The theatre has always offered the thrills and chills of a good murder mystery or the lingering plotline of a crazed protagonist. With all of this energy, there is no wonder that miffed actors and soulless apparitions tend to find solace in the balcony or prop closet of a theater space. In Missouri, there are plenty of scary legends to go around, as you will find in this article.
When you pay a visit to the Rose Theatre located at South East Missouri State University (Cape Girardeau), you may come in contact with the ghost of a scorned wife of a French trader, who killed him on the premises before the theatre was ever in existence. The ghost has been dubbed “Mary” and she possesses quite the temperament. She has been known to cause mischief whenever a production is presented that has violence in the plot. When the theatre is empty, workers have noticed the image of an old man who has been spotted sitting in the house. A piece of concrete on the premises also highlights a bloodstain that has yet to be removed.
In Springfield, the Landers/Little Theatre holds a tale of its own. It is here that the spirit of a stage manager who took his own life and the ghost of a baby are known to haunt the premises. The baby has been spotted in the upper balcony area when actors have been on stage by itself. It is said that one night, an infant was accidentally dropped from this location, causing its soul to remain in the theatre space for all eternity. Some actors claim that the incident is intermittently replayed in a ghostly fashion when they are on stage.
Also, reports document more than 100 additional ghost hauntings attached to this theatre. Some of the tales include the legend of two ghostly secretaries, who have a knack for tossing items about the box office. Sometimes, the occasional spirit of a phantom dog has been known to make an appearance or two.
In St. Louis, the Webster Groves Theatre Guild is said to be visiting by the ghost of a small girl who frequents the upper part of the theatre. She is said to play tricks on people while they are rehearsing their parts. The playful ghost also joins the spirit of an elderly woman who is thought to scare the heck out of the little girl. The woman is known to haunt the theatre basement.
The Park University Jenkin and Barbara David Theater located in Parkville is situated on the campus and is known to house the ghost of Jenkin David. Mostly, the ghost makes an appearance in the stairwells and hallways of the theater, wearing a suit of gray. Two young girls are also said to haunt this same theater.
The Missouri Theater in Columbia has been the haunting grounds of the former owner, who has a rep for making clanking sounds about the premises. He is also blamed for the rising and falling of curtains without the help of anyone.