# Tapped for the local school Venue.. Ideas Needed!



## RandalB (Jun 8, 2009)

Hi all,

I just got tapped by the local school's parent organization (PTO) for their "Haunted Gym" Attraction that has been shut down for almost 6 years. Apparently they saw my Front Lawn last year and I have been elected the town's haunt master and the one to consult for these things. 

A little background on me, I have been running lawn haunts for about 4 years now, I am experienced in electronics (use hot end of soldiering iron right?), Pneumatics (Do not stick air cannon down pants..) and most aspects of lawn haunts and their animatronics. I've built: a TCT, Rocking Chair (Scary Terry), FCG, Coffin Jumper, MIB, Etc so I can execute most projects. 

What I need is good ideas that fit in these params:
1) Target audience - K-5th Graders
2) Low Gore - No clowns with chainsaws plz
3) Fast Setup - Take down (I only have the venue for 2 days with 6 Hour setup time)
4) It's in a gym so I can't trash the floors. 

The Good News: 
1) Large volunteer group including tradesmen
2) $300-500 budget
3) Large staffing group for actors and guides
4) Large pool of materials including walls already built
5) I am supplying most of the hardware, Blacklights, fog machines, Sound, etc

What I've already got in mind:
1) Dot Room (How could I not?)
2) Strobe Clown room - Clown at the back, strobe light, clown advances when strobe is dark, clown gets to the TOT's, holds up sign that says "Happy Halloween" - get it?
3) Hallway "O" Bugs - Dim hallway, beans on the floor (crunch crunch) yarn hanging from ceiling, bug decor
4) Lunch room - Cafeteria Table, lunch lady, Bugs, slime, etc
5) Playground - Teeter Totter, Various lawn props, etc. 


I appreciate any input, ideas or suggestions, Looking to make it one to remember for the local kids...

RandalB


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## Spider Rider (Nov 8, 2006)

I love the the lunch lady. Easy to make scary. How about evil teachers, kid actors chained to desks, writing I promise to be evil 100 times on a chalkboard. Zombie four square. Teather ball with a head instead of the ball.
When I did a school haunt I had my spider over a victim and several kids wrapped up and wriggling on the walls.


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## hpropman (Jul 27, 2008)

what about Joking skellies I have two sound files that you can use one with Jokes and the other with a Who is on first slab Abbott and Costello Parody very funny. see my website for videos of them in action 2007 and 2008. also singing pumpkins are easy to do with VSA or vixen.


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## spideranne (Jul 17, 2006)

Town Haunt Master - now that is a great title.

Maybe a couple of photo opp sceens that will keep them busy while waiting to get in, or for those that chicken out. Painted character boards that they can stick their heads in, coffin they can stand in, etc.

Also, Harry Potter stuff is still pretty popular with this age group so maybe a wizard classroom or anything that appears magic, madam leota, talking mirror effect.


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## fick209 (Aug 31, 2009)

why not a room as a mad scientist lab? Kids LOVE science. Speciman jars around with various objects in them, but also an actual scientist doing kid friendly lab experiments that dont take much time. For instance, tornado in a jar experiment, egg sucked into bottle experiment, invisible writing experiment, baking soda and vinegar. Tons of possibilities for science lab. Decorated correctly it can be very scary, yet educational.


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## Warrant2000 (Oct 8, 2008)

Ok, the first guy with a chainsaw will...wait...dang...

Having tradesmen sounds like you'll be able to build framework for hallways and rooms. A large support staff means you can have many moving things. How about pool noodles from under curtains or through holes to poke at the kids legs as they go through. Add a hand on the end of the noodle and you have a freakishly long arm reaching for them. A blast of air from an air tank nozzle will make them jump!

Perhaps a crazy doctor and patient, the doctor drilling into the gut of the patient (no blood, just yells of pain).

Wandering monsters/zombies.

Pirates and pirate treasure is always a fun thing and not too scary. Maybe some singing pirates. If you have a 3-axis skull you could have an interactive skeleton head to talk to the kids as they go through. Or use a live actor in a Peppers Ghost-type setup with a video camera monitor.

A face painting station would be fun to corpse up the kids.

