St Rita's Haunted House
2000
ST RITA'S-The House On Haunted Hill!
"This," said Steve Haverkos, with a wide sweeping arc of his arm, "is our history!" Indicated were three walls at the break room at the 2000 St Rita's Haunted House. Covering these walls were posters and T-Shirts from each year the event has been in operation-25 in all. "For the first 2 years, we (the Greater Springdale Jaycees) were a March Of Dimes haunt located in Cassinelli Square. For our 3rd year we took on St Rita's as our charity and have been with them for 23 years."
Steve (playing the perfect host in tuxedo and Loony Tunes bow tie) is one of the co-chairs (along with Jim Bracken and Tom Flege) of this years edition of the St Rita's Haunted House. Easily spotted from Interstate 75, the old brick farmhouse sits atop a large hill on the grounds of the St Rita School For The Deaf. Steve explains "The house is documented back into the early 1800's. It became the school back in 1915. It was originally a boy's dormitory. The girl's dormitory was built on another plot of land across the Erie Canal-they wanted to make sure there was no interaction! The school property was originally 234 acres, now down to 34. One of the original wells is still located on the grounds of Mike Albert leasing." It is also said that the house was used as part of the Underground Railroad in the 1850's and 1860's. In 1978 it added another chapter to its history by becoming Cincinnati's longest running and most recognizable haunt landmark...in fact, it is the third longest running haunt in America!
As we begin a tour of the house, Steve points out that not only are all of the rooms changed yearly but the big effects inside were built right there. "We don't want to pay $10,000 or more for a prop that we can build ourselves. We want to give as much of the money as possible back to the school. Usually, we can go to Transworld (the yearly Halloween FX and costuming show in Chicago) and if we can see an effect, it's ours. With the number of talented people we have working here we can build anything! 6 of the rooms are controlled by computers that our engineer, Kevin Ferenc, put together. He's hoping to market them next season." Upon entering the house, you can see the first big prop built on the grounds-the ever popular vortex (or 'Black Hole'). Easily as good as a professional model, it was further enhanced this year by having its own building (not just a tent) and being lined with sheet metal (any outside light sources can ruin the effect of the tunnel). "And," smiles Steve, "it only cost $350 to build instead of $10000 to buy!"
There are many more instances of this throughout the house-the Electric Chair, for example, was donated by a local vocational school's police training department (it was built by students for a class project, not for on the job training!). When a $100 battery charger was added to this, you get an electrifying (and safe) display! The dropping floor in The Raiders Of The Lost Ark scene is accomplished through a hydraulic auto lift that was donated many, many years ago. The impressive Chamber Of Motion (featuring a shaking room filled with dangling coffins, spiders, and skeletons) was likewise built on site and is as effective as the professional version.
The level of detail inside is absolutely amazing. Even dark corners that most people won't even think to look at have interesting (and ghastly) props or artwork of some kind. The Den has bookshelves crammed with macabre volumes, a table being served by a demented butler, and a 3-D painting of the Grim Reaper over the fireplace. The Frightful Foyer has sparking electricity, ghoulish wall trophys, and even normal looking end tables with lamps (and other surprises!). The Cavern takes up an entire floor (the basement) and encompasses several different scenes, and LOOKS like a real cave.
The best rooms combine outstanding sets with convincing effects. The Egyptian Tomb and lair of the Head Hunter are both examples of this.
You'll see modern favorites (Pinhead from Hellraiser) as well as classic monsters (The Phantom of the Opera), among others. If that's not enough, there's still the Hall Of Portraits, Funeral Parlor, Bed Room, Dot Room, Dungeon, and Blair Witch rooms-16 in all.
Populating these rooms are actors of all shapes and sizes. Given the long history of the house, Steve says that "We are now even getting into second generation actors...the kids of the people who staffed the house in its beginning years. Some of our staff have been here almost since day one...our Monster Monitor, Lori Wright, started here when she was 11! We have people from the old WSAI haunted houses (including a makeup artist who is as good as anyone in Hollywood) and the WXIX haunts (a man who is 7' 2" once in costume). The house is all strictly volunteer...we are one of the last few pure charity haunted houses in the area. We get lots of great kids from the local schools, regular and vocational. All of our volunteers are great people and many choose to work here even though they could get paid acting somewhere else, because we try to make it fun. We do reward them with T-Shirts, Plaques, Sweatshirts, and an awards banquet and party. We went without a radio sponsor this year because they all wanted a percentage of our profits over a certain amount, and this would be unfair to all the people who give the house and the school their time and talent."
