Tag Archives: theater ghost

The Watchman and the Haunted Vaudeville Theater

Text:

AB: My hometown, I come from, like, Northwest, a little outside Seattle, in Washington. And there’s a lot of ghost stories. We used to be a mining town, I think. We’re definitely a cow town. So there’s a lot of ghost stories. My theater was haunted. There’s a lot of generations that’ll tell stories of being alone in the theater, walking across the stage, and then hearing footsteps behind them, and then those footsteps pass them. 

There’s a story that someone was down on the stage while everyone else was in the booth, and they saw a man up there. They were like, why did they let a random old man up there? So they went up to the booth and were like, hey guys, you cannot let people into the theater, and you definitely can’t let them into the booth. And the people in the booth were like, there’s been no one. What do you mean?

Interviewer: Was there a story behind why it was haunted?

AB: It used to be a vaudeville theater, I believe, like a talent show, just a lot of different acts. So I think a lot of the ghosts came from that. The old man up in the booth was called The Watchman. I think probably a couple of people died around there. But also when I was researching this for my paper, I searched it up, and apparently a lot of theaters are haunted. A lot of theater people come up with the story that it’s haunted. So, very superstitious.

Interviewer: Did you ever go alone with the express purpose of trying to see one?

AB: No. The story goes that they were gone by the time I was old enough to actually do anything. The theater that was haunted was rebuilt, when I was around six, my parents remodeled it. My dad designed it. So there weren’t any ghosts anymore. Though we did have a Furby that might have been haunting. The legend was that there weren’t any batteries in it. If you touched it during the show, or if you tried to move it between the girls’ and boys’ dressing room beds, the show was cursed.

Context: AB is a USC student originally from a small town in northwest Washington State, several hours outside Seattle, a former mining and ranching town with a long-standing vaudeville-era theater. Her family is closely tied to the theater (her father, an architect, designed the rebuild when she was six). AB also recounted several supernatural stories from her family: a non-biological aunt who was pushed down the stairs by a ghost, a report of her toddler-self seeing “people eating” in a room with just herself and her mother, and her father reporting figures standing outside the house before AB was born. All framed matter-of-factly as part of growing up in the Pacific Northwest.

Analysis: The haunted theater is one of the most stable folk-narrative formats in American performance culture: many theaters have a ghost, many theater people can tell you about it, and the story is reliably transmitted from older performers to younger ones as part of the threshold of becoming a theater person. The Watchman is a precise manifestation of a haunting and notably sets the story apart from more diffuse haunted atmospheres typical of larger urban theaters. The vaudeville-era origin point, the architectural rebuild that “fixed” the haunting, and the displacement of the supernatural onto a battery-less Furby in the new building together shows the resilience of a haunted place legend to a changing physical environment: I thought it very interesting that the haunting relocates into the next available vessel rather than dissipating with the original site, thereby preserving a valuable performance and experience for theater posterity. 

Rose, Theater Ghost Memorate

Age: 19

Story: What I remember is that Rose was a former student that died in the school and haunted the theatre in particular. She would bang around in the cats [catwalks] and ventilation especially if you were the only one in the theatre. Among techs I think there was more serious beliefs about how to treat Rose, aka ghost light and personally always saying hi and bye to rose if I was the first one in or last one out, or if she made noises I would talk to her sometimes. – JH

Context: This story was told directly to the archivist as a friend. It is regarding a ghost that was thought to populate their high school theater since the program’s inception.

Teller seems fairly convinced of the rituals that go into the ghost, they mention turning on the ‘ghost light,’ which is the last light left on the stage when people have left, and talking to it in their spare time.

Theaters are often places that claim to experience ghosts. The story of Rose was passed between multiple generations of student tech workers, perhaps to explain things like the weird banging in the ventilation shafts or unexplainable tech problems. There is no evidence showing that a former student died in the school, but a mockumentary was made by some former theater students showcasing Rose’s inception.

