I have not been here in ages! I have dropped in everywhere else, but it's tough to spread one's self around. At any rate, I'm here now and that's all that matters.
Just a quick report to say that The Scream Extreme 2006 was a success! What does "success" mean? If it means making a financial profit, then no, it wasn't a success. BUT, we raised more than 2005 and our attendance was up as well. Our days were up, also -- from three days in 2005 to 11 days open in 2006. So, naturally our profits and attendance were up. It was very tough being open for so many days. We more than tripled them and my body and mind were feeling it. I was quite on edge and grumpy many nights due to having to get the actor's roster together every time as well as doing the makeup. Most nights I had to juggle the actors around as there were always actors who flaked on the schedule and only had one night where all the places were filled. Me being an actress, I have always favored actors over animatronics as they have perfect timing (if the actor is good) and can execute a scare at the right time. However, by 2006's end, I had decided to incorporate more animatronics into the haunt and not be so dependent on actors. I have kept to my word as now I have five animatronics as oppose to the one we had last year.
If you contribute success to how many people we absolutely terrorized, then YES, we where quite successful! We had many to take the emergency exits and one lady to even faint on us. One young man came out having an asthma attack. I would have normally been quite concerned, but he had his inhaler with him and was warned before entering that anyone with a respiratory illness should not enter. And get this....We even had to two EMTs, a man and a woman, to park their ambulance in the front and go through. I thought for sure they could never be scared as they see the real stuff everyday --- They screamed and jumped just as loud or louder than everyone else. LOL!
If you think a successful haunt is one where no one gets hurt, again a huge YES. Even though we are always insured, it is always great when no injuries are reported. I and the crew go through the haunt with a fine tooth comb every night we're open to make sure there are no stumbling hazards or any other type of problems that could cause an injury. Some feel I am overly cautious, but I say there is no such thing.
I am looking forward to next year. There will be a few changes, one of which I will tell you about in my next blogging......
So, how was your day?
Peace!
Hey all,
excited 
Alice P. Sugarbelly
