Thread: 2010 is Once Upon a Nightmare

Tweet

I fell desperately in lust with the idea when HHN made scare zones and houses based on fairy tales. The Brothers Grimm have always been where I pulled from for the Halloween Spirit, so it's no surprise that I'm basing this year's Halloween party around Twisted Tales. I already have everything sketched out, but I desperately need help for ideas, I've thrown blow out Halloween bashes for years, but when it comes to haunted houses... I'm a complete rookie at scaring people. HELP!

Side of House = Jack in the Beanstalk

Live Actor: Jack, holding a screaming skull, urging for you to play with him as he’s butchered his mother and has no other family.

The fam and I made a beanstalk out of cardboard, pipe cleaners, loose craft leaves/vines just to test our creativity. It turned out kinda bleh (even with lights), I’ll post pictures for reviews and ideas…

Pavilion = The Little Mermaid

Live Actors: Mermaid, after carving out the prince’s heart in order to save herself from certain death, she regrets her decision and begs the Sea Witch for help, who in turn brings him back from the depths of the ocean to scare the audience. (Any tips on how to amp up the scare with the actor are appreciated)

While I didn't want to touch this fairy tale for fear of the haunt becoming too Disney, my cousin insisted on being a mermaid. Rather than become a crazy controlling director, I compromised and reinvented it completely. we're wrapping the sides in plastic and painting half of the room in blues and greens, the other blacks and purples. One half to represent the mermaids side of the sea, she’s decked out with a vanity we hit with insulation foam and paint, a life-size oar boat that’s been laying around the yard, shells, treasure trove etc. The other is the witches cavern We cut a piece of fallen tree a painted it black, I’m gonna do a cauldron with dry ice on top.

Front porch = Three Goats Gruff - I got someone to hide underneath the porch and play with peoples legs as they pass through the haunt. Have no ideas at ll on decorating....

Kitchen = Hansel and Gretel

Live Actor: My preggers girlfriend will be playing the witch, who’s bustling about the room baking body parts and whistling. We definitely need some sort of scare for this room, I’m sadly our of ideas…

A mix of gore and candy, it's the sweet shop of horrors. Butchered body parts all over the place, blood galore, and bottled ingredients are already on my to do list. Severed head in the oven, skulls iced down in the fridge, and meat hooks hanging from the ceiling. I need a scare for this room, ideas?

Dining Room = Mad Tea Party

Live Actors: I have someone playing the Queen and the Rabbit. He's a severed head on the table, anyone pull off this effect without being cheesy? Tips for severed head scares appreciated....

I’m cementing gluing tea cups and saucers and stacking them around the room, I’ll probably hang singles from the ceiling. I’m making two giant cards out of card board and attaching bones for heads, arms, and legs. Walls will be forest scene setter and I’m also making mushrooms out of pumpkins and squash. Tweedle Dee and Dum have been er... beheaded and are on stakes, I'm doing a spiral out of Christmas lights on the ceiling. Playing cards strewn about the room, etc.

Bathroom/Hallway = Little Miss Muffet - No live actors, just a drop down spider, room roll, and some scenery.

Bedroom = Little Red Riding Hood

Live Actors: Little Red will be crying in the corner while the wolf hides in bed, waiting to pounce on the audience.

I didn’t want to play out Red Riding Hood in the bedroom, as we have woods around the house and the story, costume and scene have so much potential. But, we needed a filler for the bedroom in the haunt, any ideas on decorating? I’m stumped on this….

1/2 Living Room = Snow White

Live Actor: Three dwarves enslaved by the queen will be cowering around the room in shackles as the Queen herself talks to the mirror (which is a two-way mirror). Snow White will appear and scream

Gothic castle theme. Decorating ideas are slim pickings for me, need ideas desperately.... Is there anything a live actor can play off of to amp up the room's appeal? I’ve got some torches and candles and stone wall room roll, but they’re just the basics.

½ Living Room = Pinocchio

Live Actors: Gepetto will be at home in his workshop, while Pinichio’s gone insane.

Again, another Disney classic insisted upon by my girlfriend this time. Lol. She wanted our 3 year old son to be part of it, so I had to write a part into the haunt for him. I’m gonna do the room completely in wood, wood rocking horse, wood toy trunk, wooden cups to hold candles,… Anyway, my son is supposed to be the scare, and I don’t know how this is going to work?

