{"id":406864,"date":"2026-07-21T18:43:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T18:43:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/406864\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T18:43:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T18:43:10","slug":"behind-the-scenes-at-knotts-berry-farms-ghost-town-alive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/406864\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the scenes at Knott’s Berry Farm’s ‘Ghost Town Alive!’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

My theme park day begins with gunfire. A jailbreak! But shortly after, I\u2018m attending a wedding. Next I\u2019m on a mission, helping the local postmaster justify his uncontrollable desire to open everyone\u2019s packages, and trying to find a way to do so without telling a lie. <\/p>\n

This is just another Sunday morning at Knott\u2019s Berry Farm\u2019s \u201cGhost Town Alive!,\u201d<\/a> a now-10-year-old interactive show \u2014 live-action role-playing game is more accurate \u2014 that has become the best summer offering at any theme park, and not just in SoCal but in America. There\u2019s a daily story, including three editions of a single-page newsletter that are updated every day. There\u2019s also lots of improv. Over the years, I\u2019ve found myself on the prowl for mysterious elixirs, playing matchmaker, collaborating on group stories in a schoolhouse, doing police work, participating in a mustache contest or flashing a press badge. <\/p>\n

\u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d ultimately is the promise of theme parks fulfilled, that is that we can enter a fantasy world and play as cartoonish, or maybe even idealized, versions of ourselves. <\/p>\n

You’re reading Mr. Todd’s Wild Ride newsletter <\/p>\n

Todd Martens’ newsletter delivers news and commentary on the past, present and future of theme parks, right from the theme park capital of the world \u2014 Southern California. <\/p>\n

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service<\/a>, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy<\/a> such as personalizing your experience and ads. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s a rarity, an event with 46 actors \u2014 about 30 of whom appear each afternoon \u2014 who lead guests through scavenger hunts, puzzles or just conversations about life in Calico, the fictional town of Knott\u2019s Berry Farm\u2019s Ghost Town area. The cast ranges from those just out of college to those in their mid-70s, and no character is ever played by more than one actor. This gives Calico a sense of life, an illusion that it\u2019s actually populated, but also allows actors to fully develop a personality and let their characters evolve.<\/p>\n

Before creative director Andy Crocker was working on \u201cGhost Town Alive!,\u201d she was visiting it as a fan. Crocker, an experiential designer who has worked on projects <\/a>for companies as wide-ranging as the Los Angeles Public Library and Walt Disney Imagineering, specializes in particular on guest-to-actor interactions.<\/p>\n

\"Dustin <\/p>\n

\u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d unfolds like a live-action role-playing game. But expect plenty of silliness. <\/p>\n

(Allen J. Schaben \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

\u201cI will never forget the first time I saw it as a guest,\u201d Crocker tells me. \u201cI came with my husband, and we did not bring our kid. We walked in, and I saw a little girl in a pink cowboy hat with a painted-on mustache following an outlaw off to jail. That outlaw was giving a gritty HBO performance. Wasn\u2019t patronizing. Wasn\u2019t talking down. He was giving her a hero moment, and I burst into tears. I didn\u2019t know this was possible to do on this scale with such an institution. The empowerment that performer gave to that guest, I will never forget.\u201d<\/p>\n

To make a theme park feel personal is no easy feat. In fact, designers have long been trying to solve this problem, whether by creating interactive attractions <\/a>that feel responsive to the guest, or short-lived experiments such as the late but great Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser<\/a>, colloquially known as the Star Wars hotel.<\/p>\n

Crocker says others have asked for the \u201csecret sauce\u201d to \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d They\u2019ve tried \u2014 and are trying \u2014 but she\u2019s not so sure the magic can be replicated. One, Knott\u2019s is blessed with a real, 100-year-old Ghost Town. That allowed for the investment to be solely in the cast and performance rather than infrastructure. And yet actors, of course, aren\u2019t cheap. <\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