High School Theater Ghost – Legend

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Huntington Beach, California
Language: English

Text

Informant: So George was a student at Huntington Beach High and he was in the acting program and he was dating this girl, she was also in the acting program. And they were going to audition to be in Romeo and Juliet together. She got Juliet, he didn’t get Romeo, another guy got Romeo.

Me: What did he get though?

Informant: I don’t think he got in (laughter from Informant, me, and other person in the room)

Informant: What a loser. But um, anyway, so his girlfriend and this guy, they fell in love, and she broke up with George. So George (small laugh) hung himself in the theater and he became the ghost of the theater and so if you don’t put the ghost light out, he is going to come get you. Also he lives in the basement where all the props are so if you want to go get a prop, you have to have all the lights on and you’re going to hear… or OR George is going to take you away. AND we have a noose hanging (laughter) from the top of our theater backstage (more laughter) to commemorate him.

Me: Okay, okay, so, what would he do to you?

Informant: He would snatch you! (laughter)

Me: He would snatch you?

Other Person: He’d just grab you?

Informant: People would just talk about, like, “Beware of George” and that’s really it, not like, the specifics of what he was going to do to you, you know?

Me: Did you ever, like, try to find him?

Informant: No, but my friend, (NAME), said… oh my god, my friend (NAME) was convinced she looked like his ex-girlfriend, because these were real people.

Me: Right.

Informant: So she apparently thinks she looks like the girl and that George was like, George is always with her so whenever she goes to the basement alone, she always says that he’s right behind her like she can feel him… it’s like “okay girl.”

Me: Okay so you don’t believe her stories.

Informant: No, I don’t…but, like, it is kinda spooky in there without the ghost light because it’s a huge theater.

Context

The informant went to Huntington Beach High School in the early 2020s and heard this story from other students while going there. They were in the theater program and sharing this legend was mostly among theater students rather than the whole high school. The informant says that they never believed in the ghost or their friend’s story but they do believe that it is based on real people who existed. The informant added that there was also a ritual associated where everyone in the show would sign a playbill (booklet given at theater performances to give the audience some information about the show and cast as well as act as a place to put advertisements). This playbill was then thrown up into the ceiling and the idea was to appease George so that he would not ruin the show. The informant engaged in this tradition butt did it for the community bonding and fun part instead of actually believing in its power.

Analysis

Theater are a common place to find ghosts due to the way they are used. Theaters are spaces where a person doesn’t act like themselves and where death is commonly simulated. They are a liminal space where the boundary between reality and imaginary is pushed and the proscenium (frame around the stage that separates it from the audience) acts as the portal into a new world. This portal could just as well be a portal into a plane where ghosts exist. Furthermore, theaters are also the location of a lot of actual deaths due to many fires that destroyed theaters and killed thousands throughout history. All of these aspects of theater taken together make it a prime location for ghostly hauntings.

This story uses the idea that the theater is a place with lots of death and even follows the story of the play that was being put on. Romeo and Juliet is about two lovers that kill themselves when they can’t be together, directly reflected in the story as George (Romeo in this version) kills himself but his ex-girlfriend (the Juliet) does not follow suit. This results in George being left with unfinished business and the need to haunt the theater program that lead to his demise.

Theater ghost stories usually have a connection to that stage’s ghost light. This light is placed on stage at any time when the theater is dark and there isn’t a performance happening. There are two reasons that are commonly given for this. One is about ghosts and the idea that the ghost light is meant to appease or block any ghosts in the space. The second is likely more true and that is for safety. The stage can be very dangerous when dark and the ghost light provides a small amount of light that helps a person stay safer while navigating it. This story is an explanation for why the stage needs the ghost light. Although it is only a small portion of the story, the informant says that “if you don’t put the ghost light out, he’s going to get you.” This story plays into the ghost explanation but also works as a way to remind high schoolers to put out the safety device at the end of the show. High schoolers might not remember to turn on the ghost light given that, for many of them, this is their first time doing theater with more responsibility. The story can help them to remember to put it out at the end of a performance because it threatens consequences if they forget.