Back Porch = Sleeping Beauty

Live Actors: Sleeping Beauty will be dancing around the room and singing to a track from the Disney (ew) movies, but with the Sightless prosthetic and this chick’s voice it’s all in the name of creepiness. Anyway, she’s supposed to keep the audience distracted for the Dark Fairy to slip from behind some hidden curtains and throw pop firecrackers for a cheap scare.

Another fill in room, so ideas were down the drain. I’m putting a couple of crows around the room and using a stone wall room roll here as well. I was thinking the briars should be incorporated but I didn’t know what I could use…. Ideas for decorating….

Backyard = Peter Peter People Eater

Pumpkin patch, my brother’s the giant scare as Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater. He’s got this insane Jack O Lantern costume and props already, we’re filling a massive pumpkin with body parts to serve as his wife. There’s an empty stalk where a scarecrow should be in the middle of the patch, when the audience is unawares my brother’s gonna come flying out of nowhere with a chainsaw for the final scare.

So, if you can’t tell already I’m a complete amateur at haunts, you guys have been doing this for years. Help a fellow Halloween lover out. I need SCARES, ways to scare, tips to scare, PLEASE PLEASE. Lol, I don’t mind begging if I have to. Planning Halloween parties have always been tricky, but throw in a theme and a walk through and you’ve got a mess… lol. Have at it!

P.S. Thank you for reading that giant inbred Frankenstein-esque massive post above. You’ve now won a million points in the patience department.

P.P.S. Any other tales I could cover and pull off would be awesome?

WOW! just WOW ... sounds amazing.

We are doing a much MUCH smaller scale version of twisted fairy tales, we'll have mad hatters teaparty - evil vampire cheshire cat grinning from fairy lit cobwebbed branches draped over windows. the usual teacups, bloodied rat/dormouse in teapot, eatme/drink me canapes etc.

I've got zombie dolls for our hansel and gretel - they've broken out of their cage and eaten the witch .

there is a shelf of gory skulls with little display cards that give clues to the origins ( we are gettign guests to see how many fairy tales they can spot ) E.g one has the eye ball carved out and blood is dripping with sea weed hanging out of it - am trying to get small toy crab for th cavity too.
We have a graveyard with the seven dwarves buried and a hand ( a la Carrie ) poking thru one of the graves hopefully will have a small spade of pick axe in it..

am trying to recreate little miss muffet so small doll will be painted to look dead , wrapped in spiders cocoon with wooden stool and bowl of curds and whey spilled beneath her .

As you walk up the stairs there should be a tiny door in the skirting boards with a Notice of Execution being staged statign the occupiers are to be taken and hanged as "it's not Borrowing - it's Stealing!" - our nod to The Borrowers. :-)

Have huge pumpkin monster scarecrow hangin from bedroom watching the trick or treaters.

I'm little dead riding hood not sure what character husband will be .. but your ideas are jsut amazing ! Your guests are going to have a blast!

Don't know if you have done the invites - but here is the wording we used for ours.
Once upon a time … There was a story
Sweet and gentle, nothing gory.
Orphans sung and rabbits hopped,
Then along came the darkness
And all that…. STOPPED!

Once upon a time … on All Hallows Eve
The stories came to life, They were granted a reprieve.
But the darkness was powerful, it’s magic was strong
The stories came out all twisted and wrong.

Each year they seek someone new
To witness their transformation.
This year that task has fallen to YOU!
So here’s some information:

Saturday 30th October
8pm till late
(house number / road here)
Prepare to meet your fate!


But i have to say it again - your ideas are great! You are going to have a brilliant party! I'm sure other more experienced party planners will be along soon to help you out, i just wanted to give you a pat on the back! :-)

bachewie, what about Little Jack Horner who sat in the corner. He could have a big pie and pull our body parts to eat. Why don't you have several like this in the bedroom area and move your Little Red RIding Hood out to your forest area?

Lilbugwitch, love your invitation! Great ideas from both of you.

my friend is having an 'unhappily ever after' party this year too - I've decided to go as ghoulilocks (i can incorporate some of my gothic raggedy anne costume from last year) I plan to trawl the charity shops for some action men toys (like GI joe) and carry them around naked - as the 3 bares

Try this recent thread, maybe you can find some ideas here, good luck!

Need help with scenery for Twisted Fairy Tales