The History of the Theater of Ghosts

by Pansy Carmichael

Ms. Price's Psychic Theater Studies Period 4

The grand opening of the Liberty Theater was on May 26, 1919 and featured the silent film The Wizard of Stone Gulch (part II of Vincent Frauenwissen's "weird west" trilogy). The theater also hosted vaudeville shows in its early years, as well as local talent shows and graduation ceremonies.

The theater was run by a series of owners until 1977, when competition from shopping mall multiplexes in neighboring cities proved too great. It was then converted to a mini-mall/office space. But this incarnation failed as well, and by 1984 the building was vacant and facing demolition.

At this time, a new group of investors came on the scene. Communicating only via Ouija Board, these theater-obsessed philanthropists from beyond at first had a hard time connecting with local realtors. Luckily, local palm reader and psychic Helena Velasquez took the role of intermediary and, working with the city's Downtown Paranormal Development Authority (DPDA), were able to provide the necessary funding to bring the historic Liberty Theater back to its original glory.

Today, the theater acts as a refuge, way station, and placement center for ghosts dislodged from historic venues across the country. When their original environments are torn down or extensively remodeled, ghosts can become even more confused than usual, often resulting in accelerated madness, dissociative states, or "acting out." The Liberty Theater selectively invites these spectral individuals to take part in their residency program.

But the Liberty Theater isn't the end of the road for these ectoplasmic veterans of the stage and screen. After honing their craft at the Liberty, hundreds of ghosts have moved on to newly renovated haunted theaters across the country, where they share their love of the craft and of show business with a new generation of theater ghosts.

If you'd like to apply to host a Liberty Theater ghost in your own local theater, please contact the Historic Haunted Liberty Theater via spirit telephone with the code Trumpet Blast, Chain Rattle, Double Thunder Bump.

We are all bedded in and I am very excited for my first ever Psyhigh field trip.

There are thirteen students including me. We're sleeping in the main seating area in the historic haunted Liberty Theater. They pulled the seats and made it level, and we're all set with sleeping pads and I bought a new sleeping bag and brought my favorite pillow.

There are like 140 chaperones, but they're staying in the lobby and the halls. A lot of them are parents and not psychic so they're staying out of it. But they sure are noisy. It's like a party in your house but you have to go to bed.

So we're all kind of nervous and looking at the empty stage and the balcony and boxes above us are dark and empty too.

Uh oh they're dimming the house lights! Time to go!