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Courtesy of their seamstress mother’s endeavors, Jake and Kara Christiansen always donned well-received Halloween costumes while maturing in Puerto Rico. Still fascinated with deeming disguises as aids in fostering fun and fear, the siblings are again serving as laugh- and scream-inducing performers for Terror Behind the Walls, the Eastern State Penitentiary’s much-lauded seasonal celebration.
“It’s as if we’re kids all over again but in a professional way,” Kara, 27, said of a recurring benefit of participating. “There’s an exchange of energy that always makes the interactions exciting.”
She and her 29-year-old brother live with four more haunters on the 1600 block of Wharton Street, forging an extended family of fright fomenters who infuse fall with their desire to satisfy scare seekers. For the Christiansens, employment at the historic prison also yields a two-month period to strengthen their communal integration and self-awareness.
“Through it, something has come out that we didn’t even know we had,” Kara said of their six-year tenure at the famed Fairmount spot. “It’s great to share our enthusiasm with crowds and to learn about ourselves.”
“We weren’t the type who shamelessly looked for attention as kids,” Jake added. “With these roles, we’re having a great time getting them worked up and in the spirit while also being able to reflect back on how much we liked this time of year as children.”
Familiarity with Terror Behind the Walls began seven years ago mostly through word of mouth at Epic Adventurez, an interactive theater camp to which the siblings contribute. Enthusiastic upon gathering more knowledge, they set out to raise heart rates no matter what their roles, with Jake especially cognizant of the value of each assignment.
“Regardless of our location, it’s how we apply ourselves that makes the experience genuine,” the 2011 Terror Behind the Walls Actor of the Year, who is playing Phil, a crazed Gauntlet-situated inmate, said. “For me, the best part has to be the moment when someone’s scream turns into a laugh because we’re tapping into a wide range of emotions.”
“We’ve definitely evolved in our appreciation for the opportunity,” Kara, the ’08 Actress of the Year and zone manager of the Night Watch section, added. “It’s just so much fun to get to develop our characters. People want to be shocked, and we’re there to provide that service, and we do it very well.”
The relatives have had novelty injected into their scream schemes, as visitors can elect to have the actors’ longstanding no-touching-the-patrons policy waived and engage in separate adventures with the hires. Not wanting to spoil the details of the alternate experiences, Kara could confess she and her peers have garnered positive feedback from the switch. Group attendance also thrills her and Jake, especially when they can use their Spanish mastery to haunt guests in their mother tongue.
“Participants remember us, too,” Kara said. “It’s all in line with the fact that you can’t underestimate the need to connect with people, even when, or maybe especially when, you’re looking to shock them.”
Born in Illinois, the Christiansens spent most of their formative years in Puerto Rico, with stints in Minnesota and California also broadening their worldview. Describing her move to Philadelphia eight years ago as “a whim,” Kara began to further her interest in jewelry, eventually morphing into a successful self-employed maven. Finding the metropolis exhilarating, she encouraged her kinsman to flock to the City of Brotherly Love, a move that brought them to the 2200 block of Mifflin Street, with their current location housing them for nearly a year.
“It’s been awesome since then,” Jake said of his receptivity to South Philly, which he estimates 50 Terror Behind the Walls figures call home. “Everything seems convenient to reach, and there’s a real sense of family here.”
Through their vocations, which for Jake also included a stint with Bilenky Cycle Works, the two have seen acting as an interesting diversion, with Kara, who recalled a few Puerto Rico-based theatrical duties, the more enthused initially, though her brother’s interest now rivals hers.
“I believed I could be loud and fit the role of someone looking to scare others,” Jake said of his progression through the Terror Behind the Walls ranks, with his current character “spewing insanities at everyone who walks by.” “It’s excellent to have this opportunity, especially with Kara.”
Though the siblings, who for three years worked together on the attraction’s Street Team, have not striven for distinction as consummate acting professionals, they have mastered one priceless component of executing their charges, timing. Seeing precise gestures as the causes of most scares, they admire guests’ willingness to let down their guard and tremble via their often-improvised actions. They generate more joy when their brother Myron, 32, comes from Puerto Rico over the final two weeks of the run to assist with the most bustling part of the Terror Behind the Walls slate.
“That’s always great because we can hang out with him as he takes a scare vacation,” Kara said of intensifying her family’s affair with fear.
Being a key presence in the action has inspired the female member of the sibling duo, who calls herself a “part-time horror actress.” With a role in the genre-specific “Flowers,” a Philadelphia-shot movie set to wrap by December, she noted that any time is a good one for unnerving someone, though she and Jake find it thrilling that their most consistent chores come during their favorite time of year.
“There’s a great sense of community among us,” the latter said. “Come let us be your creators of a terrifying evening.”
Visit easternstate.org/halloween.
Contact Managing Editor Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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