Local artist Jeff Dobrow and The AV Company return for another year of The Great Rotumpkin, a ghoulish good time celebrating the spooky season. Skeletons, pumpkins, cauldrons, and more appear on the exterior of UVA’s Rotunda as projected vignettes, accompanied by haunting music, cycle through scenes that send shivers down the spine. This year, Kiki and Celeste join the festivities following the puppets’ incredible appearance at the Festival of the Moving Creature.
This Halloween, we asked you to submit your creepiest, spookiest, most nightmare-inducingest two-sentence horror stories and you delivered a collection nothing short of terrifying. One thing’s for sure: Kids make great fodder for scary tales (and mirrors, too!).
We gathered our 11 favorites, which will be performed by Live Arts actors on our social media pages. (Follow us so you don’t miss it!)
FIRST PLACE
As I walked out of the empty theater that night, my phone buzzed with an unknown text: “So you like scary movies?” I glanced around into the darkness, heart racing, when the next message arrived: “You’re about to star in mine.”
By Eduarda Hackenhaar
RUNNERS UP
As she tucked her daughter into bed, she heard a whisper from the closet, “Mommy, there’s someone in my room.” Turning to reassure her, she froze—her daughter was still fast asleep, but the voice continued, “Mommy, I’m scared.” By Lee Moore
Casper came running, tail wagging, something large and flesh-colored in his mouth. “Bad dog,” the woman scolded, “digging up Daddy’s hand so soon.” By John Ruemmler
After the pilot came over the intercom to tell the packed plane that we were going to have sit on the tarmac for at least four hours, the man seated next to me turned and extended his hand. “Hello,” he said, “I’m Bob Good.” By Michael Cordell
When she awoke she could not move nor raise her head, but felt something cold and hypodermic pierce her inner arm. Her mother’s voice, a whisper of warm breath against her ear, said, “It’s only because I love you.” By Don O’Neal
Son, don’t pick your teeth at the table with that finger. You don’t know where your father found that body. By Mark Lawton
I look in the mirror and smile. My reflection doesn’t return the grin. By Lynne DeCora
Mommy, is that A.I.? MOMMY?!? By Carolyn O’Neal
Oh God, we had to be home before dark but now we’re stuck in this snowbank, covered in shattered glass. I see my wife stuck in the passenger seat with blood dripping down her head; moonlight bleeding through the pines—and she looks delicious. By Matthew Hepler
Her stomach twisted and her face grew pale as she watched her own reflection slowly back away from the full-length mirror, with a malicious grin. She was on the wrong side! By Jasmine Williams
In the dead of night, waking from a deep Stage 3 sleep, I felt the cat moving on my bed, walk across my chest, scratch and sniff the covers, and finally snuggle at my side. Eyes popping open, terrified to move, I realized, “I don’t have a cat!” By David Gladden
What do we always say? If you’ve got it, haunt it—and Charlottesville’s got “it” in spades, as long as “it” is a frightening amount of Halloween (and pre-Halloween) fun. You’ve got just over three weeks to drink in all the boos you can handle, and we’ve scared up the best options in (and out of, if you’ve got your broom handy) town. Happy hauntings!
Let’s boo this!
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While we prefer to gorge on Laffy Taffy, bite-sized Snickers, and Dubble Bubble, we know some of you crave a little, shall we say, balance. Don your costume for the YMCA Gatorade Halloween Hustle—a family-friendly 10k run (or two-mile walk, which we hear includes treats and surprises) and sweat out the sugar. Proceeds from the event support YMCA financial assistance, so everyone has access to the facility. $40-75, 8:30-10:30am. October 26, Brooks Family YMCA. piedmontymca.org
Poison pen
You don’t have to write the great American novel to gain notoriety around these parts. Instead, enter C-VILLE’s annual Two- Sentence Horror Story Contest and hear your words read aloud by actors from Live Arts theater (and published in the October 30 issue of C-VILLE). Remember: two sentences only, by the stroke of midnight on October 11. Visit bit.ly/2024cville horrorstorycontest to enter.
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Yappy Halloween!