Over the years, the Haunted House has drawn almost half a million people and donated $651,941.29 to the St Rita School For The Deaf. Unlike a lot of alleged charity haunts, St Ritas is very forthcoming with their financial information and where the money goes. They remain one of the best bargains in town, with a low $5 entrance fee. Making this even better are $1 off coupons, $1 off for scouts in uniform, business nights, children's matinees, group rates, and (get this) the first 100 people in line on Thursday and Sunday get in for half price! Call 771-1060 for information on these promotions. They also have creatures wandering around outside, a laser light show every hour, and live entertainment from local bands (and occasionally sports figures) on Friday and Saturday. A lot of bang for the buck!
It is obvious Steve really loves what he is doing. Despite a constant stream of situations requiring his attention (ranging from finding a certain size screw, to finding ice for an icebag, to making quick repairs, accomodating Channel 12 news, coaching actors on scare techniques, setting psi on an air valve, and dealing with House Of DOOM! scribes) he never loses his smile. They do off the wall things like having their creatures deliver pizzas for their sponsors (imagine a 7' 2" monster emerging from the bed of a truck and knocking on your front door with food!), and bringing the haunted house to kids in the hosptal (and turning down offers of free publicity). St Rita's was the first inductee into the Cincinnati Haunt Hall Of Fame (as voted by me...hey, it's my site!) and it is due to the efforts of folks like Steve and all the great folks at St Ritas and the Greater Springdale Jaycees, working to make the community a little better (and scarier) for 25 years!
Another Scene Further Inside The Cave
Mummies Attack Inside The Pyramid Of Doom!
The Last Thing You May See...
A sickly green glow is cast upon a Blair Witch stickman...what else is nearby?
St Rita's Haunted House is located at the school at 1720 Glendale-Milford Road in Evendale. It is open Thursday through Sunday, October 5-29 (also open Monday-Tuesday October 30-31), 7-11 on Friday and Saturday, 7-10 on all other days. Admission is $5 ($4 to those in Scout uniforms, and $2.50 to the first 100 people in line on Thursday and Sunday nights). There are also kid-friendly matinees from 3-5 on October 28 and 29 ($1 per child, adults free). Call 513-771-1060 for more information or go to http://www.srsdeaf.org for more information.
(2003)
They're Crawling From The Woodwork At St. Rita's!
In the case of the Brides Of Dracula, literally!
Terror In The Basement
The cave in the basement houses all kinds of creatures...
Hey! I Thought I Told You Guys To Board Up Those Windows!
The HOD!!! displays its best Blair Witch style photography as a zombie attacks through a window.
ST RITA'S HAUNTED HOUSE-Crawling From The Woodwork!
As we turned the corner in the Phantom Of The Opera's room, we saw Dracula skulking in a corner of a banquet room. Besides the skeletons and corpses arranged around the table, two of Dracula's brides could also be spotted lurking around the periphery of the room. Suddenly, a panel on the wall to our right dropped down and a screaming vampiress flung herself over the frame, just missing the group. Welcome to St Rita's Haunted House, where there are so many ghouls they're crawling from the woodwork!
This season, the event's 31st year (making them the oldest haunted attraction in the Tri-State and in the top two or three in the nation), saw no less than 39 actors holed up inside the 1800's farmhouse that has housed the haunt since 1979...and those are just the ones that were caught on tape! All told, there were likely 45 actors with 10-15 more waiting their turn in the converted gargage that serves as St. Rita's backstage area. "We've been fortunate that our supply of volunteers continues to fill up the house every year-some other haunts have had their manpower shrink after the novelty of the event wears off," explained Steve Haverkos, long time co-chairman of the event. "We get about half of ours from the school (St. Rita's) and the rest from other area schools". The actors this year seemed to be much more vocal and active than in the past as well, descending upon unwary hauntgoers in waves. The young lady staffing the area by the stairwell with the filing cabinets full of bodies was one of the best screamers we've heard in years!
St Rita's takes good care of their monsters, making sure they are 'dressed for success' with one of the best selection of elaborate costumes in the area. They have something for every size, shape, and sex. While the haunt has one of the best collections of masks around as well (with many of them being collector's items on the mask collector's market), they have gradually switched over to using airbrushed makeup, which allows them to give many actors a professional look in a short period of time. This also is much more comfortable for the actors and allows more personality to shine through than a mask does. With the use of a variety of stencils, no two makeup jobs are alike, and featured characters receive traditional makeup effects as well. The staff also ensures that the characters are rotated on a regular basis, and even now, a tray full of cups of water is being readied for the monsters on the second floor.
