OK gang,
Were going to try something brand new this season that myself has never seen done at any haunt.
I need your feedback because even though i love this idea immensley im thinking the crowd may respond in weird ways.
Heres the idea which was inspired with our haunt marching in a parade this summer. We were waiting in the parade line to march and there was a marching band i front of us warming up. Myself and one of our zombie girls decided to start dancing around like idiots to their music.
By the end of two songs we had quite a crowd come watch us,the inspiration began.
So heres the idea. We have a rather large Midway at our haunt with a path that runs in a large circle through our concessions and games, our make up area is just on the other side of the fence to the midway.
Each year as almost every haunt iv'e worked has a warm up ritual, this year we would like to include the audience. Keep in mind were running with about 120 actors so yes were a small army.
At 7:15 after the midway is packed full of customers we are going to play a prerecorded song listing. This music is more a marching drum song that a platoon would march to. Were going to line up inside the gate leading to the midway.
The first thing were going to send through the gate is our Casket car which by the way is very cool looking and extremley loud (High performance engine with open headers!) The ghoul driving the car will make the circle to the largest open part of our midway, rev it up and shut it down. This does two things, gets the crowds attention and ques the marching music.
When the music starts we are going to march the entire staff of monsters haunt by haunt (each with their own themed float) out through the crowd lead by a drill sargeant.
He will stop us dead center in the crowd and start screaming questions out to us that we will answer all at once.
These questions will be directed at us but meant for the audience.
The music will que again and we will all turn and march straight at somebody in the crowd everybody picking somebody different to prey upon. Were training the actors to get near them like their going to pounce on them, but after about 15 seconds of the drum beat it will cut into a song (Not yet determined) thats actually hip hop music of today. Drill instructor will yell Break it down and we will all go into a goofy freaky dance of our own choice.
This will last about 30 seconds.
Drill Instructor will yell return to ranks, we will line back up as we were , casket car will fire back up and we will march back out of the midway following the car.
The whole idea behind this is we want to make the audience part of the pregame ritual this year, for them to experience what its like as a haunt actor to get truly fired up, to see how it all works on our side of the walls as they await us to get ready.
So what do you think guys?
I LOVE this idea, but at the same time im having apprehensions about letting the crowd see us before they meet us face to face inside the haunt.
BUT at the same time i think this will put the fear of god in many who just normally do see us one on one inside. Now they see just how many monsters we really have, that we are a small army to be reckoned with.
Has anybody ever seen this at another haunt or does your haunt do something of this nature?
Were also hoping this becomes an event patrons will love to be part of and were also hoping that it brings the crowd in earlier to experience this,hence getting people to the haunt at 7pm and not 12 pm !
Comments good or bad ?
Thanks in Advance, Kevin
Were going to try something brand new this season that myself has never seen done at any haunt.
I need your feedback because even though i love this idea immensley im thinking the crowd may respond in weird ways.
Heres the idea which was inspired with our haunt marching in a parade this summer. We were waiting in the parade line to march and there was a marching band i front of us warming up. Myself and one of our zombie girls decided to start dancing around like idiots to their music.
By the end of two songs we had quite a crowd come watch us,the inspiration began.
So heres the idea. We have a rather large Midway at our haunt with a path that runs in a large circle through our concessions and games, our make up area is just on the other side of the fence to the midway.
Each year as almost every haunt iv'e worked has a warm up ritual, this year we would like to include the audience. Keep in mind were running with about 120 actors so yes were a small army.
At 7:15 after the midway is packed full of customers we are going to play a prerecorded song listing. This music is more a marching drum song that a platoon would march to. Were going to line up inside the gate leading to the midway.
The first thing were going to send through the gate is our Casket car which by the way is very cool looking and extremley loud (High performance engine with open headers!) The ghoul driving the car will make the circle to the largest open part of our midway, rev it up and shut it down. This does two things, gets the crowds attention and ques the marching music.
When the music starts we are going to march the entire staff of monsters haunt by haunt (each with their own themed float) out through the crowd lead by a drill sargeant.
He will stop us dead center in the crowd and start screaming questions out to us that we will answer all at once.
These questions will be directed at us but meant for the audience.
The music will que again and we will all turn and march straight at somebody in the crowd everybody picking somebody different to prey upon. Were training the actors to get near them like their going to pounce on them, but after about 15 seconds of the drum beat it will cut into a song (Not yet determined) thats actually hip hop music of today. Drill instructor will yell Break it down and we will all go into a goofy freaky dance of our own choice.
This will last about 30 seconds.
Drill Instructor will yell return to ranks, we will line back up as we were , casket car will fire back up and we will march back out of the midway following the car.
The whole idea behind this is we want to make the audience part of the pregame ritual this year, for them to experience what its like as a haunt actor to get truly fired up, to see how it all works on our side of the walls as they await us to get ready.
So what do you think guys?
I LOVE this idea, but at the same time im having apprehensions about letting the crowd see us before they meet us face to face inside the haunt.
BUT at the same time i think this will put the fear of god in many who just normally do see us one on one inside. Now they see just how many monsters we really have, that we are a small army to be reckoned with.
Has anybody ever seen this at another haunt or does your haunt do something of this nature?
Were also hoping this becomes an event patrons will love to be part of and were also hoping that it brings the crowd in earlier to experience this,hence getting people to the haunt at 7pm and not 12 pm !
Comments good or bad ?
Thanks in Advance, Kevin
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