As part of the Roselle Park Arts Committee I was tasked to brainstorm ideas for events that we could host in our town. I presented an outline for a produced live staged radio play with the help of Alex Dawson owner of Raconteur Radio. I helped organize the play with our local officials, promoted through social media and set up with our committee.

First performed in 1938, this radio drama by Howard Koch, adapted from the classic H. G. Wells novel, is set in Grover Mills, NJ, and begins as a musical broadcast intermittently interrupted by news flashes about strange explosions on Mars and the landing of a cylindrical spacecraft on Earth. The simulated "news bulletins" of the original broadcast, narrated by Orson Welles, suggested to many contemporaneous listeners that an actual alien invasion was currently in progress and, as a result, there were instances of panicked evacuation throughout the US. Especially in New Jersey!

The play included: Period costumes! Theatrical lighting! Vintage commercials! Golden Age radio equipment! Fog effects! And, of course, extensive sound effects!

The Legend of Sleep Hollow was the first play I had the opportunity to art direct for.. I created the props and costumes for the play. The highlight for me was the creation of the Headless Horseman himself. I created a raised suit that gave the illusion of the decapitated horseman who held a real lighted pumpkin for added effect. It was a hit among all those in attendance and will forever be an experience that I will not soon forget.

For a number of years I had the dream of creating and running my own haunted walk through attraction and in 2009 that dream finally happened. I teamed up with my family and closest friends and partnered with the Metuchen EMS to create a two night event. Twenty percent of our proceeds benefited the EMS. The event was a labor of love and it was truly a learning experience. I put my knowledge of graphic design, prop fabrication and marketing to work to make the event as successful as possible. We hosted over a thousand people in those two nights and earned a number of write ups in various local papers.

Central Jersey.com Write up

Grimlock Manor Blog

About five years ago I attended my first arts festival in my home town of Roselle Park. With a bit of persuasion by both my friends and family I decided to turn my passion and hobby for creating props into a side business, The Black Lantern. I have since exhibited my work at a number of craft and arts festivals and have even been recognized by the mayor of Roselle Park for my contributions to our local arts community.

Halloween and home haunting have long been a hobby and obsession of mine and I wanted to find a way to further that obsession and give back to the community I loved so much so Fright Radio was born. Fright Radio was both a monthly podcast and downloadable magazine that highlighted and featured both home haunters a industry professionals. I conducted the interviews, gathered and created assets and laid out the entire magazine. The podcast was also conducted by myself with the help of a few key contributors for each segment and edited by me. It was a fun way to use my skills in design to create something special that I loved and could provide the industry with.

ISSUE 6 DOWNLOAD

ISSUE FOUR

ISSUE 3

LISTEN TO FRIGHT RADIO HERE!