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Three for the doggos
Strut Your Mutt Halloween Pageant
A benefit for Caring for Creatures, The Shops at Stonefield’s annual pageant includes a K-9 costume contest (with cash prizes!), trick-or-treat goodie bags, a raffle for handmade quilts by award-winning quilter Lolly Schiffman, live music, and vendors. $10-20, noon-4pm. October 19, The Shops at Stonefield. strutyourmutthalloweenpageant.org
Pups on parade
Here’s your chance to show off Fido in his Sherlock Holmes get-up and Fifi dressed as the cutest raccoon this side of the Ivy landfill. The annual Downtown Mall Doggie Howl-O-Ween pooch parade and costume contest has categories for the funniest, most creative, most Halloween-y, best group theme, and best in show. The evening also includes dog trick-or-treating, a photographer, a caricature artist, and $2,000 in raffles and prizes. Suggested donation of $15 benefits Hooves and Paws Animal Rescue, 5-8pm. October 25, Central Place. pawprintsboutique.com
Howl~O~Ween
Keswick Vineyards hosts its annual Howl-O-Ween event, where your furry friends come dressed in their cutest costumes and parade around (literally, there’s a puppy parade in the tasting room) for all to see. A costume contest follows, so tell your pals: Don’t be a haunt mess. Free, noon-4pm. October 27, Keswick Vineyards. keswickvineyards.com
Rock on
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Well these sure do sound like a ghould time.
Spooky Funk Halloween Party Music Pop~Up
Dance party alert! DJ Ryan (aka Kendall Street Company’s drummer) will spin the tunes all night—you come ready to party, drink, and dance your boo-ty (get it?) off. Free, 6-9pm. October 25, Flying Fox Winery & Vineyard. flyingfoxvineyard.com
Fifth Annual Samhuinn Fest at Thistlerock with House of Hamill & the Donnybrooks
For the uninitiated, Halloween began more than 2,000 years ago as an ancient Celtic fire festival, Samhuinn (“sow-in”). Thistlerock Mead Company pays homage to the holiday’s origins, carrying on the traditions. Participate in fairy house-building workshops, crown-making, pumpkin-carving, and more, plus live music and fire-cooked food. Free-$15, 2-10pm. October 26, Thistlerock Mead Company. thistlerockmead.com
Ghouls Night Out
IX Art Park hosts this Halloween-themed costume rave in its Looking Glass gallery. Be prepared for spooky and surreal to collide in this immersive environment with lights, installations, and cutting-edge DJ-led beats. $20-75, 8pm-2am. October 26, IX Art Park. ixartpark.org
The Pollocks Howl~o~ween
Local favorite The Pollocks take the stage for a “spine-tingling night of music and mayhem.” $15, 7-9:30pm. October 26, The Batesville Market. batesvillemarket.com
Hard Rock Halloween
Van Halen and Stone Temple Pilots tribute bands Bad Halen and Sex Type Things, respectively, take the stage at Rapture for a hard-rock show. Free, 10pm. October 31, Rapture. rapturerestaurant.com
Get your fill
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Nothing says Halloween like a stomach full of mini MilkyWays. Here’s where to grab a handful (and then some).
Downtown Safe Halloween
Ting Pavilion hosts this Charlottesville Parks & Rec-sponsored free event, with live performances and a DJ, plus crafts, games, a costume contest—whew! (There’s also a quiet zone for those who are scared of crowds.) Trick-or-treating downtown follows the event from 4-4:30pm. 2-4pm, October 19. Ting Pavilion. tingpavilion.com
Trick~or~Treating on the Lawn
A tradition that started in the late 1980s, Trick-or-Treating on the Lawn is for costumed kids of all ages, who are invited to visit each of the 54 Lawn rooms (and the Range) to scavenge for sweets. Free parking is available from 3:30pm at the John Paul Jones Arena garage, South and West lots, and from 4pm in the Culbreth Road garage. Hourly parking is also available nearby. Free, 5-7pm. October 31, The Lawn and Range, UVA. studentaffairs.virginia.edu
Party like a rock star
Annual favorite the Mock Stars Ball returns for two evenings of intentional camp paired with some serious rock chops. Local musicians combine forces to form supergroup cover bands and impersonate big-timers such as Billie Eilish, The Cranberries, Sublime, Backstreet Boys, Brooks & Dunn, Smashing Pumpkins, and many more in a benefit for The Shelter for Help in Emergency in honor of Whitney French. $20-25, 8pm. October 25 and 26, The Southern Café & Music Hall. thesoutherncville.com
Photo by Tristan Williams.
