A Pfeiffer Theater Ghosts - 2^nd Act Sally

by Kevin Frantz

Copyright 2007

 

 

It was 1975. Tim seated himself comfortably in his seat at the Barbara Pfeiffer Auditorium, on the grounds of the North Central College in Naperville Illinois.  The college performances are always top notch.  Tim had a feeling tonight’s experience would be thrilling. 

 

Even he could have never anticipated just how thrilling it was about to get…

 

The performance was in full swing as the lights came up, signaling the end of the first act in this evening’s performance.  Tim stretched in his chair as the patrons around him began to get up from their seats for the intermission.  His eyes adjusted to the brighter light and he decided that perhaps a cigarette and martini would be a nice addition to the evening.  He still had time before the second half started.

 

Tim went out to the lobby, secured an extra-dry martini, lit his cigarette, and kicked back on an available chair.  “This is living”, he thought. His timing was perfect, just as he finished the cigarette, the lights flashed on and off, informing the guests that the show would resume in 5 minutes.  He polished off the martini and headed back to his seat.

 

As he approached his seat, he could see that it was occupied by what appeared to be an old woman in a blue dress.  He thought maybe the martini was messing with him.  Before be accused her he thought that he should make sure it’s his seat, so rummaged through his pocket extracting his ticket,  – seat g42 – then he checked the seat numbers.  That was his seat.  The woman was in the wrong place.

 

He stood for a moment, deciding how to evict an old woman.  She looked up at him smiling, “hello”.  Tim smiled and nodded, “hello”.  She looked back toward the stage.  Tim took a breath, and said, “excuse me, you appear to be sitting in my seat”.  He showed her the ticket.  She looked at it, and smiled, “I’m sorry no, this is my seat”.

 

Tim felt helpless.  He decided to let an usher handle it.  He went back toward the lobby, there finding a helpful young man on Usher duty.  He explained the situation, and the man followed Tim back to his seat.  As they neared Tim’s seat it was clear to Tim that the woman was no longer there.  The seat was empty.

He turned to the Usher, “hey, she’s gone”. 

 

Both men stood at Tim’s chair.  “She was here a minute ago” Tim apologized.

The Usher shrugged his shoulders, “She must have realized her error and left. Do you see her anywhere? I’ll go make sure she’s in the right place”.

Tim looked all around, “I don’t see her anywhere.  She’s very old, white hair, a dark blue dress…” Both men looked up and down every row.  She was not there.

 

Just then the lights dimmed. The usher looked back to Tim, “enjoy the rest of the show sir.”

 

Tim took his seat, seat g42, and didn’t realize until several years later that he’d had an encounter with 2nd Act Sally, the most famous of all Pfeiffer Theater’s… ghosts.

 

There have been many sightings of Sally over the years.  Patrons as well as students have claimed to have either had an exchange with her, or simply saw her sitting in her seat – and then she was… gone.

 

After investigation, we’ve concluded that she appears to be a victim of a very common reason human spirits remain earthbound after their deaths – unfinished business.  There are occasions in which a ghost has some task or project it started on earth that it desires to finish before it continues its spirit journey.  It is a very common reason ghosts haunt.

 

Sally has appeared during many performances over the years, and her unfinished business is that she is waiting for the second act of a show she started many, many, years ago…      

 

It was about 1965 when a young playwright and alum of NCC, named Bob Lewis was debuting his first

musical.  Mr. Lewis was not an unknown author. He’d enjoyed previous literary success: he'd written several TV scripts, including a few for the Alfred Hitchcock Hour in the late 1950's and early 1960's. He was very excited to be debuting his newest project, his first musical, at Naperville's Pfeiffer Hall. 

 

Naperville didn't disappoint him; the whole town showed up to support one of their local boys who made good in Hollywood!  The show completely sold out.  Luckily, Mr. Lewis had reserved several seats for his family, among them, in seat g42, his elderly Great Aunt. We refer to her as Sally. 

 

According to a retired North Central Professor who was in attendance that night: the lights dimmed, the music swelled, the curtain rose, and Sally slumped over in her seat.  Several people seated around her, most likely family, thought she had fainted. As the play started they secured the assistance of Theater Professor Shanower, who brought with him noted Naperville physician Dr. Glenn Wolf, who was in attendance.

 

As the show continued, the two men lifted the unconscious woman out of her seat and brought her out into the lobby.  As they lay her on a seat in the lighted lobby, it was obvious to the doctor that the woman had not fainted – she was dead.

 

Dr. Wolf immediately notified Beidelman’s ambulance service of the distressing situation and waited for them in the lobby.  Unfortunately, as the first act was ending the woman was still not picked up!  Any moment the patrons would be released for intermission, and there was a deceased woman in the lobby.

 

The two men, thinking quickly, moved her into the coatroom as the crowds were released into the lobby for intermission.  Of course, the attendees had no idea that a corpse was in the coatroom. 15 minutes later the crowds filed back to their seats just as the ambulance showed up and took Sally to the morgue. 

 

So what is Sally’s unfinished business?  In the timing of the evening’s events, is the key to understanding this haunt. The truth is Sally never saw the second half of her grand nephews play, an event that was extremely important to her.  As her corpse lay in the lobby she still enjoyed the show - granted in an ectoplasmic state, but she was there.  Unfortunately, when her body was moved to the morgue, at the start of the 2nd act, she went with it, missing the second half of the play.  After she'd been laid to rest, her spirit came back to the auditorium for the 2nd half of the show, but it wasn't there.  It never is.  But she continues coming back.  And she'll continue to do so because she has unfinished business, the very important play she came to see.

 

There have been many sightings of the old woman sitting in seat G42. Patrons as well as actors have reported having an interaction with an old woman in a dark blue dress who seems to vanish mysteriously.  As well, theater students, most often while rehearsing a play, have glanced out into the darkened rows of seats and see an elderly woman watching the rehearsal from seat G42, only to vanish slowly when she's discovered. Refusing to heed her own final curtain call.

 

It is also possible that guilt plays into this haunt at some level.  There is an old theater superstition: if someone dies during the performance it is the death nail for the play.  It is possible that Sally feels responsible for the fact that the play never went any further than its debut performance at Pfeiffer Hall.

 

By the way, the play Sally came to see was her nephew’s musical version of the story Mutiny on the Bounty!  We couldn't find an official record of the continued success of the play, which I guess should speak volumes. 

 

Pfeiffer Hall has many spectacular performances all year long. If you have a chance, why not attend? You may have a chance meeting with an old woman looking in the dark for her seat - seat g42.

 

 

 

Authors note: It’s hard to believe it, but there is another musical version of Mutiny on the Bounty! In 1985, written by rock star David Essex and Richard Crane. This is not the same production that Sally is waiting for.