Greyhaunt Manor 2004
Below is a description of our 2004 haunt, as well as some of the
things we learned and some plans for 2005:
THE PREMISE
The basic premise behind Greyhaunt Manor is a haunted stone manor house
and graveyard in the middle of a swamp, inhabited by vampires. Visitors
can peruse the numerous displays and features set around the swamp while
waiting to go into the manor house (if they dare) to make their way
to the front door and get their candy.
THE SWAMP
Making a swamp setting in the Arizona desert is less of a challenge
than you might think since the two large trees we have to work with
both have the "droopy" look of swamp trees and there's a "river"
(of rock) that runs through the yard. Adding liberal amounts of spanish
moss in the trees, and fog on the ground and in the river does a lot
to help with the swamp effect. We also put a lot of sickly looking silk
plants around the river, as well as some fireflies
to help add to the effect. Key features of the swamp area of the yard
included our two coffins
(one with multiple blinking eyes inside and one with red-lit fog pouring
out), a witch's cauldron pouring green fog ("swamp gas") into
the river, the fireflies, a skull totem, an open grave, a hanging corpse,
a small blood fountain,
bats and a haunted tree. We also had "Blah," our extremely
popular but not-too-bright vampire, lurking in the swamp, and a hidden
person operating a small air hose that hissed and blew a surprisingly
scary stream of air on people who stopped to look at the fountain. Amazingly,
many people scared by the hissing air stream would repeatedly return
to be "squirted" again...and shriek again.
THE SOUNDS
We created a single ambient-sound CD for the entire haunt which we played
quite loud. It was basically a thunderstorm with rain, crickets, frogs
and some scary sequences. It worked quite well. One of our most effective
scary sequences was a "hunting dragon" that seemed to approach
from far off in the distance, snuffle around the haunt and then leave;
we plan to use the "hunting dragon" as one of the key haunt
features in 2005. We're also planning on turning down the ambient-sounds
volume and putting in more spot sounds since our 2005 plans call for
the TOTs to follow a narrow, winding path through the yard and over
the river across a (hopefully) haunted bridge before reaching the manor
house and going inside.
THE APPROACH
Visitors lined up in the driveway and along the front sidewalk while
they waited to go inside. The area where they lined up was quite wide
and sandwiched between the swamp and the Spider Garden. Unfortunately,
because the crowds tended to congregate in this area, a lot of them
missed the details of the swamp. This is why the 2005 haunt will have
the TOTs line up along a narrow path through the swamp.
THE SPIDER GARDEN (and other displays)
On the far side of the driveway, opposite the swamp, was
the Spider Garden, the burning
stake (demonstrating what happens when you tell Blah to "fire
the staff") and a dragon lair. Because of the time-crunch we ran
into during set-up, these displays didn't get the time or attention
they deserved. Despite that, they were still popular and gave the TOTs
something to look at while standing in line. Arachne, our spider-loving
vampire and Keeper of the Garden, kept the visitors entertained as they
approached the entrance to the manor house.
THE TUNNEL
Our silent, spooky vampire doorman (complete with tux and
top hat) controlled the flow of people into the manor house/tunnel that
was the main feature of the haunt. Small groups of 3-5 people were let
in, one group at a time; each group had to exit (through the swamp exit)
before the next group was allowed in. The 20' long black tunnel was
lit only by blacklights and had numerous glow-in-the-dark skulls and
bats hovering at different levels.
THE LIGHTNING STRIKE
Once the TOTs were inside and making their way along the tunnel, a lightning
strike was cued, causing a large strobe light to flash and a recording
of a lightning strike to be played very loudly through a pair
of speakers and a subwoofer near the tunnel entrance. Satisfying screams,
shrieks and the sound of running feet usually followed the strike.
THE CORNER
To get to the front door (and their candy) the TOTs had to
turn a corner at the end of the tunnel. It's truly surprising how scary
it can be to simply turn a corner in a dark tunnel, and when you add
a hissing stream of air (activated by someone on the other side of the
tunnel's end wall), it can be a truly daunting task. Odds are that the
eerie red light and moans coming from around the corner didn't help
much either.
THE DUNGEON
Eventually the TOTs would make it around the corner where
a red-lit dungeon cell
awaited them on their right, with the front door just eight feet away,
directly in front of them. Two actors in the dungeon moaned and groaned
and begged for help from the TOTs as they made their way to the door
and got their candy from the lady (vampire) of the house. Once the TOTs
received their treats, the red lights in the dungeon faded to green,
revealing that the pitiful souls in the cell were actually raving maniacs
(an effect created by using red make-up on the actors that didn't show
up in red light but appeared black under the green lights). The newly
revealed evil cell denizens chased the TOTs back the way they'd come,
often aided by yet another vampire lurking in a hidden alcove opposite
the cell.
THE EXIT
Unbeknownst to the TOTs, once they'd turned the corner and started toward
the front door, a barred door that blocked the exit opening swung open
and blocked the tunnel. So as the terrified TOTs ran from the maniacs
in the dungeon (often leaving a trail of candy behind them) and turned
the corner to flee back down the tunnel, they found it blocked by a
barred door. A brief moment (sometimes longer) of searching revealed
the cloth-shrouded exit, and dim purple rope lights outlined the path
back to the street.
2004 Photo Gallery Index
|