HT2004IntoTheWoods

From Simreal

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Into the Woods

Location: Pump House-ish (G)

Purpose

Increase sense of danger, make the stalking threat immediate. Start (continue?) doing the Pavlovian reinforcement of sounds (and lights? scents?) associated with aliens.

Description

At the pump house, the group has to decide - turn there and go along the side of the building, or continue along the trail into the woods. Of course, any sane person (or drunk guest) is going to want to stay as close to the building as possible.

The guide gathers the group together by the pump house, perhaps noting something interesting on the trail there (hey, is that a finger?).

Just as they start down by the building, an actor appears in full western garb and says, "They're coming. Take the blue door!"

Very Very Very bright flash of light and loud noise and the actor is gone. Just gone, in mid-stride even. (The actor action is to run at the guests yelling the lines and then dodge behind the pump house).

Guide hustles guests down the trail carefully, as their vision will still be recovering, dialogue like, "That way doesn't look safe. We'd better take this other trail. Don't worry, I know it really really well."

Director's Note: The disappearance doesn't have to be perfect. If it fails to work like magic, the group will see the actor veer behind the pump house, disappearing behind the scrim there. The effect would then be that the actor was re-directed somehow. It's an alien abduction either way.

Special Timing

This is a 1-minute station, that shares time with the BuildingNotSafe.

Guide Notes

Some interesting thing will be on the ground ("Hey, is that a finger?") . Try to cluster the ground around it, ideally getting them to squat down with you so they're set up for the disappearance. Talk loudly so the actor knows a group is there.

Actors

• (1) Panicking Actor
• (1) Tech
• (tech and actor can alternate acting, due to the vigorous nature of this station)

Station

• Carefully organized visual barriers to make a disapperance possible. Scrim hanging in strips and layers among the trees, the trail, and the pump house.

Effects

• Powerful strobes linked together and hidden behind transparent scrim
• Sensor to trigger strobes as actor passes (for precise and consistent timing)
• Station lighting to hide objects behind scrim
• Alien presence (sound, scent)
• Loud audio linked to strobe or run by tech