Most people would say that when you’re a volunteer, it’s all about helping others, but for me that’s just a handy bonus. My absolute favorite place to spend long hours working for nothing is Naper Settlement. The reason is, it allows me to literally act out the fantasies that no one would ever pay me to do.
For the past 11 years, I’ve been a playwright, director, producer and actor trying to entertain visitors at All Hallows Eve Village of Fear. I’m not the only one either. Just like in the old movie “Same Time, Next Year,” a group of us have met there just once a year, usually over a few drinks at Braconi’s, in full costume and make up at 11 p.m. when we’re finally done for the night.
The character I’ve played most years is Mrs. Lovett in the Sweeney Todd vignette. It’s the perfect role for me because it allows me to interact with the audience while impressing with them with my home-made pies. I like to think of myself more as a method cook than a method actor, so my pies are the ultimate finger food. For anyone who doesn’t know the story, Sweeney Todd was a barber who slit people’s throats (and apparently cut off their legs, according to our overzealous lead actor Richard Oberbruner last year) providing fresh meat for Mrs Lovett to bake into pies. I can’t tell you what’s really in them, but let’s just say our street goes through mailmen like a witch goes through toads.
Over in the old school house, Dan Theleen has been creeping out young audiences with tales by the master of horror, Edgar Allen Poe (insert thunderclap and flashing lights), for the past 12 years. He stepped into the role at the last minute after being approached by Jo Ruggiero, a former settlement educator who performed for many years as the headless horseman on her own horse.
Theleen travels down for the weekend from Grand Rapids, Mich. Since he started, he’s had twins, been divorced and remarried, sharing updates each year we meet. It took me several years to realize he didn’t actually speak in a raspy voice. It’s just by the time I see him, he’s usually been speaking nonstop for four hours.
“Volunteering at All Hallows Eve is special to me because not only do I get to perform, which I love doing, but more importantly I get to bring a great American literary mind alive to kids,” he said. “In the first few minutes, they think it’s boring because nobody is jumping out at them, but by five minutes, I have them completely hooked into the story and character. I love the elegance of the stories. He doesn’t need fake blood or crass words to be scary. He does it with intelligent prose and I would suggest that his stories are some of the scariest around.”
Two people who thankfully do rely on copious amounts of fake blood are Greg Siegel and his acting partner Amanda Mehok. When not at the settlement, Siegel is a contract painter and restaurant server. He’s also a consummate volunteer and an enthusiastic member of the Naperville Jaycees. Mehok is an eighth-grade teacher for Naperville District 203 who started volunteering at the settlement when she was 13. Together they play Dracula and his victim Mina. It’s a role Siegel loves to sink his teeth into each year.
“Naper Settlement is so unique as an outdoor museum and I am a history buff, so this is a good fit for me,” he said. “All Hallows Eve specifically gives me the opportunity to dress up, act and entertain/scare the guests. Another draw for me is working with the many other volunteers. I have met some very interesting and wonderful people and developed some great friendships over the years. Volunteering is fun!”
Mehok agrees.
“It’s special to me because I love to work with people,” she said. “I love the story of Dracula and I love the team I have at the house. I think everyone should volunteer.”
All the actors concur that working All Hallows Eve is a scream and that one of the best things about meeting up in Braconi’s is sharing funny stories.
Siegel said, “I believe Amanda will agree one of the best experiences in Dracula’s Lair was a few years ago with a group of six to eight tweenage girls. Without giving away too much about our vignette, the cast of Dracula’s Lair had these guests so scared that they all grabbed each other. Then one girl in the center fell down and dragged all her friends down with her. There was a group of screaming girls in a pile on the floor with a vampire hovering over them. Seeing reactions like that are the best – hopefully for the guests as well as us!”
For Theleen, who works for IBM Watson Health, remembers one particular mistake.
“I was so animated that I stepped on my cape and pulled myself down so I fell to the floor,” he said. “The crowd loved it and so I added it to the story. I put the stunt in on purpose every year.”
As for me, I remember the year I roamed the grounds as a witch. The strolling characters can be vulnerable and you never know what you’re going to run into. After putting real effort into my costume, one girl told me she’d bought the same set of false nails in Jewel, while another criticized my false nose. The terrifying thing about that for me was that wasn’t false at all.
The settlement relies on volunteers for this event more than any other. It takes a scary amount of people to decorate and then tear down the attractions, greet visitors, hand out programs etc. Then there are the actors.
One thing that attracted me originally was that you didn’t have to learn loads of lines, just a few which you repeat up to 30 times each night. Of course, being the ham I am, I’ve embellished the role over the years, and that’s OK, too, as long as you don’t slow up the action too much.
Which finally brings me to the reason why I’m writing about Halloween in the beginning of September.
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Auditions for this year’s All Hallows Eve take place at Naper Settlement from 5 to 6 p.m. Sept. 5 and 6. All you need to do is show up and try out, anyone over 16 is welcome. The haunted village will be open Oct. 19-20.
For more information visit www.napersettlement.org/allhallowseve