OPINION|
Correction: An early version of this story had the wrong name for the Landers Theatre.
Are you an actor with a touch of creepy? Can you tell lively tales with lurid details while staying within the bounds of factual accuracy?
If so, the History Museum on the Square wants to hire you part-time to lead 90-minute “Haunted History Walking Tours.” The tour starts at the museum and covers about a mile to a mile-and-a-half.
I spoke to Sean FitzGibbons on Monday. He's the museum's executive director.
“We are seeking a talented local actor who can add an extra layer of eeriness and fun to one of the museum’s biggest fundraisers and captivate audiences with their interactive storytelling abilities,” FitzGibbons said.
He said the above in a press release he sent to the Hauxeda, which is what prompted me to call him.
“This tour is not only about scares, but also about celebrating the rich history and legends that linger in our city's past.”
The tours will be every weekend on Friday and Saturday evenings from Sept. 15-Oct. 28.
Several people already have applied to lead the walking tour, he tells me.
To audition, email Meg Pearson at Meg@historymuseumonthesquare.org, before Aug. 8. The museum will follow up with audition dates.
I ask FitzGibbons: Do you have to sing?
No, but you can if you want.
Do you have to portray a character from Springfield's past?
No.
“But if it was Wild Bill Hickok leading the tour that would be fantastic,” FitzGibbons said.
Question No. 3: Why don't you get John Sellars to do this? Sellars is not only the museum's executive director emeritus but a thespian and an authorized deputy Answer Man.
The museum has something else in mind for Sellars, FitzGibbons tells me.
Sellars will assist with the museum's Halloween bus tours, which extend beyond the downtown area.
All stories told on the tour must be historically accurate
FitzGibbons does not want to divulge too many details about the walking tour.
He did say it will cover the July 21, 1865 shootout on the downtown square between James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok and a Springfield man by the name of Davis Tutt. The dispute was over gambling debts and Hickok's gold Waltham pocket watch, which Tutt possessed when killed.
They were about 75 yards apart on the square. Tutt missed and Hickok didn't. Before he collapsed and died, Tutt said, “Boys, I'm killed.”
The tour involves ghost stories, FitzGibbons tells me, but the museum will be careful to not tell anyone else's ghost story.
The Gillioz and Landers theatres each have their own ghost tours. If anyone on the museum tour is interested in those ghosts, they will be advised to take the Gillioz or Landers tours.
“We tell of instances of people passing away, and it's all done very respectfully,” FitzGibbons says.
One such story is of a woman standing near what was once the Heer's department store, built in 1915. It is now Heer's Luxury Living Apartments.
She had gone shopping and was waiting for a family member to pick her up.
“Unfortunately, she met her end at that corner,” FitzGibbons tells me.
Actors who devise their own historically-accurate costume will not only get extra points during the audition, but will also get a stipend for the cost of the costume, if selected— in addition to being paid to lead the tours.
“A lot of what we talk about are mishaps and chance occurrences,” FitzGibbons says. “The focus is always the historical accuracy in telling the stories.”
This is Pokin Around column No. 123.