It’s craftacular
Ready to (cat) scratch your creative itch? These three spots have you covered this season.
Halloween Mask~Making Workshop
Head over the mountain for this one, a mask-making class at Staunton’s Art Hive. Ideal for all ages and skill levels, the two-hour workshop will take you through the process of creating a personalized mask, starting with design and sketching and ending with final touches like glitter, feathers, or fabric. All materials are provided. 11am-1pm, $15. October 12, Art Hive Creative Reuse and Art Center, Staunton. arthivestudio.net
Halloween Macrame
The Scrappy Elephant invites you to make a Halloween-themed (a ghost! a jack ‘o lantern!) macrame craft. Says the creative reuse retailer: “This simple project is perfect for those who have never done macrame as well as those more experienced.” For ages 12 and up. $30, 2:30-4pm. October 20, The Scrappy Elephant. scrappyelephant.com
Paint + Sip Costume Party
Follow the instructor’s directions to create your own version of Batty Moonrise, a spooky skyline featuring (did you know?) the only mammal that can truly fly. Pro Re Nata hosts—and a free drink is included in the price of your $45 ticket. Oh, and come dressed up—it’s on Hallow’s Eve Eve! 6-8pm, October 30. Pro Re Nata. blueridgebrushes.com
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Get lost
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Make your way through one of the Blue Ridge Mountain Maze’s corn mazes (now located at Blue Toad Hard Cider, near Wintergreen). Equipped with just a crayon and a blank survival guide, you’ll scout an escape path through five acres while taking in a panoramic view of the mountains. Tickets include access to plenty of family-friendly attractions, like the country store, farm animals, movies in the meadow, and the Farmy Fun Zone. Up for a more chilling experience? Come back at night to navigate the maze by moonlight.
Child’s play
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For two evenings, Virginia Discovery Museum opens its doors for Boo Bash—carnival games, activities, and crafts. Plus, says the museum’s website, “Conduct eccentric experiments with UVA L.E.A.D. in the Mad Science Lab, concoct kooky potions in the Witch’s Cabin, dance the boogie-man boogie in the glow-in-the-dark Monster Mash room.” Proceeds support VADM’s programming. $18-65, 5:30-7:30pm. October 24 and 25, Virginia Discovery Museum. vadm.org
Witch you were here
Halloween’s not all plastic pumpkins and sticky children (blech!). For those of you with more sophisticated taste, try these.
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Haunted Happy Hour
Before the October 18 showing of Live Arts’ What the Constitution Means to Me, enjoy spooky drinks and $20 tarot readings by Jess Bronson of Sealed in the Stars on the theater’s rooftop terrace. Free, 5:30pm. October 18, Live Arts. livearts.org
Fall of the House of Usher screening
Enjoy live piano accompaniment from UVA film lecturer Matt Marshall while watching Jean Epstein’s 1928 surrealist adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s maddening novel. $5, 8pm. October 24, The Looking Glass at IX Art Park. ixartpark.org
Witches Tea Service
On West Main, Cakebloom hosts a proper tea service, with a “spoookkkyyy menu of tricks and treats.” Not hard to solve that mystery: We’re betting cake will be on the table. Come dressed in your favorite costume and be entered to win a free eight-slice sampler or, if you’re a runner-up, a free five-slice sampler. $45, noon. October 26 and 27, Cakebloom. cakebloom.com
Frights, Flights, & Bites: Halloween @ Ethos
Ethos Wine & Tea invites you for a trick-or-treat-style tasting (plus snacks!) of natural and local wines and organic teas. The event will take place on the sidewalk outside the Main Street café. $30-35, 6-9pm. October 31, Ethos Wine & Tea. ethoswineandtea.com
Halloween Organ Concert
Drink in a short concert of spooky organ music, followed by an up-close tour of the organ itself (we assume organ the instrument, but it’s Halloween, so who knows?). All ages are welcome to this free event. 4-4:30pm, October 31. Westminster Presbyterian Church. westminsterorganconcertseries.org
On the list: You cannot be an arts lover in Charlottesville without running across the work of Darryl Smith.The always-smiling actor, singer, dancer, and box office manager with the patience of a saint, is a longtime fixture at Live Arts—and he’s missing! Where’s Darryl?: A Mystery on Water Street is a Halloween week challenge that plays out through an interactive online investigation around Smith’s disappearance. Conduct interviews with a cast of zany local characters, trace the clues, and see if you can out-sleuth the competition before the big, in-person reveal on October 30.
