature "larger-than-life" pumpkin sculptures throughout the park. The event has already been implemented in the company's sister theme parks - including Dollywood. The family-friendly experience is a $700,000 investment for the park.
On June 30th, Mary Shelley's House of Frankenstein in Bath (UK) will open to the public. This interactive experience/museum is bursting with unusual artifacts and vintage items, multi-sensory environments, and assorted body parts. Guests will step into the dark world of Mary Shelley to learn about her tragic life and come face-to-face with an 8-foot recreation of the literary monster that continues to fascinate the world.
After the popularity of their Christmas projection show on the Armoury building in Chatham (Ontario, Canada), The Armoury in Lights event organizers have decided to add a Halloween show for 2021. The Halloween event will take place October 14th - 30th with three shows each night. Each show will be 90 minutes - twice as long as their 2020 shows - and feature projections, dancing, and performances. Last year the event switched to a drive-in format and it will remain that way for 2021 - and new for this year is an illuminated entryway featuring works from 10 artists. Applications for performers and artists will be available soon.
In the market to buy a haunted house? Waco Haunted House in Central Texas is for sale by co-owners John & Danea Anderson. After 30 years of operation, the Andersons hope to sell it to a new generation of haunters. The sale price will likely be around $600,000 and will include 2 haunted houses (over 7,000 sq. ft. per house), a 60' mobile home/office, store & warehouse, ticket booth tower & concession building, company van, 3 hearses, storage trailers, and more. If the right purchaser comes along, the haunt can be up and running again for the 2021 season.
The house of home haunter Kit Espada (East Providence, Rhode Island) was damaged in a fire this past week. Espada hosts an annual Halloween display in her yard, collecting donations and non-perishable food items for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank Association. Some of the homemade props stored in her garage went up in flames, but luckily no one was harmed in the fire. Espada had planned a clown theme for her 2021 display, but with many of her props damaged or lost in the fire, she is doubtful it will happen. A GoFundMe has been set-up for the Estrada family by members of the haunt community.
Descanso Gardens in La Cañada, CA announced the return of Carved for this October. The Halloween event features a mile-long trail lined with thousands of professionally-carved, jack-o-lanterns and sculptures made of natural materials. Other activities include pumpkin carving demonstrations, a hay maze, themed food, and a house made of pumpkins. Tickets for this 3-week event will go on sale in September for members and October for the general public.
As we prepare for the haunt season, scareactors may want to strengthen their skills for dealing with aggressive guests. The newest entry in The Practical and Theatrical Scare Actor blog has some helpful advice for ways to respond to difficult guests who are aggressive and belligerent.
Continuing our scareacting education, the Youtube Channel Spikima Movies released a video on the art of the Jumpscare. Using examples from the films of David Lynch, the video explores how set-up, setting, sound, and pacing can create the perfect jumpscare to startle audiences. There are many tips that can be applied to haunts and immersive theater as well.
