Next stop: terror town
Terror on the Fox celebrate 25 years of scares, screams and more
By Kira Doman
Terror on the Fox has been scaring Green Bay for 25 seasons. This year is no different.
The haunted attraction, located at 2285 South Broadway, goes back to its roots with this year’s “Spirit of Halloween’’ display, which features cathedrals, candle-lit woods and the iconic Blackthorne Manor—home to The Boogeyman. Blackthorne Manor is built entirely of train cars, a nod to Terror on the Fox’s next door neighbor.
“The train that we use to bring all our customers to the front of our property is actually operated by the National Railroad Museum,” Terror on the Fox General Manager Ted Sprangers said. “Also, the train cars that the exit of the haunt is built within were donated years and years ago by the museum and have been a part of our attraction ever since.”
This connection to the National Railroad Museum allows Terror on the Fox to use the “Terror Train,” which delivers guests to this year’s haunting experience, an attraction steeped in childhood fears, scary monsters and a labyrinth of unknown twists and turns.
With decades of deadly displays under their belt, Terror on the Fox wants to provide a unique haunting experience for each attendee and care about how their work is seen.
A gruesome character waits inside of the Terror Train at Terror on the Fox. Given the haunted attraction’s proximity to the National Railroad Museum and active railways, train cars and other locomotive paraphernalia are all part of the experience.
Photo courtesy of 13th Floor Entertainment
Terror on the Fox Front-end Manager Liz Van Pay said she is passionate about their work and place in the haunted community. While this is her third year with Terror on the Fox, it’s her seventh year in the industry and she’s held numerous positions and duties in the entertainment industry, which has informed her success—and the success of the crew—at the haunted attraction.
“We’re proud of our reputation,” Van Pay said, “even if you come out on a night that isn’t as busy, you will still get the same quality show. We’ll all be just as amped to give you a show.”
Van Pay said they hire actors from a variety of different backgrounds.
“People who are great with people are who we have interacting with the customers,” Van Pay said.
The Broadway haunted attraction is an escape from reality, especially when reality is frightening in its own way. Throughout the past year and a half, characters at Terror on the Fox prepare to scare in a safe manner due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last year, Terror on the Fox took extensive measures to ensure guests were as safe as possible. The company installed Plexiglas between actors and guests, no actors were allowed on the “Terror Train” and masks were worn at all times—no exceptions.
This year the Plexiglas has been removed and the actors are ready to board the train. Actors can’t touch guests, but that doesn’t dilute a good scare. Masks are required inside each attraction and all actors will be wearing cloth masks underneath their character masks.
“This year may not be as prevalent for the need to escape as it was last year,” Van Pay said, “but it is still important.”
Van Pay said while the screams are fun to receive as a job well done, that’s not all she expects to hear from guests.
“We want to entertain you,” Van Pay said, “and entertainment can be yelling, screaming, and running, but it can also be laughing and interacting, anything really. That’s what we want for our customers to get out of the experience.”
Terror on the Fox sure does have plenty of guests to elicit screams and more from. On a Saturday Oct. 2 visit to the haunted attraction, there were over 1,000 guests in attendance, with staff estimating that number to rise as Halloween draws near.
Kira Doman is an editor and freelance journalist who graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay in the Spring of 2021. Her editing work can be found in The Sheepshead Review, The Northern Lights and Ellis Clark’s 2020 novel “With You.” Her writings can be viewed in The Driftwood and Green Bay City Pages. She is passionate about subjects such as social justice, current affairs and the arts. In her spare time, she is a barista, an average yet avid hiker, and a full-time cat mom.