Scare actors bring The Beacon Hotel’s haunted house to life
PENN TWP — While the haunted houses of Butler County fill with ghouls, ghosts, slashers and more, the actors behind the masks and makeup spend hours perfecting their look and role.
One such haunted house, The Beacon’s Haunted House and Corn Maze, give actors, primarily ages 13 and above, the chance to put on their best costume and scare attendees of the weekend event.
Debra Krelow, owner of The Beacon Hotel, said they employ over 100 scare actors to properly staff each aspect of their possessed property. On any night, the corn maze is full of actors waiting to pop out from behind cornstalks while a more traditional haunted house experience can be found behind and in the basement of the hotel itself.
“We’ve had people coming and doing this for so long that now their kids are here,” she said.
Scott Gelles, who plays a mad doctor working his practice on an alien he affectionately named “Paul,” said he and his son, Carter Tosadori, 12, signed up for this year after Carter expressed interest in scare acting.
“He loves (haunted houses). He’s been going to them for three or four years,” Gelles said about Carter.
He said the experience has given them a chance to bond over a shared passion — Halloween.
“It’s my favorite time of the year,” he said. “I never thought about working at one, so when he asked, ‘how old you have to be?’ And he was told he could come with a parent, from that day on it’s been ‘when are we going?’”
For his role, Gelles wore fake prosthetic makeup that made it look as though he’d been slashed across the face several times. He said he learned how to do this type of makeup specifically for this role.
“It takes about 20 minutes to do, and then I paint some stuff on it and I just go crazy with the blood. You can’t ever have too much blood,” he said.
He also decided to take some liberties with his operating room. For one, he said he cracked a glowstick and poured the liquid into an IV connected to “Paul.”
Carter said he preferred being out in the graveyard area of the haunted house rather than the operating room, as it gives him a better opportunity to scare people.
“There’s a curtain that’s kind of see-through but also not, and I can go behind there as people come through. Then, I just stand behind someone, and then, someone else would say ‘look behind you’ and they’ll get scared,” he said.
Gelles and Carter said they both think they’ll be back next year as scare actors yet again.
Krelow said there are actors as young as 7, with parental supervision, participating in the haunt.
“In the past, we’ve had parents and little ones and the little one would go in and act like their mom or dad won’t go through with him. So they’d say ‘excuse me, mister or miss, will you take me through with you?’
“Then, we had little doors they can duck into so they’re halfway through the maze and the child just disappears,” she said.
While this year’s haunted house was primarily alien themed, the younger scare actors had some flexibility in their costumes. Some dressed as clowns while others varied, such as Carter taking on the role of a plague doctor.
One such clown was played by Brin Zehmisch, 18, who said she got involved with the haunted house in 2023 after some friends started working there.
“The first two years, I worked out there in the maze. Then, the past two years, I’ve been working in the carnival area,” she said.
She said she preferred working in the haunted house over the maze, but had fun with both experiences.
“It can get very cold very quick, so you have to wear a lot of layers when you go work out there. Then, you have to wait a long time because people take a long time to get through there,” she said.
She said she is very flexible and likes to use that talent as part of her character. She said she normally camps out near “The Bridge of Doom,” a rickety walking area that causes attendees to watch their step.
“There’s usually fog rolling through so people don’t see me right away, and they’re looking down at their feet, and then I’ll say something that I either noticed about the person, something they said, or just ‘hello,’” she said.
She said working at the haunted house gives her the chance to practice two of her favorite hobbies: makeup and scaring people.
“I do like scaring people. It brings me joy whenever someone gets scared. Some people’s reactions are downright hilarious. It’s so much fun to do,” she said.
Krelow said her favorite thing about having the younger scare actors is giving them the ability to earn their own money and work, for many of them, their first jobs in such a unique environment.
“It teaches them responsibility,” she said. “We have some siblings that work together, and they’ll pool their money and get like a PS5 or something.”
The Beacon’s Haunted House and Corn Maze is open from dusk to 10 p.m. every Friday and Saturday through Oct. 31. Tickets are $25 per person and include both experiences.
-
Brin Zehmisch poses with an exhibit during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Brin Zehmisch poses during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Sidnei Gent poses during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Scott Gelles poses with an alien during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
One of the encounters during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Cast members show their favorite room, Brin Zehmisch, upside down, back row from left, Sidnei Gent, Nazya Wright and Chanze McCardie during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
A scene from the haunted house during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
A movie theater scene during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
One encounter area during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Some cast members, from left, Janice Fout, Carter Tosadori, Scott Gelles, Brin Zehmisch, Claire Hall, Chanze McCardie, Sidnei Gent, Nazya Wright, Sophei Gent during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Brin Zehmisch stands in a room during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
-
Janice Fout poses during the Beacon Haunted House and Cornfield tour, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, at the Beacon Hotel. Andrew Jackson/Butler Eagle
