DIMESIONAL HAUNTING

Many of the haunts I visit think in only two dimensions, even when they believe the set/staging is more than two dimensions it is not. One would think that a cube of wood was three dimensional (and yes I know that it is, but bare with me for a moment, I may actually have a point to make). Star Trek "Wrath Of Kahn" ending battle sequence was in a Nebula. At one point in the battle Kirk asks Spock for an evaluation of Kahns' battle tactics, Spock replies that Kahn appears to be fighting in two dimensions. Yet all around them is three-dimensional space. Is it possible to live in three dimensions, build in three dimensions, and yet think in only two? YES.

OK OK, OK Confused? The space we create within is more than walls, sets and decorations. And three dimensions are more than Height Width and Depth. Well if it is more then it would be four dimensions or five dimensions or... Seldom do I see a Haunt using three dimensions, four even less and no one to my knowledge has traveled to the fifth dimension, except little ol' me. But then you guys think I live there.

(I make many references to safety and the lack of, the August article will get me flamed, it is on haunt safety from the creative point of view. Those of you waiting to torch me stock up on Napalm.)

A one-dimensional haunt is one where the money factor out weighs all other considerations. Line through put is maxed out and whatever show may have been cannot be. Actors and their training is, if anything, an after thought. Cheap masks, costumes and props add to the flavor and are one of the many reasons for pushing the customers through as fast as possible. Set design could be elaborate, if the customers were not being pushed through they might even notice it, but usually this style of haunt has little or no set design. Safety is usually sacrificed and the customer path is dangerous, not scary, life threatening dangerous. I have been through some of these in the daylight for lights on tours and was scared for all the wrong reasons. Like, can I get my kids and me out of here alive and uninjured? This type of haunt lives on hype (which it never lives up to) and on crowd interaction, not customer reaction.

The more typical two-dimensional haunt is an attempt, usually, by well meaning folks. Production value, of a sort, abounds. Set detail is there and the actors actually, well almost, know what they are doing. The staff has some training and, who knows, may even be able to handle an emergency. Greater attention to types of scares and a variety there of is attended to. Money is still a factor and safety compromised. The customer through put is slower but only because they have not figured out how to attract more customers. Daytime tours are almost safe and I usually do not fear for my life, sometimes my safety. My son (age 10 at the time) mentioned things like uneven floor, carpet pulled up and loose boards in one haunt. Attention to safety detail is usually the first thing to go.

Three-dimensional haunts are hard to find and not always appreciated for what they are. Verdon Manor is a three going on four-dimensional haunt. Rich in detail inside and out, elaborate sets, characters and special effects. Even before Verdon became a Theme Park and a true haunt style destination it was three-dimensional. It all seems so real. A real Haunted Verdon Manor, cemetery, flames and more. Entertainment is everywhere and you never know when something is about to get you, even out in the open walking around. Once inside there is more to see than you can possible take in, so you must return. The through put is high, yet the line moves painfully slow, especially when it is you the monsters are after and you would really like to get out of this room, only to find that you were better off where you were.

AND NOW HE DIGRESSES

Imagine a point in space. Add another point and connect, one dimension. Now imagine a haunt with all the excitement of this singular line, boring. Extend this line into a plane, our two dimensional haunt fares only little better. Not till we create a cube with all three dimensions do we see anything of interest. I am not going to give negative examples; you are more than capable of filling in the blanks. Customers are not near as clever. Some haunts of one and two dimensions stay in business for several years, but the public eventually catches on and the haunt goes belly up. Is it wrong to be a one-dimensional haunt? No, not as long as you grow. As long as you learn and make the effort to expand and develop your talent and the way you present your creation to the public. Take it in steps and learn.

MEANWHILE BACK AT THE CASTLE

Earlier articles deal with pace and the senses. These elements take you beyond the third dimension. They are near impossible to incorporate into a temporary haunt. The trip into new dimensions requires a permanent home. An example is my ghost illusion that you can walk through. Yes a real ghost that you see and walk through, the ghost reacts to this and comments on your rudeness. The effect took four days to install, many hours of maintenance and was hard to keep working because of the portable nature of the building. If you have 10 such high quality effects, well, it would take many man-days for these very special effects. Time portable haunters do not have. Another effect was the customer seeing himself as a ghost face on. A video freeze frame of customers passing a point in the castle is delayed and fed to a video ghost projector.

The dimensions beyond three require more attention to all the senses (except taste). The human perception of sounds below 20cps and above 20k cps is used to create unique atmospheres and self-illusions of danger or enhance fear. Lighting or lack of stretches the visual range, creates fear from shadows real and imaginary. Textures coarse to cold and smooth and dry to moist activate images in the mind. The very air the customers breathe can deliver distractions and create fear from unseen images.

Haunt depth is more than walls, masks and loud music. Anticipation is the most over looked aspect of a haunt. The creators are to busy being in your face, pushing your dumb ass out the door to make room for more fools too eager to part with their hard earned money, to really care about more than surface show. Am I perfect, HA, far from it? However, I notice that I do attempt to improve and learn from my mistakes. Others are to busy bragging of their success to notice that their bridge is burning behind them and the pylons ahead are set in quick sand.

JB Corn

Copyright 1999, All Rights Reserved

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