This year will be his 24th season in the haunt industry. Henry is a makeup artist, combine driver, cook and “jack of all trades” at Brimstone Haunt, a haunted attraction in Wilmington near the Ohio Renaissance Festival.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
It all started with a lie
“When I was 18, I was a manager at a McDonald’s and my general manager was involved with the Jaycees,” Henry said. “He also worked with the haunted castle at the Riverside Jaycees.”
Henry recalled having to be 21 to be a member, but his manager filled out his application and somehow he got in.
When haunt season began, Henry was a part of the security team at the Riverside Jaycees Haunted Castle of Carnage & Trail.
After about three years, he moved on to the New Carlisle Haunted Junkyard where he was an actor for the first time.
“I’ve always been a behind-the-scenes kind of person. Whether it be play productions in school or anything like that, I’d rather be back of house than the front,” Henry said.
Credit: Contributed Photo
Credit: Contributed Photo
Henry, who was born in New Jersey and raised in D.C., moved to Kettering at 11 years old. His dad retired from Andrews Air Force Base and they moved to the region to be closer to his mom’s side of the family.
The first time he did makeup
Before starting at Brimstone Haunt, Henry was at the Springboro Haunted Hayride for several years.
“When I started at Springboro, I was at the end of the hayride and I would come up to the wagon with a chainsaw,” Henry said.
The Springboro haunt had a trail called, “The Black Bog,” where Henry was moved. That’s when he started getting creative with his costuming.
One of his first makeup looks that he did was “Zipperface.”
Credit: Contributed Photo
Credit: Contributed Photo
“I did that at home because I wanted something... a little bit different than what we were doing at Springboro,” Henry said. “Where they had me in the bog, I had this nice, long chain link corridor that was super foggy and I wanted something to pop out when they got through the fog and saw me.”
The beginning of Brimstone Haunt
“In 2016, there was a lot of us that were at the Springboro Haunted Hayride,” Henry said.
That was the final year of the haunt.
“We’ve been doing it for so long — some younger, some older — that we wanted to continue somewhere,“ Henry said. ”The idea of building from scratch was exciting.”
In 2017, a group of about 10 people from the Springboro Haunted Hayride built two attractions within about three months — starting Brimstone Haunt.
“When we moved out here, I was a part of the original build crew for the first season,” Henry said.
How it works
On a Friday night, actors typically start to arrive around 4:30 p.m. They eat and then begin getting ready.
When I stopped by the haunt, they were fully staffed with nine makeup artists and a manager. Henry only had to do makeup on four actors.
Last year when they first opened, they were short staffed with five makeup artists including a manager. Henry said he did makeup on about 17 actors that night.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
Under those circumstances, the artists each have their own “quick and dirty makeup” looks that they can do in about five minutes.
“It’s not going to look the best under light, but out there, as long as you hit the shadowing, the highlights, the key elements, it’s going to look good in the dark,” Henry said.
In previous years, the artists have tried to match the makeup with the scene and the costume without a guide — creating very unique, individual looks.
Credit: Contributed Photo
Credit: Contributed Photo
“This year, we’re actually changing it up a bit,” Henry said. “We’re going with a theme, so all of our actors, once they get a costume, they’ll actually get a makeup card and a costume card all in one. They’ll bring us their makeup card, and we’ll try to match them.”
Henry’s favorite looks that he has done involve zombies.
“It’s a bit of a formula,” Henry said. “You’re not trying to hit real fancy details. You’re sinking in the eyes, making the cheeks look a little sunken and then hitting a little highlight over on the cheekbones. Maybe a little blood or maybe a black splatter.”
Credit: Contributed Photo
Credit: Contributed Photo
Henry is typically more prone to picking up an airbrush instead of a paintbrush.
Advice for others
His advice for aspiring haunt makeup artists is to download a lot of reference photos.
“That way when someone comes in and says, ”I’m a grandma in a salt mill," and you’re going, “Huh?” You can go through your reference photos and see what might fit there, if something doesn’t come right to mind," Henry said.
He also recommends taking photos of your finished looks for reference, as well as to document your progress.
Credit: Contributed Photo
Credit: Contributed Photo
At the end of the day, it’s all about family
Henry has always had a love for Halloween, but has never been a fan of going to haunted houses.
When asked why he is in the haunt industry, he said, “It’s more of a family.”
“I think that’s what changed it for me at the Jaycees was that we were just a big group of people... coming together for one cause,” Henry said. “It took all of us to make it happen and it was just a big family.”
“The scares are an added bonus. The creativity is an added bonus,” Henry said.
MORE DETAILS
Brimstone Haunt, 525 Brimstone Road, is open on Fridays and Saturdays through Nov. 1. The ticket booth opens at 7 p.m. with attractions beginning at dusk.
“We’ve been working year-round to bring some fresh fears to Brimstone Haunt for 2025,” said General Manager Brandon Moore. “We’re excited to unleash what we’ve been building. Our team is passionate about creating a full-sensory experience that goes beyond a simple jump scare, and this season will prove it.”
The haunt features more animations and special effects than ever before.
New this year is “The Liquor Lab” where guests are “invited to become human lab rats in this all-new beverage area.”
Other attractions include:
- The Haunted Hayride (journey through the cornfields and woods at the Brimstone Farm on a tractor-drawn hayride)
- Psychosis (an indoor maze with claustrophobic passages and disorienting effects)
- The BOG (a haunted trail through the dark and mysterious forest)
Brimstone Haunt also offers carnival-style games such as the new “Operation Doom,” axe-throwing, a variety of photo opportunities and several food and drink options.
For more information, visit brimstonehaunt.com or the haunt’s Facebook or Instagram pages (@brimstonehaunt).
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