Six Flags resurrects the scares

Fright Fest returns to park, along with classic mazes, as well as stage shows, ‘scare actors’

Six Flags Magic Mountain heralded the beginning of its annual Fright Fest season Saturday, as thousands of parkgoers shrieked in glee at the sights of demons and purple fog drifting throughout the park.

The festivities will be going on Sept. 22-23, 2830, and Oct. 5-7, 12-14, 19-21 and 26-28. During these times, the park comes alive with all sorts of scary attractions for its attendees.

This year, the classic mazes from previous years are still standing, such as “Red’s Revenge,” “Willoughby’s Resurrected,” and there are more dilapidated houses located around the park for attendees to explore.

Additions include three mazes: “Hell Fest,” “Condemned” and “Sewer of Souls,” said park spokeswoman Sue Carpenter.

“Condemned” and “Sewer of Souls” had been considered for years before the park welcomed them during its 26th season this year, she said.

“Hell Fest” came about just in time for the release of the eponymous movie hitting theaters at the end of the month.

Other sights included stage shows “Voodoo Nights,” with a band, dancers and DJs adorned in clown makeup shaking the stage near the Full Throttle ride, and “High Sierra Hypnotist,” located in the Golden Bear Theater for comedy horror lovers.

More than 500 “scare actors” donned masks, horns and stilts to portray demons and monsters. They roamed around the park, ducking through mazes or occupying “scare zones,” where they leapt out at attendees in specifically planned-out methods, Carpenter said.

“This year is our biggest and scariest Fright Fest ever,” she said. “We always pay attention to every scary detail. Our department is very innovative and wants to make the experience as real for our guests as possible.”

“We always start planning the next Fright Fest the day one closes,” Carpenter said. “Or even earlier. Our Entertainment and Events Department are already considering what we’ll feature next year.”

Next year, with the opening of the park’s “West Coast Racers” ride, the department is already planning new activities and mazes in that area, she said.

More information on ticket prices and schedules is available at sixflags.com/magicmountain.

Crystal Duan/The Signal (Above) “Voodoo Nights” stage show performers entertain Six Flags Magic Mountain guests at the park’s annual Fright Fest on Saturday. (Right) A demon greets guests to the park. More than 500 actors will wear masks, horns and stilts to give parkgoers a scare as the park celebrates its 26th year of Fright Fest through October.