Fright night not for faint hearted
HALLOWE’EN night was extra scary at Wexford Arts Centre as the local Nocturne Productions presented Professor Arcati's Asylum.
It wasn't for the faint hearted as the inside of the Arts Centre was transformed into the Asylum of a crazed professor who specialises in harvesting souls and carrying out all kinds of gruesome experiments on unfortunate victims. The tour took the form of some of the most horrifying and scary stories in history, and the group were introduced to a series of terrifying characters.
To begin the tour, the group were introduced to ‘ the gatekeeper' a large man in a bowler hat with a white face, who appeared to have blood on his shirt. Eddie Milburn, who played the role, carried it off to perfection and it seemed like every time you looked around he was staring you right in the eye. From there the group was brought up the back steps into the Arts Centre and introduced to the Professor, played by Jamie Rutledge.
He proceeded to speak about his work, showing them a human brain that he had extracted from some poor victim.
Next the group met an inmate of the asylum, Emily Loftus, played by Dayna Killian who told the story of the devil's appearance at Loftus Hall and her subsequent possession by dark forces.
Elizabeth Bathory, played by Heather Hadrell, was next. Elizabeth was renowned as the world's most prolific female serial killer, working through over 80 victims in the early 1600s.
She believed that she would obtain immortality by bathing in the blood of her victims, and it certainly seems to have worked as she looked very much alive on the tour.
For the final part of the tour, the group met Torquemada, played by John Crosbie. Torquemada was a priest during the Spanish Inquisition and he informed the group of the various forms of torture he used while ensuring they were well behaved.
The tour was a fantastic way to spend Hallowe’en night and the group are hoping to do it all again next year. However, be warned, you may have trouble sleeping afterwards.