ANNUAL NIGHTMARE
Attraction raises funds for charity
If you think you’ve got odd neighbours, consider those living in Rocky Ridge Bay in the city’s northwest.
For more than 25 years, one family and many of their equally ghoulish friends have hammered, glued, painted and dressed up to create an annual nightmare called Haunted Calgary. The large-scale production attracts upwards of 5,000 people over its three-night run, which has become a Halloween tradition.
“It started as simple yard decorations by the neighbourhood kids. It kind of snowballed from there,” said Christine Campbell, the creative director behind the scenes.
Haunted Calgary is a walkthrough haunted yard attraction, and it’s run as a charity benefiting Calgary Animal Rescue Society and the Calgary Food Bank.
It operates Friday and Saturday and again on Oct. 31. There are two different shows so youngsters and those faint of heart can get a taste of the spooky without being frightened out of their wits. The “low scare” time is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
The evening “full scare” option from 6-10 p.m. each of the three days and is geared to those who eat up ghouls, gore and all things creepy.
Spread over 10,000 square feet, the haunted yard requires many hands on deck to make it a reality. Last year, there was a Bates Motel and re-created scenes from horror films Carrie and The Shining. Jason from Friday the 13th, Chucky from Child’s Play and Freddie Krueger from a Nightmare on Elm Street also showed up to terrorize participants.
This year’s production is called Hollywood Horror and it includes some uniquely handcrafted sets as well as a repeat performance of the Bates Motel.
There will also be some Hollywood-scale animatronic monsters and signature characters like Bathsheba the crone, Sad Girl and the I Scream Man.
All of that requires a pretty large cast of characters. Approximately 500 hours of work go into designing and building the structures
while 60 people, known as the scream team, volunteer each night as cast and crew. Always in need of help to build and operate the sets, Campbell also saw an opportunity for others.
Seasoned volunteers offer hands-on training to youth, women and underserved populations in skills including construction, architectural design, theatre, set design, costuming, acting, specialeffects makeup, administration and customer service.
“We’ve partnered with agencies such as Calgary Alpha House Society, Girl Guides of Canada, and the University of Calgary to provide job-training experience and resume-building opportunities as well as service projects,” explained Campbell.
Tickets are $12 for adults, $8 for teens/students/seniors, $5 for children 6-12, and free for children 5 and under. Family tickets and passes are also available. Bring a food donation for discounts.