Pre-made walls shouts maze to me. Add some hidden actors and dead ends. Hang sheets of black plastic in a 10'x10' room, close together so they have to claw their way through it...very disorienting.

Man, I wish I was the Town Haunt Master.


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## dna1990 (Jul 18, 2008)

Just remember that moving from your own yard to a now very public place, will bring some more responsibility, liability, fire codes, etc.

Be sure that the PTO, is 'in charge' and answers to all those outside forces for you. 

Your biggest challenge is the setup time frame. And even though you have the manpower - organizing that manpower might be tough. You will need some very specific blueprints and layout documents showing plugs, wires, etc. Gather the good ideas, but then remind yourself to keep the scope small enough to implement well.

Definitive include ideas to help occupy the kids outside your main attraction. Cutout stand-ins for photos are a great example. Put them off to the side somewhere and people can enjoy them at their own pace. Takes some build time, but very little setup time.


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## RandalB (Jun 8, 2009)

dna1990 said:


> Just remember that moving from your own yard to a now very public place, will bring some more responsibility, liability, fire codes, etc.
> 
> Be sure that the PTO, is 'in charge' and answers to all those outside forces for you.
> 
> ...


Some great points here, I am primarily the Creative director, but I have already gotten the local FD and the Fire Inspector on board (Donation drive for the local FD's Food pantry is the price of admission...) , Planning to meet with the local PD to see about having a car on hand as well. Liability will also be discussed with the school district's attorney before hand. I am starting to think my yard haunt is going to suffer a little this year... LOL.

Warrant- 
Phenom ideas! Love the noodles with hands and the air squirter ideas (Always wanted to do that one...) Can't do the dead end maze tho- against fire codes.

Keep the great stuff coming guys and gals, loving them..

Thanks,
RandalB


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## ubzest (Jul 1, 2008)

how about a ugly ole witch and a fortune teller!


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## The Archivist (May 31, 2009)

Check out some of the pictures of the 2008 Ghost Train from Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum. Here's the link. http://www.lals.org/galleries/Halloween_2008/
My personal favorites is the spider tunnel, and the smoke tunnels.


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## Daphne (Oct 18, 2006)

What a cool thing to do! There have been so many terrific ideas already.

How about an area where the evil lunch lady blindfolds the kids and they have to guess what they are touching? Eyeballs (peeled grapes), intestines (cooked noodles), blood (tomato soup), etc. There will be some that will too scared to go through the haunted area but will enjoy this. I have a child in elementary school and squishy/gooey things are all the rage. Ewww...

The beans on the floor concerns me a little from the standpoint of someone sliding down.

Thin yarn hanging down for cobwebs is a cool idea, I like that.

The photo opp boards with cutouts and face painting would be very popular I'd think while people are waiting.

What about a maze area where you have several dummies and several live actors (all in costume of course). As they go through, the live actors move around when the kids turn their back. It is really unnerving to have that creature that was 5 feet away, right behind you all of a sudden. Just make sure they don't touch the kids.

If the teachers/principal/etc are willing to dress up and help out/wander around, the kids would love that. 

Be careful about using strobes. They can trigger a seizure in some people. Also, while foggers can trigger asthma, I don't think it would be problematic unless you had the fog so thick you can't see through it. You can't have a haunt without fog. I would monitor it though to validate it doesn't make the floor slick.

This is going to be so fun! I'm sure you will do a phenomenal job and have a total blast!


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## dna1990 (Jul 18, 2008)

I am probably over cautious, but gym floors are already slick as snot. Do alot of testing with any plans for fog or items on the ground.

Teachers and admins in costume would indeed be a big hit.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

Surprisingly, what lots of (little) kids like is a place to move around more. Local church puts up a small carport (has sides & roof but open at both ends) sticks a intermittant fogger in it & kids walk thru when they come into the main room.. In it are helium balloons and spider webs & bats hanging down, and there are balloons on the floor as well. For some reason, the kids think this is great, and go in there and jump, whack the ballons. Maybe they think it's supposed to be scary & since it's notl they feel proud or something.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

Don't forget about my kids (ages 5 & 12)personal fave: the leaf blower. Plug in a surge protector, and have a kid man the switch. Hide blower under something....even a table.

