Friday the 13th and a dozen young actors and actresses appeared at my front door from Timber Lake Playhouse, a summer-stock theater just 3 miles south of town.
As a group of people they are all very aware and of course imaginative, which sometimes makes them overly nervous (and much easier to scare, if I'm going to scare them?)
The first room was fun, me hearing some responses to some of the things that I normally do and say that I have never heard before, which historically creates an ad-lib mood in me and even more nuttiness will follow.
In the kitchen, the second room, I decided to pick on the" leading lady" actress all fresh from her performance just a few scant hours earlier , still wearing her 1950's party dress, she is a very cute little blond. As she begins to realise the full implications of what I an about to subject her to, infront of friends(It's only a faux-torturous event, of course) she is actually terrified and struggling to release herself from my grip.
I really don't treat anyone so badly, so I notice the other blond, standing behind her, same height and build, but not the leading lady-type.
"Wait a minute, your "Stunt-Double" is standing right behind you!"
I release the leading lady and grab up the "Stunt-Double' and subject her to the whole routine which has everyone but the designated victim laughing..ALOT!
After it was all over I scoulded the Leading Lady telling her :"Let this be lesson to you, never go anywhere without your stunt-double!"
I have been doing this here for 20 years, this is what I do and I have a ton of experience(s) so these young actors got my very unusual performance to inspire them.
In the recent past some of these people would begin reciting my front room routines just before they step out from behind the curtain to give their own performances upon the stage!
I take this as quite a compliment.