A single-page newspaper is printed three times a day during \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d<\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe amount of people that we have, that\u2019s tough for a lot of places,\u201d Crocker says. \u201cThey try to do it with less, and it doesn\u2019t quite work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking on a panel hosted by trade group the Themed Entertainment Assn., Jeff Tucker, Knott\u2019s Berry Farm\u2019s show writer, says one early mistake Knott\u2019s made was thinking everyone who works in Ghost Town could partake. That meant, for instance, taping dialogue cues to cash registers in the saloon in the hopes that bartenders could become a character. The concept failed. \u201cIt\u2019s a logistical nightmare,\u201d he says. The lesson: Hire actors to perform. Let bartenders be bartenders and retail staff be retail staff. <\/p>\n

Another reason Crocker tells me \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d is so rare, and will remain so: It doesn\u2019t rely on intellectual property, or a known franchise, which has become the lifeblood of modern theme parks. \u201cWith things that are heavy IP, it\u2019s very tricky to control your IP and to allow for real play, guest agency, and, honestly, artist agency,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

\"Visitors <\/p>\n

Evan Battle, center, who plays Deputy Chester Davenport, at Knott\u2019s Berry Farm\u2019s \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d in 2024. The interactive theatrical experience allows guests to mingle with about 30 actors. <\/p>\n

(Allen J. Schaben \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

That\u2019s important, as \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d can shift with the whims of the guest. There\u2019s a core storyline this year. A rich, Beverly Hills-like family is revealed to be the true owners of Calico, and how the residents respond is the key narrative of the day. But there are multiple tales to uncover, including hidden factions (check out the Calico Historical Society) and who is taking who to the 4 p.m. hoedown, which ends each daily game of \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d <\/p>\n

But Crocker has also seen it get rather heartwarming. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy mom came to see it,\u201d she says. \u201cShe has some health concerns. There was a character who was in a crazy mix-\u2019em-up and said he would not make it to the hoedown and that this would be his last day on Earth. This character and my mom ended up having this conversation about how if you know you don\u2019t have a lot of time left, what would you do with your time? I was surprised by that pivot.\u201d<\/p>\n

It helps, Crocker says, that she\u2019s noticed one commonality among the \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d staff. They play \u2014 or were weaned on \u2014 tabletop role-playing games such as \u201cDungeons & Dragons,\u201d which at their best allow for an anything-goes approach designed to follow the direction of the players rather than a strict script. <\/p>\n

Tucker on the panel said there was one rule the crew lives by that defines the success of \u201cGhost Town Alive!\u201d: \u201cIt\u2019s not real,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can do whatever we want.\u201d <\/p>\n

This week in SoCal theme parks \"Not <\/p>\n

Not yet ready for prime time, Knott\u2019s Berry Farm has delayed the opening of Montezooma: The Forbidden Fortress.<\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Montezooma is not yet zooming. Knott\u2019s Berry Farm initially intended to launch its reimagined Montezooma\u2019s Revenge, now known as Montezooma: The Forbidden Fortress, this week. Late Thursday, the park delayed<\/a> its public unveiling, with a spokesperson citing additional fine-tuning that surfaced during its final days of testing. The delay is not expected to be a prolonged one. \u201cWe appreciate everyone\u2019s understanding and look forward to welcoming media and guests in the coming days when we can showcase the attraction exactly as intended,\u201d read a statement from the park.
A monthlong Lego celebration. Carlsbad\u2019s Legoland likes to describe its Lego Festival<\/a>, which started Monday and runs through Aug. 30, as a child\u2019s first fest. Expect lots of characters and an assortment of play-focused areas. One is dedicated to music, another is a free-run creative zone and a third is a Lego garden designed to soothe. New this year is a game-heavy center dedicated to the Pok\u00e9mon franchise, as well as a challenge-filled F1 installation.
It\u2019s now more expensive to eat at Disneyland. Price hikes, unfortunately, are a yearly-occurrence at the Disneyland Resort, and this summer, like every summer<\/a>, hundreds of food items have ever-so-slightly increased in cost. Most are in the range of a dollar or so \u2014 give or take a quarter or two \u2014 but expect to pay $7, up from $6.50, for a scoop of popcorn. I admittedly do not keep a database of Disneyland food prices, but sites like Mickey Visit<\/a> or Theme Park IQ <\/a>have tracked the most egregious price bumps. Looking at their data, you may want to think twice about dining at Disneyland\u2019s Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante, where prices have been increasing even as portions over the years have been declining.
Where is Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift? We\u2019re now in midsummer, and Universal Studios Hollywood\u2019s Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift still does not have an official opening date. While sources familiar with the coaster\u2019s operations point to routine mechanical issues that have arisen during its test and adjustment phase, one thing is certain: It\u2019s not delayed due to noise complaints from neighbors, as rumors suggested last week<\/a>. A Universal spokesperson pushed back on the notion that the coaster is delayed, stating it would still open this summer, which lasts into late September.The best thing I ate at the parks \"The <\/p>\n

