It’s my favorite season again, and no it’s not Pumpkin Spice! It’s time for autumn and Halloween! Last year I had fun researching theater superstitions and spooky theater ghost stories, and I thought I could find a few more. So, sit back and enjoy.
Unlucky Colors
Modern actors are a superstitious lot, but this old superstition is mostly irrelevant and forgotten today. Green and blue costumes were once considered unlucky, for vastly different reasons.
I’ve found three possible reasons why green costumes are unlucky. First, green costumes didn’t react well to the greenish glow of “the limelight.” Second, actors wearing green would blend into the background when they performed outside. But the best reason? Actor and playwright Molière was wearing a green costume when he began coughing and hemorrhaging on stage in 1673. He finished the performance but died shortly afterward, still in costume.
The reason for blue being unlucky is financial. At one time blue dye was very expensive, and producers spread the rumor that blue costumes were unlucky to save themselves money.
Thanking the Director
I’ve never heard of this one before! When a production closes it’s considered good luck to give the director a bouquet of flowers stolen from a graveyard!
Symbolically it represents the “death” of the show, but it may also just be a cheap way to butter up the director before the next production!
Foreign Superstitions
Chinese theater and opera have many superstitions. They have their own unlucky costume colors, black and white. In Chinese culture both colors are associated with death and funerals.
In Chinese the number 4 is a homophone for the word “death,” so the cast and crew will avoid saying the number whenever possible.
Chinese theater has a long history of puppetry. Just as old is the superstition that the puppets would come to life after hours. To prevent this the heads of the puppets would be removed at night and stored in a separate box from the bodies. It may just be me, but the thought of all those little puppet heads coming to life seems even creepier!
I covered the “Scottish Play” last year, but I found a Polish variation. In Poland it is bad luck to say the name of the play Marzepa because an open casket appears on stage.
Mantorville Opera House
Last year I told you about the usher who haunted the old Guthrie Theater. This year I have another Minnesota theater haunted by at least 4 ghosts, including a cat!
South of the Twin Cities lies the historic town of Mantorville. Founded in 1854, it is one of the oldest towns in Minnesota. After a fire devastated the downtown area in 1918 the Mantorville Opera House was constructed to provide a home for the arts and culture. Travelling shows would regularly stop to perform, but the building has had many other uses; silent movie house, club, roller rink, city hall and….speakeasy! The rumors that a speakeasy had operated in the basement seemed to be confirmed when prohibition era bottles of booze were found behind a brick wall during renovations.
Today the Mantorville Opera House is the home of the Mantorville Theater Company presenting a season of plays and musicals along with a summer melodrama.
Let’s meet the ghosts!
Eddie
In the basement visitors feel the stare of an unseen male presence, perhaps a former employee of the speakeasy who still feels protective of the space. “Eddie” doesn’t seem to like the paranormal investigators who have conducted over 50 investigations at the Opera House. They report being physically nudged to get them to leave and their cameras being turned off repeatedly.
Ellen
Ellen likes to play pranks and will move props and costumes around. Her disembodied voice has been heard in the theater and her footsteps on the stairs. Her presence is felt all around the theater, perhaps a former actress who never left the stage she loved.
The Forlorn Spirit
A mournful female ghost dressed all in black has been seen wandering the theater. Some believe her to be the spirit of a former business owner whose mercantile store was destroyed in the fire that cleared the way for the construction of the Opera House.
Spirit Kitty
The story goes that the mummified remains of a cat were found blocked up behind a wall in the basement. His meows are often heard in the basement, perhaps he is keeping Eddie company. Spirit Kitty gets around, he’s also reported to enjoy hanging out in the sound booth!
Bonus: Ghost Crew
Actors have reported seeing shadowy figures up in the rafters and catwalks where the lighting and rigging crew would have worked. I aspire to be just as dedicated as these spectral crew members someday!
The Mantorville Opera House would make a great weekend getaway this October! Where else can you visit an historic building, see a show and do a little ghost hunting on the side! If you see Eddie, Ellen or the rest of the crew be sure to let me know.