Up on the second floor, another of the event's co-chairmen, Tom Flege, is working on some equipment in the new Mad Scientist's lab. Tom is kept busy keeping all the effects inside the house in proper running order, and this being opening weekend, is particularly busy ironing out the bugs. The lab features several bubbling vials along with an animated head with its top sawn off inside a water filled globe. As several of the ghoulish scientists look on, 'Dr.' Flege coaxes the equipment into doing its job.
While the haunt doesn't have anywhere near the budget a for-profit haunt does, it does have quite a few effective mechanical and special effects. There are waterfalls, a very realistic looking living half-corpse on a pole, a dropping abatis, an electric chair, the lab, another animated head in the 'seance' scene, a guillotine, lots of drop panels and air blasts, a homemade vortex tunnel (made more effective this year by having the lighting blinking on and off), and an effect that hasn't lost its impact since it was first used in 1979, the hydraulic dropping floor. And while it really doesn't qualify as a special effect, Jason from Friday The 13th is quite fond of grabbing the swaying bridge as you cross and giving it a good shake! New rooms are brought into the mix every year, and the path is totally changed as well. Some of the new entries include a rethemed abatis room, a file cabinet room, The Phantom's Organ (get your mind out of the gutter!), the Electric Chair, the Mad Scientist Lab, and the Hellraiser room. Most of the unchanged rooms have been tweaked with new things added as well-the cavern in the basement still being one of The HOUSE OF DOOM!!!'s favorites! This year, a new wrinkle was added by having groups leave the house halfway through for a short walk through Jason's area outside (and then re-enter the building after crossing a swaying bridge). You'll also enter some rooms twice, and will be able to see what's going on in the inaccessable half.
St Rita's is also one of the most family friendly haunts in the Cincinnati area. Since $2 discount coupons are readily available on their site, admission works out to only about $6. There are also great group rates for those who don't mind planning ahead. It's easy to find and has plenty of free parking, and the lot is well supervised. The house itself features a nice mix of traditional monsters along with slashers like Jason and Pinhead, but doesn't use explicit gore or excessive amounts of blood. For those with younger children, you can request a 'flashlight tour'-the monsters will see the flashlight and will not attempt to scare the group, making it in effect a private 'lights on' tour.
The haunt also features the best ticket area in the TriState. You approach the office through a winding passage bordered on all sides by massive stone blocks and columns festooned with foilage. Camo netting covers the top and the effect is much like walking through a long forgotten and overgrown cemetery. Once you reach the ticket booth, make sure to pick up a CincyHaunts Haunt Crawl card. These free cards not only have discount coupons good for the four events that comprise CincyHaunts (St Rita's, Sandyland Acres, The Dungeons Of Delhi, and The Dent Schoolhouse) but also can be punched at each haunt after going through. Visit all four and you can drop the card off to be entered in a drawing for haunt merchandise and VIP passes for next season-a nice little bonus!
Everything adds up to a classic Cincinnati attraction that combines nostalgia with the cutting edge-one reason the house has survived all these years, and has seen three generations of haunters pass through its corridors. Start your 'haunt crawl' here, and the creatures in the old farmhouse on the hill will do their own crawl-out of the woodwork-to meet you!
Movie Monsters Live At St Rita's
Well, if you can call Jason's condition living...
Victim Of Pinhead
Can the Cenobite leader be far behind?
St Rita's Haunted House is located at the school at 1720 Glendale-Milford Road in Evendale. It is open Thursday through Sunday, October 5-29, 7-11 on Friday and Saturday, 7-10 Sunday. Admission is $8 with group rates available and $2 discount coupons through CincyHaunts.com and on their website. Produced by the Greater Springdale Jaycees. Call (513) 771-1060 or go to http://www.srsdeaf.org for more information..
2006
They're Crawling From The Woodwork At St. Rita's!
In the case of the Brides Of Dracula, literally!
Terror In The Basement
The cave in the basement houses all kinds of creatures...
Hey! I Thought I Told You Guys To Board Up Those Windows!
The HOD!!! displays its best Blair Witch style photography as a zombie attacks through a window.