DragGing it out: Local drag legends are ready to go the social distance for a good time at Hallo-Queen, hosted by Arione DeCardenza. Dance and sing along to joyful hits and songs of the season with Sabrina Laurence (The Crayola Queen), Dezerayah D. Taylor, Crimsyn, Jayzeer Shanty, and London BaCall.
Friday10/30, 18-plus. Masks required. $12-15, 8pm. IX Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. 207-2355.
After a semester that featured dorm lockdowns, gathering limits, maskless masses flooding bars, and more than a thousand positive tests among students, staff, and contract employees since August, UVA announced last week that students will return to Grounds in person for the spring semester.
The university will essentially replicate its fall reopening plans next semester. Most classes will be held online, but there will be a limited number of in-person offerings. Students will continue to be required to wear masks, practice social distancing, and comply with testing requirements while on Grounds.
The school’s January term will take place online. And while these courses usually cost extra, this year students can take one class for free.
To reduce the threat during peak flu season, the first day of spring classes has been pushed back from January 20 to February 1. The semester will still end at the beginning of May.
And to discourage students from traveling in and out of Charlottesville, the typically weeklong spring break—originally scheduled for March 6 through 14—will be replaced with multiple shorter breaks.
Before students leave for Thanksgiving and finish out the rest of the semester from home, they will all be required to take and submit a COVID test, like they did before returning to Grounds this fall. No word yet if they will be tested again before the start of the spring semester.
By March 15, the university will announce its plans for Final Exercises, for both the classes of 2020 and 2021. The Class of 2020 is currently scheduled to have its delayed celebration from May 21 to 23. The Class of 2021 is slated to walk the Lawn the following weekend.
Follow the money
In elections for the House of Representatives, the candidate who spends more money wins 90 percent of the time, according to FiveThirtyEight.
There are multiple reasons for that correlation: Large war chests help candidates put together effective campaigns, and candidates with winning pedigrees attract more donations. In any case, it bodes well
for Cameron Webb, who has run rings around Bob Good in
the money race. As of October 25, Webb has raised $4.6 million; Good, a former fundraiser for Liberty University athletics, has raised just $1.1 million. The difference in small-dollar donations is even starker: Webb has earned $1.3 million to Good’s $180,000 from donations of $200 or less.
Across the state, Democrats have thumped Republicans in fundraising. U.S. Senator Mark Warner has raised $16.6 million, compared to opponent Daniel Gade’s $3.9 million, according to OpenSecrets. Warner’s senate seat was a tossup six years ago, but now the Dem, seeking a third term, is a comfortable favorite. Warner’s 2014 opponent, Ed Gillespie, raised $7.9 mil, but Gade hasn’t been able to come anywhere near that amount this year. Virginia Republicans haven’t won a statewide race since 2009.
In this cycle, Virginians have given $23.2 million to Joe Biden and $11.1 million to Donald Trump, according to the Federal Election Commission. Nationally, Biden has far outraised what Hillary Clinton did in 2016, and Trump has almost doubled his totals from last time around. That dynamic is visible on the state level too—in 2016, Virginians gave $16 million to Hillary Clinton and just $3.7 million to Trump.
CC License: Mark Warner Flickr
_________________
Quote of the week
“I strain to recall ever before witnessing such disdain for precedent, such disrespect for the legacy of an American giant, such disregard for the will of the voters.”