Make sure your stuff will not fall on anyone or they wil not fiddle with or punch stuff. This is the age where they want to beat up actors & props to show they are not scared. This part is a big job, in & of itself. You will need to assign volunteers just to keep kids in line. If you have a set path for an activity (i.e. Spooky Trail) you will need it clearly marked for entrance & exit. Again- you'll need a helper. I'll keep thinking...


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## Eeeekim (Aug 14, 2009)

You lucky dog!! "Town Haunt Master" That sound great! Can you use some of the kids as actors? How about getting the principle in on it. Maybe a quick change into a witch or monster. that will keep the kids in-line throughout the year.


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## RandalB (Jun 8, 2009)

Quick Update,
Had a meeting with the PTO this week and things are looking more optimistic than I had originally planned. 

Apparently there is a system of wires and canvas that can be used to partiton the gym floor to ceiling! Takes out a ton of work on partition walls, and hallways can be made with 1" pvc and black poly materal. 

There is also apparently a shed full of old decor and props that needs to be sorted through (drool!).

I have aproximately 25 parent volunteers for the night and tons of kids who have expressed interest. The venue has also been opened to people outside of the kids that attend the school we are using and we will have at least 2 days for setup (Sigh of relief!)

Great Ideas all around, I have to run to the hardware store before the kiddies get home (Been sick, I am 11 Days behind schedule already!) so I'll post more later... Keep the great ideas coming!

RandalB


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## Daphne (Oct 18, 2006)

Sweet! Ok, everyone who is jealous of RandalB raise their hand! 

Being called the "Town Haunt Master" is so much cooler than the "Don't you live in the Halloween House?" that I get. You have a real title and everything! OK, I'm raising my hand on the jealous thing!

HEY, i just thought of this! How about a twist on the disappearing FCG since you have tons of volunteers. Have some people in Rit-treated cheesecloth and several oscillating fans with black lights strapped on the front of the fans(on the cage so they move of course). As the fan/light turns, the black light illuminates the ghost, plus the person can move in and out of the light also since it is a live actor. If you aren't familiar with this trick, the ghost is illuminated when hit by the black light and seems to disappear when the light turns away from them. You could have several fans/lights just make sure they are behind something and they don't illuminate the other fans. By using cheesecloth and having a few small strips that are loose, the fan will blow that around a little and help the effect as well.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

BIG ORANGE T-SHIRT: "TOWN HAUNT MASTER". 
Swweeet.


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## RandalB (Jun 8, 2009)

debbie5 said:


> BIG ORANGE T-SHIRT: "TOWN HAUNT MASTER".
> Swweeet.


Too bad it's an Honorary title and doesn't come with the keys to a large spooky warehouse... LOL

OK, Update -

The actual Gym is on the smaller side, 80x90 but should be plenty of room for what needs to be done. I am thinking we are going to have to use Poly sheeting for walls with Upright supports holding ropes/cable to hold up the poly (2 day setup, 2 day run, 1 day teardown). Have the Local PD and FD on board, have mats to protect the gym floor. The prop and supply bins have been looted, so not much help there, Looks like I'll be supplying a lot of the support equipment (UV lights, Fog Machines, Decor, Etc..) from my Lawn Haunt.

Our First volunteer meeting is on the 24th and hopefully there are enough twisted people in the school district that I won't have to scramble for actors...

RandalB


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## Warrant2000 (Oct 8, 2008)

Looted? That sucks! 80x90 is still pretty frickin huge, you should be able to make quite a layout.

Since you will provide most of the decor, you should call out to all the volunteers to bring in some of their own props. If each person brings in just 1 prop, you'll have a whole lot to use.

Or, task those crafty tradesmen to build a few; FCG, Peppers Ghost, Bottomless Pit, static zombies, Toe Grabber, etc. Happen to have a sketch of the layout you could share?


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## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

RandalB said:


> Too bad it's an Honorary title and doesn't come with the keys to a large spooky warehouse... LOL
> 
> OK, Update -
> 
> ...


oh man i am sooooooooo jealous of you. if i could, i'd be there to help you out. i love scaring kids

are you in need of anything? i have some halloween lights i'd be willing to send to you if you need it...let me know


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