# Acting tips



## tignyx (Jul 15, 2004)

all I have to say is some of the best scares are the ones that say nothing. 

surprising people is always the best scare. 

My brother was a wolfman one year in a haunted house. Behind bars as people walked by. They didn't know that the bars opened and he would wait for them to pass and then creep up on them. 

Had someone do that to us on a hayride one time. Crept up when my SIL and wife weren't looking and started slicing his hand right in front of them. SIL screamed pretty good. 

The best scarer is the one that is going to be the most memorable. Not necessarily the scariest costume or anything else.


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## Russ (Sep 12, 2006)

The best advice I could give you is to act like the character you are. Lose yourself in the character and if you have any props or sets use them to your advantage. For example I had a tub with blood in it and right before people would walk by I would pour the fake blood on my mask and say something to the effect of you are filthy you need to cleanse yourself like this. The stuff you say doesn't even have to make a lot of sense to be effective.

Keep them off guard. If your in a long dark hallway try sitting down and when they come towards you start crawling towards them and pretend that your a spider or something. I know that when you do something that they don't expect they will back up you don't want them to back up into the next scene so let up some if they start to do that.

Listen for NAMES people going through will say the names of other people in their group. When that group gets to your area start yelling that name and taunting that group it's alright if you don't know who's name your calling you will figure it out by their reactions. One girl last year asked me last year if I killed her sister because when I called her sister's name her sister went running off without her and I was calling her by her sister's name. I had no idea which one the name belonged to.

Don't just concentrate on the easy prey go for the harder scares too. When they make their conga line going through attack the middle of the group the one in front is usually the brave one.


You need to figure out what method works for you maybe you are high energy and intense(like me) or perhaps you like to sneak up on people. 

Be sure to tell us how it goes and I want some scare stories!

Oh btw here is my costume:










and the scene I'm working in:









edit: last but not least drink plenty of lemonade and green tea. Also be sure to get a glass of water and put some salt in it and gargle (spelling?) it and spit it out.


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## goolie (Oct 19, 2004)

Thanks for the advice, but I gotta ask, whats the salt water for?


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## IshWitch (May 19, 2006)

to keep your voice

speaking, yelling and screaming take your voice away quicker than you think!


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## Greencapt (Sep 13, 2005)

IshWitch said:


> to keep your voice
> 
> speaking, yelling and screaming take your voice away quicker than you think!


Really? Never happens to my wife....


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## Russ (Sep 12, 2006)

[email protected]

I need to clarify something real quick make sure the water you put the salt water is warm. I don't mean to scare you but chances are you will get hit or assaulted in some way during the run please stay safe. If you think the potential scare is dangerous don't go for it. All in all prepare to have the time of your life! just don't obsess about it like I do.


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## VeeCat (Sep 17, 2006)

Yes, yes, YES, Go for the names. One time a long time ago I called my daughters name and the guy was behind a tall metal gate and followed her by saying her name over and over and then this one weird girl was behind the gate too and said (her name), Please help me! Heeeelp! 
lol


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## Mr. Sickhertz (Oct 16, 2005)

Pretty much what someone said above lose yourself in the character you are playing. Walk different, talk different, breath different -- totally commit to the character, if you don't believe it they're not going to believe. Don't be afraid to feel like a fool.


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## IshWitch (May 19, 2006)

Greencapt said:


> Really? Never happens to my wife....


Now THAT was cold!

LOL


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## Greencapt (Sep 13, 2005)

IshWitch said:


> Now THAT was cold!
> 
> LOL


 Maybe I should go gargle some salt water now!


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## BATFLY (Oct 2, 2004)

what if i was thinking the same thing? should pour salt water in my ears? LOL


tips...
don't forget how much subtlety can scare also. just following someone with you head then a quick jerk towards them can do wonders. this works good for toning it down for the wee ones also. 

also, not everything has to be in front of someone, getting up behind them till the turn to see you can be pretty startling.

stay away from things like high fives and such with the older kids. one, this breaks character. itwo, makes kid want to stick around to talk, a group gathers, or they get campy (right word?) and rambunctious.

and as everyone else has said. loose yourself in the role.


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## Wolfman (Apr 15, 2004)

Not just salt water - one year our Mad Scientist and his Monster were taking hits from a bottle of Zambuka all night, between groups coming through. By 11:00 PM they were the only ones who weren't hoarse!!


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## Russ (Sep 12, 2006)

saturday night was fun the owner called me and wanted to do a test run of the house. I showed up and met some people there and met the people I was supposed to scare. I got called on short notice and my costume wasn't ready yet so i used one the house had already bought. 

As I heard them come through I started to get comfortable in my area and I started to get nervous because it was hard to see out of the mask and I didn't want to miss the group as they came into my area. They came in and one almost fell down and they ran and slammed into the exit wall. I was happy with the way it turned out.


