The thrill of terror

The line for Fright Nights stretches across a soccer field in the middle of the fairgrounds, where hundreds of eager ticket holders wait to voluntarily be scared to death. A group of teenagers from West Palm Beach are a seething mix of anticipation and fear. “I’m terribly afraid of everything,” says Angelina, 13. Her friends Riley and Kairi, also 13, nod in agreement. The three of them have never been to Fright Nights before. Alyssa, 15, is the only veteran in the group. She was there last year. “I look forward to being scared. “I like the haunted houses best,” she says.

Fright Nights runs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through October 26th, marking its 22nd year. The event was named one of the “Top Haunted Attractions” by the Haunted Attraction Association for the sixth year in a row, and for good reason. Everyone involved in the event has a great passion for making “The Haunting” a frightening and entertaining experience.

“I love scaring people,” said Kelly Palmieri, a Stuart resident and one of the event’s longtime performers. Her enchanted doll character walks around silently with a creepy, expressionless stare, frightening anyone she sets her sights on. Palmieri is looking forward to some new things this year. “They typecast actors this year and handpicked them for certain roles,” she says. “It’s going to be really cool this year.”

Creepy clowns and ghostly ghouls terrorize the crowds at Fright Nights. The creative team works together each year to create new haunted experiences.

Fright Nights creative director Craig McInnis says the cast is crucial to the success of the event. “We are always looking for the most enthusiastic and passionate horror actors. Our casting directors pay close attention to the countless different personalities and physicalities that best suit each theme and mood of the house. Every year we are fortunate to add new talent to our cast, aka The Family of Freaks,” says McInnis.

As the gates open, a long line of visitors enters the scare zone. Creepy clowns, ghostly ghouls, insane demons and all sorts of otherworldly creatures weave back and forth through the crowd, wielding chainsaws, knives, axes and even a rubber chicken. A tattered and bloody ringmaster follows a group of 20-year-olds, eliciting screams from some of them. A woman dressed all in black carries a bucket of blood-spattered popcorn and a knife. “I need some more blood for my popcorn,” she tells a family of four. “Can I have yours?”

“It’s all fun,” said Alyssa Allen, who is in her third year working at the Scare Zone. “We wait for this all year.” The West Palm Beach resident describes her character, Skittlz, as a “bubbly, blood-loving clown who likes to try and steal toes.”

A few meters away, the creepy character Chaos lurks over a group of teenagers. His six-foot-two height is intimidating enough, even without the ghostly white face, black-rimmed eyes, and baseball bat in hand. “Chaos is a science experiment gone wrong,” says Hank Brown, who comes to the city from Orlando to work on the Scare Zone. The makeup artist is responsible for many of the scary faces floating around the crowd. “I love everything about it. It’s like letting my alter ego out.”

Fright Nights at the South Florida Fairgrounds has been named a “Top Haunted Attraction” six times. KELLY GOODMAN / COURTESY PHOTO

After participants leave the Scare Zone, they have a choice of four haunted houses. The latest, Nightmare in Yamato, was designed by Jonathan and Fumi Glickman. A 30-year veteran of the New York and regional theater acting community,

Glickman has had the vision for years and finally brought it to life this year. “My dream was to build a Japanese haunted house,” says the Boynton Beach resident. The spooky experience tells the story of Tomoko, a young Japanese girl who defends her village against a horde of demons. Fumi brought many authentic Japanese items to the meeting point, including Japanese dolls and scrolls. Demons emerge from dark hiding places above, behind and in front of guests in the bloody Japanese village.

“Everyone has a lot of passion,” says David Grecius, the actor trainer for all these villagers and demons. Every evening before the event begins, Grecius gives a battle cry to the actors. “Spread the fear!” He shouts to the crowd of actors before sending them off to do just that.

The Scare Zone at Fright Nights is full of spooky characters on the hunt to scare guests.

Like Nightmare in Yamato, every dark house has a backstory. “The Ritual” is an abandoned house haunted by a cult that performs dark rituals to bring the dead back to life. “Autumn of Terror” takes place on Halloween night, when the veil between the natural world and the spirit realm is said to dissolve. The disturbing theme of “Nuclear Beats” is an abandoned warehouse party where leaking nuclear waste transforms the partygoers into grotesque creatures.

“I love watching people’s reactions,” says lead haunt designer Jeremy Schroader. The Lake Worth resident has been designing gathering places for 25 years and says he never tires of creating new experiences. He says this year’s Fright Nights has the event’s largest prop yet (look for it in “Autumn of Terror”): “When I say I want a 10-foot pumpkin, everyone says, ‘Okay, let’s do it.’ find out.’ We make it happen.”

NOELLE YOUNK / COURTESY PHOTOS

The entire eerie production of Fright Nights requires the help of hundreds of people. “The creative team works together to push our concepts in different directions and create new experiences, while relying on some classic scares. Inspiration comes from a variety of places, including films, books, folklore and beyond,” says McInnis.

New this year is the Dead Ringers Club, a VIP package that includes entry to all four haunted houses, entry to the RIP Lounge, a fast pass to skip the lines, free parking and a gift bag. The Dead Ringers Club costs $150 and is limited to 100 people per night. BOGO deals are also available on Thursday (buy a $45 ticket, get a free ticket). The admission price includes 35 Fright Credits that can be used for Haunted Houses or Midway Rides. For more information and tickets, visit myfrightnights.com.