MANSFIELD — Vic Amesquita wants to scare the hell out of you.
Again.
The manager of Blood Prison, which opens Friday night at the former Ohio State Reformatory, was busy with his staff Monday morning, putting the finishing touches on one of the premiere haunting experiences in the state.
Blessed to use the historic OSR as their setting at 100 Reformatory Road, fright-veteran Amesquita and his team will throw open the prison doors every Friday, Saturday and Sunday during October.
The scares will take place from 7 p.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m.
After being forced to downsize a bit in 2020 due to COVID-19 uncertainty, Amesquita said he is thrilled to be back bigger and better than ever, including full use of both towering cell blocks.
The frightening tour through the century-plus old building will include 50 to 60 costumed actors, working in conjunction with intricately designed and built scenes aimed at frightening even the calmest of souls.
Certainly, it’s a job. But the year-round effort that goes into the haunted prison is more than that to Amesquita, in his sixth year managing the effort.
“I love it because it’s fun,” he said during an interview in his office. “I get to work with really talented people. My crew is with me pretty much all year long and they all do a tremendous job.
“I get to work with my friends. It really works out well that way. Coming in here and having people dressed up and in costumes, when people get their first scare (as actors), it just becomes addictive and they have more fun with it,” Amesquita said.
It will again take 45 minutes to an hour to walk through the massive haunt, depending on the guest’s pace.
“Some people almost run through it because they are scared,” Amesquita said with a laugh. “Some people want to walk slowly and look around at all the sets. It depends on the person and the group.”
Without giving too much away, Amesquita said there are a few new scenes in this year’s haunt. He and his crew got a bit of a dry run during the recent Inkcarceration concert event.
Many of the popular themes, including scary clowns and the warden’s widow’s house, are back again this year.
“We had 25,000 people on the property every day for three days and we invited folks to come in to view two or three areas that we opened. We got nothing but great reviews. People were loving it. Everyone had a good time,” he said.
If you are interested in joining the fun as an actor, contact Amesquita via email at vic@mrps.org.
“Having haunt acting experience is preferred, but it’s not necessary,” he said. “We just have to get your background check done and we can get them started.”
General admission tickets to Blood Prison are $25. For those who want to bypass what can become long lines, “ultra lightning passes” are available for $55. Touch passes, which allow the actors to physically interact with guests, are available for $5 more. There will be a variety of local food vendors on site each night. Guests are not permitted to bring alcohol onto the grounds. For more information, visit the haunt’s website at https://www.bloodprison.com.
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