Evil Dead the Musical

Santa Cruz Mountains Theater Goers Anticipate Cult Production

By Julie Horner

Greg Roe is a scary movie fanatic, especially Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead. Framed posters, stage props, and other memorabilia are part of the decor at Greg’s Mount Hermon home. A fan since the 80s, he’s seen the stage production, Evil Dead the Musical, a few times in California. Considering the proximity to Park Hall in Ben Lomond, home base for Mountain Community Theater, he got an idea: wouldn’t it be fun to host the official rock musical — an established global cult sensation — in the Santa Cruz Mountains?

Evil Dead The Musical first debuted in August, 2003 in a dark corner of the Tranzac Club in Toronto, Ontario. The musical is based on the book and lyrics by George Reinblatt, which combines story lines and ridiculously copious bloodbath scenes from the Evil Dead movie franchise: The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead II (1987), and Army of Darkness (1992) plus Evil Dead (2013) and Evil Dead Rise (2023). Set to a musical score by Reinblatt and Frank Cipolla, Christopher Bond, and Melissa Morris, the stage play has since been produced 500 times worldwide, including shows in Tokyo, Seoul, Madrid, Perth and Auckland, and in cities in just about every state in the nation, selling out venues and leaving throngs of fans drenched in fake blood screaming for more.

Greg decided to see if anyone was interested in trying to stage Evil Dead the Musical in the Santa Cruz area and posted on a local theater Facebook group. “Within a few hours,” Greg said, “I was contacted by Miguel Reyna and Davis Banta, and they got on board immediately.” With this local theater director/producer star power in play, their original plan was to produce the musical independently in 2025, but when they heard MCT had canceled their fall production of The Music Man, they decided to see if MCT might want to put on Evil Dead instead. Greg wrote the proposal, the MCT Board of Directors accepted, and the production was subsequently licensed for MCT. Greg is Producer and Artistic Director, Davis is directing, and Miguel co-producing.

Evil Dead the Musical runs weekends September 20 through October 20 plus Halloween night, October 31st at Park Hall and is suggested for mature audiences.

Like Rocky Horror but Bloodier

Much like the Rocky Horror Picture Show, fans of Evil Dead the Musical have memorized the actors’ lines and come to the performances dressed as the characters. The really killer part about Evil Dead the Musical, though, is that the first four rows are called “The Splatter Zone.” It’s part of the script and there’s even a sample recipe for fake blood. Greg said, “The whole point of this is just over-the-top blood spurting everywhere…in a very humorous way, very cartoony.” 

There are two different non-toxic fake blood formulations. The liquid that is sprayed on the audience is food-grade colored water. “What goes on the actor has to be a little more viscous so that it sticks,” Greg said. He and pal Mike DeSmidt are testing out formulations and projectile delivery methods in Greg’s garage. The agreement with Park Hall calls for plastic sheeting.

In the story, a group of college students travel to a spooky cabin in the woods and unwittingly unleash evil forces that can only be put to rest by protagonist Ashley Joanna “Ash” Williams (played by Marcus Boardman) and his trusty chainsaw. The cast also includes a possessed talking moose head trophy (played by Dave Halper). Directed by Davis Banta, co-produced by Miguel Reyna, the cast of 15 is made up of veteran MCT actors and several newcomers. Additional characters are played by Sarah K. Michael (Annie); Fey Triona (Cheryl); John Wasielewski (Ed); Benji Canant (Jake); Sarah Mitchler (Linda); Corey Lenkner (Scott); and Lisa Darling (Shelly). The ensemble cast includes Amauri Roe, Ian Dyer, and Star Hagen-Esquerra.

Filled with cheesy special effects, uproariously corny songs, and campy dialog, Evil Dead the Musical pokes fun at the horror genre in a wildly splashy way.

For mature audiences. Follow the action:
FB: @EvilDeadtheMusicalSantaCruz
X/Twitter: @EvilDeadSC
IG: @evildeadthemusical_santacruz
MCT: mctshows.org

Featured photo by Julie Horner: Cast of Evil Dead the Musical rehearse at St. Andrews Church in Ben Lomond

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