Ominous eyes flash at cars rush by the Terror of Tallahassee haunted house sign on Gaines Street.
Terror reigns on Gaines, and beyond
BY KATI SCHARDL • ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITOR • OCTOBER 30, 2009
Kurt Kuersteiner chortled with wicked glee earlier this week as he described his newest nightmare.
"It's an interactive thing, where we take someone from the tour group and sit them in a chair, and then we rip their face off," he crowed into the phone. "And then we take their head off, but we put it all back on — sometimes."
For more than a decade, Kuersteiner and his army of ghouls, vampires, zombies, twisted miscreants and other evil characters have been acting out humanity's darkest, wildest dreams, all in the name of Halloween fun. The operation began in 1999 as the Mystery Playhouse of Terror on North Monroe Street before moving and morphing into the Terror of Tallahassee on West Gaines Street.
Over a series of fright nights that extend through the day after Halloween, hundreds of intrepid thrill-seekers queue up to have the dickens scared out of them on a guided tour of Kuersteiner's haunted warehouse. It's touted as "North Florida's largest haunted attraction" and is staffed by volunteers, acting students, amateur magicians and non-profit groups that get a cut of the proceeds.
You can be scared witless from 8 to 11 p.m. today and Sunday at Terror of Tallahassee, 826 W. Gaines St., for an entry fee of $10 for adults, $6 for children (it should be noted that some of the scary scenarios are too intense for little kids — and some grown-ups, too). For Halloween on Saturday, the price goes up to $13 for adults, $8 for children. Call 513-9190 if you dare to find out more, or visit www.monsterwax.com/MainFrame.htm.
Halloween falls on Saturday this year (leaving Sunday as a day to recover from the frights as well as excessive candy consumption), so there's an extra-big cauldron brimming with freaky treats and tricks. Here's a roundup of some of the spooky doings in the area. You can find a more comprehensive listing in the Halloween calendar, Music Roundup and Nightlife.
Wanna see 2009 staff pix?
Read the 2009 FSView Article.
rev 10.25.09* rev. 10/10