The ritualistic signing and throwing of the playbill first acts as community bonding between the whole cast and crew of a production before opening night (the first time the show has an audience). Secondly, it is a place where this story can be told to new students in the program as they engage in the act and story all together. This quickly brings any new student into the culture of the theater program by directly showing them the stories and rules of the group. Knowing this story becomes a sign of induction into the program as a whole.

Although the informant says they don’t believe in the story, they do believe in the existence of the people within it. These people may or may not have existed but because of the informant’s connection to the school and story, they might be more inclined to believe in part of it. Even if someone doesn’t believe in ghosts, they might find other parts of the legend that they think are more believable, like that these people were real at one point and the story was created around them. They might also engage in the rituals associated with the stories without the belief in their power such as signing and throwing the playbill even though they don’t believe George exists. The ritualized behavior still allows them to feel the connection to others without needing to change their beliefs to include ghosts.

The ritual resulting in a good show without any disasters is significant. Thespians can imagine nothing worse than their show going wrong or things breaking. Even if a person doesn’t believe that a ghost is the one doing the show harm, they would still take any luck they can get in preventing mistakes. If a person didn’t engage in the behavior and something did go wrong, they would be blamed because they didn’t do the ritual. This makes people who might not believe in any part of the story (ghost or luck) still engage in the ritual to excuse themselves from any fault.

La Niña

DETAILS:

  • Nationality: American
  • Language: English
  • Age: 55
  • Residence: Berkeley, CA
  • Occupation: High School Teacher
  • Collected on: 11/28/2024

CONTEXT:

Informant is a high school theater teacher, and works in the theater alongside a tech theater teacher. The story takes place during a school day in the fall, when they were the only two people in the theater. 

DIRECT TRANSCRIPTION:

AS: “ I’m not sure exactly what day of the week it was, but it was a weekday, and I was in the theater, and so was our tech theater teacher, and we were doing what we do, which was, he was actually preparing for class, his tech theater class, and I was probably tidying up after one of my classes, and the theater was in, in the, it was sort of in the early fall. And we didn’t have a show, like, in full production at that point, but there was a set being built and, um, his class was gonna come in to do stuff. But the backstage area was pretty open and, you know, there was nothing out of the ordinary going on or nothing unusual. And, and also there was nobody in there. So my class left and I was back in the back of the theater, doing various, just like, odds and ends, like, you know, planning my next class, or like, getting things together. And our tech theater teacher was coming in and out doing stuff in the drama office. So not actually in the theater, but coming back and forth. And the key thing here is that the paint room was closed. And the door was closed and locked. And, so, at some point in the, later in the morning, we discovered water pooling out from the paint room. And we were like, holy crap, what’s going on in there? And so we went into the paint room. We opened the paint room right away, we were like, the floor, the theater floor is flooding. And so we opened the paint room, and the sink was overflowing. Like the water was on and the sink was overflowing. And the water was on and you could actually hear, like you could hear it. It wasn’t like drip, drip, drip. The water was on. And so we also called the maintenance guys and they came and we were trying to figure out like, was the water, like did somehow, did a valve burst? Did the pipe go on? But no. Was the pipe busted? Was the valve busted? So like, the water just suddenly turned on, because of some mechanical failure? And we all looked back, you know, we looked around, and the maintenance guy was like, no, the water just got turned on. And we were like, but nobody’s been in the paint room today. Nobody was in the paint room yesterday. Like, how would this, like, this, we, none, nobody went in, the door was locked, and I was in the theater, like, I would have seen somebody come in, somehow get in the locked door, and then go in and turn on the water, and our head of facilities was like, “mmm, La Niña,” and we were like, what do you mean? He was like, “La Niña,” and we were like, same word, he was like, “she’s here, she’s the ghost of the school, or the ghost of the theater, and the middle school building.” And we’re like, you know her? And he’s like, “oh yeah.” And um, and I said, so you think La Niña turned it on? And he’s like, “I’m sure.” So, we turned the water off. We cleaned up everything. And then I said, “Luis. Tell me more about La Niña.” He said, “oh, we have lots of stories of La Niña. La Niña is, La Niña is here often.” And I said, “she’s a girl?” And he said, “yeah, she’s a girl. She’s a little girl, very mischievous. She likes to play her tricks. She’s a very tricky one.” And I said, so she, She moves things around. She, she, I guess, I guess she turns on the water when nobody’s looking. Um, but he said, “yeah, that’s exactly the kind of thing she does.” And he said many of the maintenance staff have seen her. So that is the story of La Niña.”

