Story by Rick West

Each year brings a whole new pool of talent to Knott's Halloween Haunt. Some of the new folks are really good; born to scare the living crap out of guests. Others aren't quite so good - or as good as they think they are. Whichever the case, Knott's holds what is known as "Scare School" to introduce folks to their mazes and for Halloween Haunt managers to pass along their knowledge and encouragement to the incoming monsters.

Hosted usually by Haunt designer Brooke Walters and Knott's Berry Farm Area Manager of Park Shows, Craig Harreld, and a group of other folks responsible for whipping the Scary Farm into shape each season, Scare School has become quite the spectacle in recent years. This is the magical moment when talent gets to tour the mazes that will become "home" throughout the Halloween Haunt run, and for some, it's even the first time they've ever experienced the event for themselves.

On September 12th and 16th, 2011, Theme Park Adventure went behind the scenes with the Knott's team to witness Scare School 2011 in full motion. The maze teams that we observed being trained were The Doll Factory, and Delirium.

The Doll Factory, now in its fifth year at Knott's Scary Farm, is a very popular and well-known maze. Created by Brooke Walters, Doll Factory is a twisted tour through a demented killer's "factory", where he turns young women into sick playthings; living dolls. This is Doll Factory's final season, and the enthusiasm of the group was absolutely palpable. I think it's safe to say that the crew knows this is it for Doll Factory, and they came prepared to kick ass and give this legendary maze a proper send-off this year.

At the other end of the spectrum is Delirium, the new maze by designer Daniel Miller. Making its Halloween Haunt debut this season, Delirium is a terror trip through the demented mind of an asylum patient as she reflects on her not-very-pleasant past. Filled with gore and truly disturbing imagery, Delirium is sure to raise the bar for other Halloween Haunt mazes, and is definitely a milestone that Miller should be very proud of.

Once Scare School is underway, Brooke shows the teams the Knott's Berry Farm basics - where they check in each night, where First Aid and Security are located, and most important of them all, where Warehouse P is! For those reading this not familiar, Warehouse P is the Haunt nerve center, from Wardrobe distribution to Make-up. If it has to do with Halloween Haunt, it also has to do with Warehouse P.

After reviewing the basics, the Scare School team escorts the teams to their various maze locations. A brief introduction to the maze, usually by its respective designer(s), is followed by a tour of the attraction. Talent is assigned their spots along the way, and immediately begin working out their characters and scare tactics. Some get right into it, growling and snarling at others; and some folks need a bit of coaching to bring them out of their shells.

One of the occurrences that we witness each year is the inevitable know-it-all monster that proclaims how good he or she is, and when the time comes for them to go off and act nuts in front of Brooke and the group, they completely lock up with cold feet. It's funny, but it happens very often. Sometimes, they explain that they're not feeling well, or that they do much better once in costume; they even have blamed the light from our camera for either being too bright or distracting to them! Whatever the reason, being shy or locking up sets the Scare School team in motion, coaching and encouraging new employees how to be successful monsters. On the rare occasion, people get so flustered, we've seen them break down in tears; it's awkward, but it happens.

When someone needs more than a gentle coaching lesson to get them started as a Haunt monster, additional help in the form of "Scare Force" educators are called upon, and they spend as long as they need to with whoever is having a stumbling point during Scare School. Most of the time, Scare Force is able to remedy the issues... no monster left behind!

The flip side of that coin is when folks you have pegged out in your mind as being the quiet types absolutely turn it on and go off the minute they're told to do so! It's amazing watching first-hand the transformation they undergo the minute they are placed in their maze locations. For us, it is a chance to get a heads-up on new talent that we will look for later in the Halloween Haunt run when we're shooting stills and video. It's truly exciting spotting and keeping an eye on up-and-coming monsters that show great promise out of costume in their new maze spots.

Watching Craig Harreld address each group and coach individual talent throughout the evening is something that is very cool. Most of the new talent being ushered in have no idea that Craig once was a Haunt monster himself - a Haunt Legend, really. Once upon a time, Craig roamed the streets of Calico as the Cat Man, and was one of the first - if not the first - street monsters to begin sliding. Besides being a really awesome guy, Craig is dedicated completely to the art of Halloween Haunt - and it shows.

Another thing that Craig is passionate about is what does and does not work regarding monster behavior at Halloween Haunt. In recent years, he, along with others, decided that the Scary Farm's hallmark tool, the shaker can, had out-lasted its welcome and so, the age-old monster scaring tool was banned from use at Haunt. This year, Craig and the team are targeting "monster gloves" that are equipped with pieces of metal that click like castanets. Way too many monsters rely on gloves such as these to click in peoples' faces, or to slam against walls of mazes when scaring. Knott's management is seriously surveying the use of such gloves this season and have made it very clear that they're close to being banned due to over-use, as well as the damage they cause inside the mazes.

In addition to keeping a close eye on "clicky gloves" this year, Craig has made a personal plea to each of the Scare School groups. He really wants to see the "scary" return to Knott's Scary Farm, citing that in the past few years, the overall event has become too relaxed and chill for his taste. Craig has asked everyone to really ramp up their game and make the Halloween Haunt experience truly special and terrifying this season.

Scare School is a very interesting aspect of Knott's Halloween Haunt that we enjoy witnessing first-hand each year, as well as being able to bring it home to you via photos and video. Speaking of which, make sure you have a snack and are comfortable in your seat. This year, Theme Park Adventure not only brings you a ton of great Scare School still images to enjoy - we also have a huge video for you to sit back and watch that is just about 20 minutes in length!

We thank Brooke, Craig and the team for allowing us to tag along during Scare School 2011 and document it. And we'd also like to give huge props to the men and women of Halloween Haunt 2011 - you should all be proud of yourselves and know that you're totally appreciated.

Happy haunting, everyone!

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