—Senator Tim Kaine on Monday’s confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett
__________________
In brief
You’ve Piqua’d my interest
High rates of turnover in Charlottesville city government continue. Former public works director and Deputy City Manager Paul Oberdorfer is leaving for the greener pastures of Piqua, Ohio, where he’s been offered the job of city manager, reports The Daily Progress. Oberdorfer, an Ohio native, will finish in Charlottesville on December 31.
Snowball effect
Multiple staffers at Wintergreen Resort have tested positive for COVID, and 20 have been asked to quarantine, after an October 10 wedding party introduced the disease to the ski resort. Wintergreen currently limits its events to 50 guests at a time, and has assured the public that it’s been adhering closely to all relevant guidelines. Still, once the virus takes hold, things can go downhill quickly.
The horror continues
As if the world wasn’t scary enough, Halloween is just around the corner. Trick-or-treating isn’t officially canceled this year, but the city is encouraging hosts to “avoid direct contact with trick-or-treaters and give treats away outdoors if possible.” Hopefully, for one night at least, no one will mind walking around in a mask.
Carson unmasked
Bob Good keeps popping up in headlines for the wrong reasons—this time, he hosted a private fundraiser in Fauquier County where doctor and high-ranking Trump official Ben Carson was caught sauntering about without a mask. Carson’s appearance continues a pattern of inconsistent mask use from Trump’s inner circle, despite the repeated assertion from medical experts that masks save lives.
Forty years later, Jamie Lee Curtis still thrills as Laurie Strode in the new Halloween.
Universal Pictures
We’ve had Halloween sequels for decades. What’s different this time? The same thing that’s different in found footage, possession movies, even the Amityville franchise: fresh blood, literally and figuratively. For many of the slasher sequels and remakes of the ’80s and ’90s, it was difficult to tell what the filmmaker disliked more, the audience or horror movies themselves. Some mainstays are campy fun and October traditions. (Freddy and Jason will always be a welcome sight), but the reflexive greenlighting of all horror sequels has led to great characters and premises being stretched beyond their appeal. This also killed the fun of the half-ironic, self-aware crop of films that followed Scream.
Few icons have had their legacies sullied as much as Michael Myers, the silent, hulking force of nature who first squared off with Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) in 1978. His featureless mask, plain clothes, and unknowable motives made him terrifying. His movements were slow but portentous, with the inevitability of an approaching glacier; any safety you feel is an illusion. Laurie, as depicted by Curtis, was an effective audience surrogate, but more than that we watched her discover a will to survive she did not know she had.
And then there are the sequels; turns out Myers is Laurie’s brother; he’s a reincarnated Druid something or other; then a wounded little boy in the misguided Rob Zombie remakes. These explanations make the monster both less scary and less interesting. Backstories like these are not useful for a character as menacing as Myers. Thinking about his origin is like watching an oncoming tsunami when you should be fucking running.
Enter David Gordon Green, once heir to Terrence Malick’s throne (see George Washington, All the Real Girls), who began making stoner comedies (Pineapple Express, Your Highness) before splitting the difference in recent years (Prince Avalanche, Manglehorn). In other words, not the first person you’d expect to pivot into slasher territory.
With co-writers Danny McBride and Jeff Fradley, he is very much on a mission to rehabilitate this series while undoing the wrongs of the past. The focus here is on the legacy of tragedy from generation to generation, as well as the danger of mythologizing that which does not operate by human understanding. Laurie, now living in near isolation, has been estranged from her family after subjecting her daughter (Judy Greer) to a lifetime of survivalist preparation viewed as abuse. Her granddaughter (Andi Matichak) makes efforts to involve Laurie in their life, but it is apparent that she is not free of the trauma from 40 years ago. Meanwhile, a pair of podcasters from the UK set off a chain of events that unleashes Myers on an unsuspecting and unprepared public.
Some may find the irony and self-awareness of the first half off-putting, but Green’s theme of understanding the past has an eye toward undoing the damage done by the awful sequels (which are totally ignored). Green captures some of John Carpenter’s magic in depicting the power Myers has over any space he occupies. Curtis is also in top form, and even if you have no investment in the franchise, she is the reason to see this.