The hearty cottage pie from Downtown Disney\u2019s Gordon Ramsay at the Carnaby. <\/p>\n

(Todd Martens \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been eagerly anticipating the opening of Gordon Ramsay at the Carnaby<\/a> at the Disneyland Resort\u2019s Downtown Disney, the latest concept in which the celebrity chef has agreed to lend his name. This one is an upscale gastropub, and while I\u2019ll leave the full cuisine analysis to the professional food writers, as a parkgoer I do believe it fills a void in Disneyland\u2019s shopping and entertainment district, bringing the area an adult-focused space with upscale (read: expensive) twists on old favorites like fish and chips ($33) and cottage pie ($38). And after reading breathless press release-like articles and posts from my theme park peers (\u201cutter perfection,\u201d proclaimed one<\/a>) I couldn\u2019t have been more excited to dine there this weekend. <\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with the vibe, which I found to be rather confused. I was seated in the tiny, uncomfortable indoor bar, a place that felt like an afterthought and leaned airport terminal drinking hole, as it\u2019s situated at the top of a stairwell and serves primarily as a thoroughfare into the dining hall. That a pub, especially one with an extensive cocktail menu (I did love my $22 cotton candy-infused Old Fashioned) would treat its introductory bar as a throwaway rather than a centerpiece of the experience was disappointing (an outdoor bar is significantly more enticing). The core dining space leans contemporary more than a traditional, wood-infused pub, feeling cafe-like with its \u201860s rock posters and framed portraits of those in mod outfits. More theme-ing would have been welcome, as I read it as slightly cold and corporate rather than homey and intimate. Instead of, say Pasadena\u2019s Lucky Baldwins, this felt like a nice break room at a major record label. <\/p>\n

But my dish was delightful. I had my heart set on the cottage pie, this one infused with a hearty portion of short rib. I probably should have taken leftovers, because it\u2019s heavy, but in the best way possible. The potato-rich top felt creamy and buttery, while the meat was equally soft. The whole thing felt invitingly plush. I walked away mixed. No complaints on my entr\u00e9e, and I\u2019m eager to come back and try the fish and chips, and yes, that viral sticky toffee pudding<\/a> dessert, but longing for a more welcoming atmosphere, especially at this price point. <\/p>\n

Tell us your stories. Ask us your questions.<\/p>\n

Have a theme park tale to share? Whether it was a good day or less-than-perfect day, I would love to hear about it. Have a question? A tip? A fun photo from the parks to share? Email me at todd.martens@latimes.com<\/a>. I may feature your note in an upcoming newsletter. <\/p>\n

Ride on, <\/p>\n

Todd Martens<\/p>\n

P.S. \"Drowned <\/p>\n

Drowned Out Productions\u2019 \u201cThe Shoebox Museum\u201d explores love and loss. <\/p>\n

(Drowned Out Productions. )<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a show running Saturday and Sunday in Los Angeles that I believe theme park fans should make time for. \u201cThe Shoebox Museum,\u201d<\/a> at North Hollywood\u2019s After Hours theater, is a walk-through immersive experience at its most thoughtful. It\u2019s short, at around 30 minutes, but it stayed with me for hours after it concluded. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe Shoebox Museum,\u201d from Drowned Out Productions\u2019 Jackson Mancuso, who does theme park design by day, is a mediation on heartbreak, asking what we want to leave behind, and take with us, as we explore our grief. It\u2019s meticulously designed, as we follow light cues through byzantine rooms filled with everyday ephemera \u2014 the type of stuff that only holds meaning to those who were in love. It\u2019s a show about how an once broken heart, even mended, still finds ways to haunt us. <\/p>\n