“Come scream. Come laugh. BE DAMNED!“
Alrighty, Vancouverites & fellow Jaysuits! “Jaysus” is back on the keyboard, and ready to take you on another artistic pilgrimage.
Depending on when you are reading this, we most likely just finished our high-minded, data-conscious detox at the Small File Media Festival, where we saved the planet with a combined 308 MB of streaming energy, proving we can be responsible citizens even in our kinophile pursuits.
But listen, after all that sensible, low-data living, the soul demands spectacle, and for that, we need to leave the tiny files behind and dive headfirst into absolute, glittering chaos!
For the last twenty-plus years, the magnificent, unhinged heart of that chaos has beat in Mount Pleasant at The Beaumont Studios; the 22,000 sq. ft. artistic sanctuary we successfully rallied to save earlier this year with the mysterious Art Incognito fundraiser.
This is the sacred ground that gave us the Bill Murray’s vaudeville insanity of Keep Calm and Murray On last year, and this Halloween season, they are unleashing their most audacious show yet.
“Theatre of the Damned” promises to be a raunchy, blood-splattered love letter to horror cinema, served up with a healthy side of that unmistakable Beaumont sass; iconic horror scenes, reimagined through the electrifying lenses of burlesque, drag, dark comedy, and satire.
With only 125 guests per show, it’s intimate, electrifying, and wickedly unpredictable. Participation is a given, and yes, there is a bar with a cocktail selection to die for.
So, let us pull back the velvet curtain on what awaits you inside the hallowed, and perhaps haunted, halls….
A Raunchy, Blood-Splattered Love Letter to Horror
“Grindhouse meets drag house, with blood, sequins, and a healthy dose of chaos.”
–Executive & Creative Director Jude Kusnierz
This is not a passive viewing experience. Oh no, my friends.
Directed by the wicked April O’Peel, you get six reimagined scripts for the price of one ticket, making it a horror-sampler buffet of the highest order. We are talking slasher icons getting reborn through pure satire and sass, twisting the high-stakes tension of beloved cult classics like Scream , Texas Chainsaw Massacre and many more, into something hilariously absurd.
Leading the charge, and channeling the spirit of cult legend Elvira herself, is your seductive scream queen, Hellvira brought to life by the incomparable Teresa Riley.
Photo credits: -Jon Christian Ashby
Transforming into “Hellvira’s Haunted Theatre”, it’s a multi-stage variety show where a century of iconic horror cinema;
From the black-and-white dread of Nosferatu (for my Gen Z peeps, do not bounce on it crazy style…), to Melody Mangler as Dani Ardor (bringing that unsettling pagan fright from Midsommar to life), the sophisticated dread of Hannibal Lecter (I can almost taste the fava beans and a nice Chianti already…), and the VHS terror of The Ring (I’d bet it’d be a VR tech demo these days), featuring Joel Hanna and Kasha Konaka in those respective roles, complete with chilling soundscapes by Brian Carson.
But it doesn’t stop there. Throw in the musical madness of Little Shop of Horrors, with Richard Meen as Seymour and Priscilla Costa as Audrey II (because what is a horror show without a carnivorous plant with a killer voice?) and you’ve got something wild happening; a hot mess of horror and camp unfolding around you. As O’Peel puts it,
“Theatre of the Damned takes the horror films everyone knows and loves, and flips them on their head, with more blood, more sparkle, and a ridiculous sense of humour.”
A true
“love letter to horror cinema”
that embraces and then completely upends the genre’s most sacred texts.
Tickets, Dates, and the Beaumont Vibe
You have survived the digital detox and the chaos of VIFF. Now your inner horror aficionado is tingling, that craving for a glitter-soaked satire is at an all-time high, and you are ready to be damned.
Excellent!
Since only 125 lucky (or unlucky) souls are admitted per night, let us talk logistics, because despite all the upcoming chaos, a night of unforgettable terror and laughter still requires a little planning…
The Hour:
Running from October 16–30, 2025. That is a generous 16-day, 10 – show run, but remember, with only 125 guests per show, tickets are vanishing fast, with only 7 shows remaining with limited availability! Doors open at 7:30 PM, with the show kicking off promptly at 8:00 PM and a runtime of approximately a 100 minutes.
The Sanctuary:
Your destination for this Halloween extravaganza is none other than The Beaumont Studios, located at 316 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver. For those in the know, you will find the entrance through the B1 Gallery on Alberta Street.
The Price of Your Soul:
Tickets start from a mere $35, a small price to pay for an experience that promises to be intimate, electrifying, and wickedly unpredictable
The Sacrifice:
This is a 19+ event, so leave the kiddos at home. And yes, there will be a bar serving up a cocktail selection to die for all night long (Obviously. With the BCGEU strike , we need the booze.)
Oh…and the vibes!
Do not dilly-dally, Jaysuits, this extravaganza is your chance to immerse yourselves in a community where art thrives and boundaries are pushed, ensuring its chaotic spirit serves a greater, and unique Beaumont vibe this fall,
Come scream. Come laugh. Most importantly, BE DAMNED!
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