A Star is Born, Bad Times at the El Royale, First Man, Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween, The Hate U Give, The House with a Clock in Its Walls, Night School, The Oath, Venom
A Star is Born, Bad Times at the El Royale, Blaze, Colette, The Devil’s Backbone, First Man, Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween, The Guilty, The Hate U Give, The Oath, The Old Man & The Gun, The Sisters Brothers, Venom
Last year’s Harry Potter Halloween event in Scottsville attracted 10,000 muggles, and Om Tattoo became Olivanders.
courtesy Scottsville Ministry of Magic
By Natalie Jacobsen
This year’s Halloween was supposed to mark the fourth, and predictably largest, Harry Potter festival Scottsville had ever hosted. But the magic was quelled with a phone call from Warner Bros. Entertainment citing trademark infringement.
The town’s spellbinding transformation, including businesses and their owners, has transfixed children, students and adults alike.
“Halloween was always a big deal for Scottsville,” says Kristin Freshwater of Baine’s Books & Coffee. “Living in a rural area growing up, we would have to drive to each house to trick-or-treat…to make it easier, Scottsville had its own Halloween: Every shop would hand out candy.” When Freshwater transformed Baine’s into Honeydukes (the fictional candy shop in the Harry Potter series) one year, the spark for a whole festival was ignited. “We ran wild with it—nonprofits, vendors, shops all jumped on board.”
To cope with the burden of planning an annual Harry Potter Halloween, Freshwater formed the Ministry of Magic, a group of a dozen shop owners and creative people in town. Two other festival heavyweights are Chris Hornsby and Nakahili Womack, of Om Tattoo & Massage, which was transformed into Ollivander’s Wand Shop.
Four years ago, Scottsville saw a handful of shops embrace the Harry Potter Halloween theme, with 800 “muggles”—non-magical people—visiting. Last year, 25 shops and locations, not including a marketplace with a dozen independent vendors, joined the fun, and nearly 10,000 visitors poured in, brandishing wands and donning Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry house colors of Ravenclaw, Slytherin and more.
James River Brewery became The Leaky Cauldron, and a life-size dragon sat atop Tavern on the James, aka Hog’s Head Inn. Victory Hall swapped names with the Great Hall, welcoming young witches and wizards to the sorting hat ceremony. The library became Flourish and Blotts Bookseller, and even St. John’s Episcopal Church didn’t want to miss out on the magic: “They researched to recreate the cemetery and look of St. Jerome’s Church at Godric’s Hollow…adding tombstones of Lily and James Potter, even the Peverell family,” says Freshwater. “I was in awe.”
But a few weeks prior to Halloween weekend this year, Freshwater received the call. The Warner Bros. rep was “really friendly about it,” and explained countless festivals across the nation were unwittingly using its intellectual property, says Freshwater.
Warner Bros. representatives told her businesses cannot actively use trademarked Harry Potter-related names but nonprofits, including libraries and churches, can. Without enough time to switch gears for this year’s event, it was canceled. Going forward, Freshwater says the event will be a Wizarding Fest.
“We are disappointed, but now we have an opportunity to create original, inspired names,” she says. “We all love the Harry Potter books, films and J.K. Rowling—we want to respect her intellectual property.”
Other Harry Potter events nationwide have had to evolve or adapt to Warner Bros. guidelines, or face legal consequences. The largest in the nation, the Harry Potter Festival in Jefferson, Wisconsin, has lawyers in constant communication with Warner Bros. to seek permission for certain name uses.
Some Harry Potter festivals in nearby cities, including Staunton and Roanoke, are still “flying under the radar,” Freshwater says.
Freshwater believes the magic will be back in full force next year, albeit with some changes. “You will see new names, some new decorations…but it’ll still be magical,” she says. “Scottsville is a tight-knit community…if anyone needs help or has an idea, we’ll talk about it and make it happen.”
The Liberty Mills Farm corn maze—the largest one on the East Coast—features four maze options that take from 30 minutes to more than two hours to complete. The maze stays open through November 11. Photo by Greg Montalto
By Natalie Jacobsen
“Go north!”
