I have given this top a lot of thought, and several things occur to me.
1- First off, as several others have pointed out, it is not necessarily all about scares, but about entertainment. That is why my philosophy has always been to design my haunt not only to startle, but also to creep people out, and -- importantly -- make them laugh.
2- Don't assume that "stone faces" are not enjoying themselves. I can't count the times when I would get groups like that, and would comment about it to my barker or ticket taker, only to have them tell me that the person came out raving about the show. That is simply how some people react to stress. For others, like many of us here, they derive their enjoyment of the haunt from something other than being scared.
3- In the big picture, those who don't openly react are not that big a deal. They don't compare to the smart smart ass types that mock actors, touch props, tip scares, and in general do everything they can to ruin the show for everybody. And as the original poster said, Mr. Stoneface paid for his ticket, he deserves the same show as everyone else.
Just the rambling thoughts of someone addled from to many hours tearing down a haunt...
Dave
1- First off, as several others have pointed out, it is not necessarily all about scares, but about entertainment. That is why my philosophy has always been to design my haunt not only to startle, but also to creep people out, and -- importantly -- make them laugh.
2- Don't assume that "stone faces" are not enjoying themselves. I can't count the times when I would get groups like that, and would comment about it to my barker or ticket taker, only to have them tell me that the person came out raving about the show. That is simply how some people react to stress. For others, like many of us here, they derive their enjoyment of the haunt from something other than being scared.
3- In the big picture, those who don't openly react are not that big a deal. They don't compare to the smart smart ass types that mock actors, touch props, tip scares, and in general do everything they can to ruin the show for everybody. And as the original poster said, Mr. Stoneface paid for his ticket, he deserves the same show as everyone else.
Just the rambling thoughts of someone addled from to many hours tearing down a haunt...
Dave
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