Despite some difficulties last year, FVHS choir’s Haunted Maze returned for this year’s Club Carnival.
Finding its roots in 2009, the Haunted Maze is Choir’s biggest fundraiser of the year. On average, the Troubadours raise about $5,000 for their overseas performances. This year, the Troubadours are touring in three cities in China and Hong Kong.
The idea for the Haunted Maze originated in 2009. During the 2009 Seattle and British Columbia tour in Canada, choir director Kevin Tison recalled, “I was walking through Victoria with some of the Troubadours and a haunted house set up and triggered with all these neat effects.” That year, as some Troubadours were talking about doing the same thing as a possible fundraiser on campus, they came up with the idea of a haunted house. “We didn’t feel like anything like that was being offered around here, so we thought it was a good idea,” Tison said.
The maze takes about a week to set up. Most of the decorations and effects are kindly donated to the Troubadours. The maze itself is a dark and twisting labyrinth triggered with lights and decorations made to scare. Some of the different rooms in the maze are planned, while others are done spontaneously. “A lot of the concepts in the maze are done through experimenting, and new things are added every year,” Tison said.
The layout and design of the maze was key in adding the haunted effect to the maze. Because the choir room is built on levels, there are many dark twists and turns, and paths that move up and down. The rooms are created with black plastic that is taped up on the roof and floor. Decorations include blood splatters, pumpkins, ghouls, spider webs, and many more. However, the actors are the center stage in adding fright to the attendees of the maze. “On a scale of 1-10, the scariness factor of the maze is a 12,” Tison said.
“It was quite the thrill; choir never fails to deliver a great experience! Everyone was in character and I literally almost wet myself as I kept thinking about what was to come!” said Steven Truong (’14).
Over the years, the Maze has attracted mainly FVHS students and their friends. This year, because of the Glow Show, the Choir Maze was a huge success, attracting massive members of the community and school as well.
“The maze was awesome,” said Samar Saad (’14). “Everything looked really professional and I was definitely scared.”