“Aren’t we already?”
Sunlight flickers in between towering stalks of corn, stifling heat lingers among the rows, and soft red dirt kicks up with every heart-pounding step. Dodging left, then making a 180-degree turn to the right while keeping a constant eye on the sun’s position and another on the path, I can’t afford any time to let my mind wander.
“I think we already came this way.”
“We couldn’t have. If we are here on the map…”
Minutes—hours—fly by, as do rows and rows of corn while I navigate the largest corn maze on the East Coast. Racing through more than 25 acres, it’s easy to see why Liberty Mills Farm’s maze has become a staple autumn activity in central Virginia.
For the last eight years, the Woods family has owned and operated Liberty Mills Farm, about 25 miles northeast of Charlottesville, in Somerset. Each year, the family plants 1,200 feet by 1,200 feet of corn, then designs and “carves out” an elaborate themed maze for thousands of visitors.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Air Force and 80 years of the Douglas DC-3 being in commission as a passenger jet, thus 2017’s theme: aviation.
“Some years are easier to pick a theme for than others,” says Kent Woods. “In 2011, I already knew what the theme for 2014 would be: 1814, the anniversary of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner.’”
Looking at an aerial view of the maze, one can see a rocket, a Wright Brothers’ early model plane, the words “Aim High” in the middle above a hot air balloon and…
“An eagle. It all starts with an eagle,” says Evie Woods. The eagle, from wing tip to wing tip, is two football fields wide.
Huffing and puffing, I pause to hole-punch my map, adding another notch in my belt of sign posts that indicate progress. I wrinkle my nose—I’ve missed a few markers along the way—but I have to keep going forward.
“We start planting the corn in June, later than most typical corn farmers, so it’ll stay green longer during peak season,” says Kent. “We do everything by hand. Everything.”
Translation: No tractors were involved here.
“I lay the design out on pieces of paper, using X and Y coordinates,” he says. They know how many steps and rows equal a page and where to, quite literally, “draw the lines” in the dirt.
When the corn is between six and 12 inches tall, a team of four people spends about six hours carving out the maze by hand. Foregoing tractors allows them to focus on details: “You can’t dot your ‘I’s and make eagle eyes with a tractor,” Kent says.
Rounding one of the plane wing tips in the western corner of the maze, I can appreciate the expanse of the maze and the time it takes to design it. I can feel the shape of the letters as I walk through the gentle angles of the cursive type.
Yields vary from year to year, but the Woodses often sell remaining corn to local poultry farmers.
Signs remind visitors to take care around the corn—“It’s all listening!” Kent says—and to stick to rules regarding shortcuts, flashlights and littering.
Staff regularly traipses through the maze to find lost folks and help them get on the right path. “This year, we introduced a ‘panic button,’” says Evie. It’s a foldable sign, with a “You are here”-style map to peek at during frantic moments.
“I’ll find everyone else when I bring my combine out in November,” Kent jokes.
I pass by a tall clump of trees, which means I am near the center. The Woodses explain they haven’t removed them because a small Victorian-era cemetery is nestled there. Suddenly, I am grateful to be doing the maze during the daytime.
The maze is family-friendly, which means the Woodses have seen the same families return year after year, bringing small children who are now high-schoolers.
“I love hearing about complete strangers meeting in the maze,” says Evie. “People in New York City rush by you, acting like everyone is invisible. Here, people will approach anyone for help or conversation and come out as lifelong friends.”
I recognize the shape of a helicopter wheel and immediately feel a sense of relief—I am near the end. I turn left and head down the last stretch and into open air.
“Nothing beats seeing kids come running out, panting and grinning ear to ear, saying, ‘I never thought we’d make it out!’” says Kent.
There are four levels to the corn maze: an elementary section, estimated at 30 minutes to complete, a trivia-based maze, which includes a crossword puzzle, a two-hour maze that spans the majority of the field and a mystery maze, the only one that does not have a map. “For a true challenge,” Kent says.
Clutching my map, I am ready to go back in for a second round. I look to the Woodses for any words of advice.
“I will say this as politely as I can: ‘Get lost,’” Kent says.
