Every Halloween, people line up in droves to walk through the darkened corridors of haunted houses, where monsters and madmen leave them rattled and terrified. The 13th Gate is such a house, containing 13 blood-soaked, cobweb-filled, ghost-packed levels that can cause most mortals to flee for the nearest exit.

What the Southeastern community may not know is one of its own has been assisting with the scares for well over 10 years. Underwriting/development Representative Chad Pierce of KSLU 90.9 FM sat down with The Lion’s Roar to relate his haunted history and what lies beyond The 13th Gate.

The Lion’s Roar: How did you get involved with The 13th Gate?

Chad Pierce: When I was a sophomore in college just getting started in theatre, one of the girls in the department worked as the stage manager for Midnight Productions. Back then it was located at LSU, and there was a very small cast. We were sitting around at a theatre meeting one night, and she asked if any of us wanted seasonal work. Plus, I had gone through it the year before, and the thought of ‘Oh, I could possibly work there and be the person doing the scares instead of the person running from the scares,’ that kind of piqued my interest.

What was your first job?

It was a lot different back then than it is now. You didn’t get hired for a specific role. Before the show opened, and everyone was in makeup, they would ask, ‘We have the ringmaster, who wants it?’ So the major roles were taken up quickly. So what they did to my friend and I was dress us in these black robes, spray painted our hands and feet black and stuck us in a dark corner to scare people. That was my first role, a dark druid. I’ve played a cop, I’ve played Hannibal, I’ve played an electrician and I’ve played the dark druid that first year.

What’s your favorite memory from working there?

I have too many. Every scare has the potential to be a long-lasting memory. One of my best memories from 1999, the LSU quarterback was Josh Booty, and we got word he was in the haunted house. I was working a drop wall. I popped out of that wall right in front of his face, and he went to the ground. I said ‘I put Josh Booty on his booty.’

What’s your current job description?

Well, I am a roaming security person now. I’m just kind of a behind-the-scenes worker. I do a little bit of everything. Our number-one job as roaming security is to escort people out of the house who are too scared to proceed.

How many people do you normally have to escort out?

On any given night we will escort roughly 50-60 people out who are too scared to continue. They range from little kids to full grown adults. It’s actually quite funny when you have grown-ups who are too scared to continue. You bring them to the exit to wait for their party, and right after you walk them out, little kids usually will come running out laughing and talking about how much fun it was.

What room has been around the longest?

Everything gets switched up every year. Some rooms stick around longer than others. They’ll get a few renovations, but sooner or later, they get completely taken out. I’d have to say that the insane asylum has probably lasted the longest. It’s gotten a few renovations over the years, but it’s very consistent with its scares. In fact, I’ll go on record by saying that the majority of escorts I get come from the asylum. It’s the perfect setting in a haunted house. What else would you expect to see but a haunted mental hospital?

How much stage blood does the haunted house go through?

A lot! [laughs] Actually, I don’t quite know how much they use, but they have over 100 people in costume and probably 85-90 percent of them get stage blood. Our makeup artist Blaine Quam has been known to douse actors in stage blood. He’s a bit more conservative with it than he used to be, but that’s because the cast is over 100 as apposed to 25 back in 1999. He uses a ketchup squeeze bottle like you see at a diner. I remember one night back in the day he came around and poured blood on me after I had gotten in the jail cell to play Hannibal Lecter’s victim. He said, “Close your eyes and hold out your hands.” I looked like Sissy Spacek in “Carrie.”

Are there actual live snakes, roaches, etc.?

There is always something live in the haunted house. Sometimes there’s snakes, sometimes rats, sometimes roaches, sometimes all three. This year there are no snakes, but there is a character in the cellar called “rat girl.” It’s a female victim lying in a cage that resembles a coffin. There are rats crawling all over her, and yes, the rats are 100 percent real. Real snakes have been used in the haunted house for the past few years. I guess this year Dwayne [Sanburn] decided to give the snakes a vacation.

What happened with the supposed haunted house shooting?

There was no haunted house shooting. A young man who had been to The 13th Gate earlier that evening was hit by a stray bullet near the USS Kid. I was outside at The 13th Gate exit when it occurred. Our police security said they got a call on their radio that a shooting had occurred down the street. We saw several police cars racing to that area.

Our police security suggested we shut down for the night; it was well after midnight, we were getting close to shutting down anyway. So we closed up and went inside to have our post-show meeting. Dwayne informed everyone that a shooting had taken place near the USS Kid and that we could get police to escort us to our vehicles if we wanted. Dwayne has always suggested that we walk to our cars in groups. On this night he suggested a police escort.

Unfortunately, the young man who was shot died. My heart goes out to his family. From what I’ve read about him, he was a well-behaved young man who didn’t cause any trouble. My assumption is that it was a matter of wrong place at the wrong time. What upsets me is that when this story was reported, it was immediately affiliated with The 13th Gate. I don’t know how long the young man had been gone from the haunted house, but it was reported that he was a patron earlier that night.

First it was reported that he was shot at the haunted house. That story was quickly retracted. All I have been hearing about it is “Shooting 13th Gate, 13th Gate Shooting, Teen Goes to 13th Gate, Then Gets Shot,” etc. For some reason, everyone just assumes that if a shooting takes place downtown while the haunted house is running, the haunted house must somehow be involved. That’s ridiculous!

I will go on record by saying that if I didn’t feel safe working at The 13th Gate, then I wouldn’t work there. I’ve got a wife and a 4-year-old son that I love too much to put my personal safety in jeopardy. I’ve been working for Dwayne for the last 12 years, and I’ve never been involved in any kind of physical altercation where I feared for my safety.

As an actor, I’ve been punched, slapped, groped, flashed, mooned, had dirt kicked in my face, cursed at, yelled at, cheered, booed and congratulated. That all comes with the territory. But never have I had to go to Dwayne to express a legitimate concern for my safety. Our show is one that you should feel safe to come to with your family and friends.

So, what do you think lies beyond The 13th Gate?

The 14th Gate, I guess. Just joking. Well, the saying is that, “Somewhere beyond your nightmares lies The 13th Gate.” So I guess if you went beyond that, then you’d have even scarier scenes, better props, scarier characters, more detailed sets, etc. Knowing Dwayne Sanburn’s mind the way that I do, that’s exactly what you’ll get year after year after year. He’s always thinking about how the house can be improved to give the customer the absolute best show possible. The 13th Gate truly is Louisiana’s ultimate haunted house.