INFORMANTS OPINION:

AS: “There’s no question that whatever happened in that paint room was not done by normal human hands. Something uncanny happened. And the thing that convinced me that it was supernatural and that it could have been La Niña was how sure the maintenance people were. They right away, they were the ones who were like “La Niña.” They didn’t really wanna get right into it, like they were a tiny bit embarrassed, but I mean they knew who it was. So that convinced me as much as anything.”

PERSONAL INTERPRETATION:

Ghosts have long been thought to haunt theaters. There’s a common superstition of keeping a light on in the theater at all times to fend off any ghosts, and because of this many theaters keep on a “ghost light.” In this story, I find it to be especially interesting that the school’s maintenance staff are so aware of La Niña, and have clearly witnessed her presence before. Not only that, but the fact that the paint room was locked and the informant was absolutely sure no one had been there all day supports the maintenance team’s story of La Niña as a ghost who plays mischievous pranks.

Burning Down the House

Nationality: American
Age: 26
Residence: Chicago, Illinois
Performance Date: 04/17/21
Primary Language: English

Main Performance:

There’s a theater in Downtown Chicago called the James M. Nederlander Theater, back then known as the Iroquois Theater, which apparently burnt down once in 1903 with around 2000 people inside where at least 600 patrons ended up dead. The panic caused mass hysteria, the crowds of people tried to force doors that opened inwards, meaning that a wild crowd could not properly open them. Many other doors were locked by foreign locks, exits were not properly labeled, and the upper floor patrons as they were locked in as VIP 2nd floor rooms were locked from the outside as to keep the 2nd floor exclusive and not have anyone sneak in after the shows sold out. While many burned to death, others stuck on the 2nd floor threw their bodies out the windows, barely managing to cushion their falls from the bodies of those who fell before. The back alley served as a temporary morgue, accounts saying that bodies were stacked 6 feet high, and the area trapped the spirits of the dead to wander in and out of the back of the theater. Countless remarks about the inexplicable amount of noises, moving objects, and sightings of ghost inside and outside the theater and around the alley have been reported. The area is known as the Coach Place, Death Alley.

Background:

The informant, NC, is a friend from my highschool days who I bonded with over videogames and appreciation for animated shows who I still keep in daily contact with today. NC is particularly religious but loves to partake in the knock on wood superstition.

Context:

Because he was living separate from his family, NC did not necessarily have too many folklore or tradition to share and instead asked one of his friends if she had any interesting tidbits to share.

My Thoughts:

Reading up on the story some more revealed to me that there has not been a formal memorial marking the location of the incident, which might be the entire reason that these tortured souls have not been able to move on from their suffering in the first place. Much like how desecrated grave sites are the classic grounds on which angered spirits haunt those who disturbed their rest, this story feels as if these spirits haven’t been at peace at all. More than a ghost story, the entire thing reads like a historical account on how fire safety protocols were implemented because something horrific had to happen at least once for these things to be taken seriously. An infrastructure problem with the theater itself most likely led to many basic amenities and fire safety procedures we take for granted today. It seems strange that this particular location hasn’t been taken by the city’s government to be made into a tourist zone, one of the few examples of how things are left as they are and the story is allowed to speak for itself.