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## Gym Whourlfeld (Jan 22, 2003)

I do a lot of talking and storytelling during a tour. I speak clearly, more slowly, ennuciate and try to seem like an intelligent man for his 57 years on this earth...and just when they are buying this.. I might say or do something totally out there! Catching them now catching me so far off of who they might have thought I was, thereby creating interest in me and what I might be saying next!
While constantly doing this talking I use various accents and inflections and even rhythms, which all go towards saving voice abuse.
I also try to determine how interested they are as I am talking, I bring them into the conversation, ask them little questions.
I tell my actors to never get within an out-streched arm's length of anyone, unlike some radical training videos that I have watched where the actors must need their teeth knocked out(or at least that is what it seems like they are trying to do?) by shoving their face right into the customer's face!
"?"


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## goolie (Oct 19, 2004)

All this great info really helps a lot! Turns out I will be a guide this year so I won't be in a room trying to scare people but I will still be interacting with them and this will be so fun for me!! Thanks!


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## toahollywood (Mar 12, 2009)

Good Post!


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## Bubbels (Nov 30, 2008)

I would suggest practicing scenarios with friends / family. Like what is your reaction when people laugh? What is your reaction when some guy in the crowd calls you out or tries to scare back?

I think its fairly easy to replicate something you have planned out. But when someone in your audience throws you a curve ball it can be easy to get thrown out of character. Being able to respond quickly to any scenario I think will help you stand out above the rest.


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## Lurks in the shadows (Mar 12, 2005)

This was posted in 2006.


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## Bubbels (Nov 30, 2008)

Holy crap! I guess someone here was doing a little necro rezzing.


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## bloody bill (Mar 12, 2009)

It's always better if you can use more people, try and get friends and family in to it if they will. Maybee a mad scientist scenario would work for you. you could have a couple of people laying on chaise lounges with different appendages sticking through thewebbibng and someone sitting on a chair with thier head sticking out of an old chest. Cover the bodies so that you can't see the lounges and set up a pump with red food coloring and the tubes running back and forth to the different bodies and head, if you can use blacjk lights and very low lighting that's even better.


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## Wolfman (Apr 15, 2004)

Try several different approaches to the character before deciding which way to go. We once did a Sweeney Todd scene using an old friend of mine as the Demon Barber. He had the look, with the muttonchop sideburns, the costume, the physique, and even his Aussie accent could pass for a Londoner. The lighting, the set and props were awesome. But he just could sell it.
Oh, yeah, and he started losing his voice, too.


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## GDfreak (Jul 11, 2006)

The name thing works great. We did it all the time at Fright Fest. It's pretty easy because sometimes someone in a grup wikk say one of their freinds names and you can play off that. When we (the actors) would find out someones name we would go tell eachother the persons name and what they look like and what they are wearing. That always seemed to really scare people.

Also never run up to someone and just sream. Sometimes its ok if you have a good scream but after a while it's boring and your throat will hurt. Sometimes its scary just to walk slow twaords a person with a blank face and a beconing hand hekd out and not say anything. Or my favorite is to improve things. Just say thing based on how the person acts or what they are doing. or maybe come uo with a few lines to throw on people

For sure drink lots of water and hot tea and have cough drops. I remember one day during Fright Fest I had to be a clown. It was so much fun especialy because I have the clown laugh down to a tee, but after doing it all day my voice was shot. You don't want to get dehidrated, even if your not outside like I was you can still get dehidrated from running around and what not. When I worked in the Fright Fest Haunted house in 06', we would always hide a bottle of water somewhere inside our room so after a group went through we could get a quick swig of water.

And as always get into your character. Creating a background story on your character can really help out on this. Who was your character, how did they live, how did they die, what made them how they are now, and how did they end up where they are. You really have to become the character you cant just act like your character you have to be the character.


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## Baron Samedi (Jan 15, 2009)

Lurks in the shadows said:


> This was posted in 2006.


Good "bump" though...Some good tips in these posts.

I personally prefer the more subtle approach. A silent or softly spoken character can be a lot more menacing and unsettling than a raving looney screaming up in your face, given the right atmospherics. (plus at my age, I'd probably be on oxygen before the third lot of Fun-size Mars Bars had been dished out).

I also encourage my actors to adopt the "arms length-no touch" rule for the safety of all concerned.


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## AnnaRival (Feb 6, 2015)

The perfect blood-chilling scream is a vital part of any horror events. Practice screaming! Also, employ characters in stereotype roles, like the dumb athlete or the promiscuous party girl. The more you act the better you should get. Practice makes perfect after all. To save you a little time I saw a link that may help you with this: https://storify.com/AnnaRival/finding-the-right-acting-techniques

Good luck!


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