Spooktacular Teague-McKevett Ranch
scene of GHOSTWALK 2015

Spooktacular Teague-McKevett Ranch will be the scene of GHOSTWALK 2015 where visitors will hear all about “Mule Skinner Blues,” how “Pride Goes Before the Fall” and “How Pride Cometh After the Fall” meet “Sespe Grey,” find out about “Flying on Fumes” and meet “Sassy Sally and Bratty Betty” who all have one thing in common…telling you how they met their demise. 

GHOSTWALK will be held weekend evenings, October 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24 and 25 at the historic ranch.   

Presented annually to benefit the Santa Paula Theater Center, GHOSTWALK is 

an hour-long guided tour of vintage Santa Paula neighborhoods featuring historical and architectural history of the city. Along the way, participants will encounter a number of lost souls who will thrill them with the story of their untimely demise.  

The scripts incorporate colorful, historic locations and events about Santa Paula’s early residents. This evening of fun costs only $15 for adults, $8 for students and children 7 years old and over. 

Although GHOSTWALK has always benefited the SPTC, “It’s our first year under the Theater Center banner,” said Leslie Nichols. “Mary Alice Orcutt Henderson, president of the Santa Paula Historical Society, was the founder and producer for two decades with Dee Helsel as a producer for several years,” until other artistic obligations had to be met.

Helsel is still on the GW Committee as well as several members of the SPTC Board of Directors.

Of the neophytes Nichols, who has appeared in GW stories, said “We all had an idea of how it operates but it’s been a real learning experience to see how much coordination it takes to get this off the ground…as a committee the easiest part we thought would be,” the artistic facets, something SPTC board members “do all the time…”

But GW is a different world as mysterious as some of its own stories with an army of volunteers to be trained and coordinated, community organizations to be contacted to confirm their participation and creating a whole new website, “All those elements for this kind of headless dragon! Dee steers us along,” and will again act as the guide coordinator.

Nichols said GHOSTWALK has become a tradition for visitors: “I hear people say they’ve been going to this event all their life,” with their families and now bringing their own children old enough to attend.

“One mother told me her children are finally able to go to GHOSTWALK,” which requires children be at least 7 based on the “scary factor and the attention factor…that’s a big draw to be able to take their families to something they’ve done their whole life. It’s a family and a community tradition.”

And hopefully one that will also foster an interest in live theater: “GHOSTWALK is a way to reach out to people with theater that might not come into a building to see a straight play, but would enjoy and have a taste of what theater is.” And that includes actors helping to celebrate a holiday “meant to be fun…it doesn’t mean they’ll start coming to the theater,” but children will have an arts and cultural experience that could leave them wanting more, even as performers.

GHOSTWALK also “enriches the cultural aspects of the community and gives Santa Paula,” a boost of awareness. 

“We are,” said Nichols, “the first of these events in Ventura County…it has been copied on and off by different groups at different times. We’ve run the entire 21 years,” of productions that has resulted in a storage trailer filled to the brim with props.