Howl takes attendees through “Treacherous Waters”
As Howl attendees stepped through the doors on Oct. 28, they were met with a scene of giant kraken tentacles, pirate flags and glowing neon fish. This year’s theme, “Treacherous Waters,” focused on the spooky side of pirates and their mischief.
The event featured several activities including a silent disco, the Haunted Hallows haunted house, a Pirate Soda Tavern, airbrush tattoos and live entertainment. The third floor Sky Room housed the jungle, full of live reptiles and mermaids. In the fieldhouse, an energetic dance awaited.
Mia Shumway, a second-year graduate student in political science, dove into this year’s theme by dressing as a pirate.
“I love pirates,” Shumway said. “I’ve seen a little bit of the Haunted Hallow and everything, and I think it’s a great theme.”
The Haunted Hallows was a popular attraction, with a line that stayed consistently over an hour long throughout the night. A room of clowns, a pirate walking the plank, a tarot reader, a chainsaw-wielding pig and a photographer awaited Aggies who dared venture in.
Rosalind Liechty, a sophomore volunteering at the Haunted Hallows, waited to greet guests after their experience with some popcorn.
“I first worked at a haunted house a couple years ago,” Liechty said. “I really liked it, and I wanted to help again with makeup and running the event rather than scaring.”
Liechty said her favorite part of volunteering was managing the front of the line and guessing what everyone’s costumes were.
“In the two hours I was there, I clicked in about 500 people, and I think I missed maybe 30 costumes,” Liechty said. “I was pretty good at it.”
Jacob Cooley, a scarer in the Haunted Hallows, dressed as a zombie and said his main technique was jump scares.
“I got people to stop and not be able to move for a whole minute,” Cooley said. “They just stopped dead in their tracks, and they just didn’t know how to get around.”
According to Cooley, the theme this year tied into the haunted house.
“It’s kind of a cabin crew type thing,” Cooley said. “There’s then a recurring character who died on a cruise ship.”
Participants got a video safety brief from the late cruise ship character. Within the video, the character slowly becomes distressed as things go wrong, foreshadowing the frights to come.
Morgan Lavallee, a scarer dressed as a clown, screamed at her victims to scare them. Lavallee said the best reaction she got was when people would scream back at her or fall backward from the scare.
“I think the theme of this year tied into the haunted house quite well,” Lavallee said. “I think the Treacherous Waters was a great theme.”
Between activities, people could stop by the Pirate Soda Tavern to sit down and rest. Coloring pages and a variety of cold sodas were provided.
Throughout the different levels of the Howl, various themes of décor lined the walls. In the Sky Room, the jungle walls were adorned with thick foliage and a virtual waterfall. The jungle also had a “Pirate Hall of Fame” for attendees to look at while waiting in line. Some of the famous pirates pictured were Jack Sparrow, Captain Crunch, Luffy, Patchy the Pirate and Captain Hook.
Attendees had the chance to hold a Dumeril’s boa, see a scorpion glow under a blacklight, learn about tortoises and catch sight of a Gila monster.
Cecelia Johnson, a snake handler in the jungle room, walked around the line to let people take a look at the red snake around her shoulders.
“He’s really nice, he’s really sweet, he’s not venomous,” Johnson said. “People are more scared of fake snakes than real snakes.”
According to Johnson, there is no reason to fear snakes, but the reptile still caused many screams throughout the night.
“Usually, I don’t find snakes on a pirate ship, but today we’re pretending the pirates like snakes,” Johnson said. “It’s been so much fun to do the decorations and everything. It’s been a party.”
Along with the other scaled creatures, two mermaids flanked by a team of pirates were a popular hit for photos at the end of the jungle.
Savannah Nystrom, one of the Howl’s official mermaids, said being there was “mer-mazing.” Those at the event would know her by her mermaid name, Shellsea.
“I really like when I get a couple of the people who are walking past to come back because they are drawn in by the siren call,” Nystrom said.
Those who attended the dance portion of the event were met with a stark contrast between the main activities and the music and dancing of the fieldhouse.
Aggies dressed up to show their Halloween spirit and many experienced spooks and thrills at the Howl. Volunteers agreed that the theme “Treacherous Waters” was a success from the mermaids to the pirates and the smooth sailing between.