Wax Works 2009 at Negros Museum: My Personal Notes

Wax Works, now on its 5th year, used to go unnoticed despite the fact that I just work at the next building.

The first time I was an unwilling guest and if not for the 5 complimentary tickets I was given, I didn't come then dragging along the only other willing companion, my family. That was three years ago.

Since then it has become a yearly tradition with my daughter always egging me to to, curious to know what could be this year's theme.

And so we went, bringing along my three adopted girls for their first time horror room treat. The thought of them being scared out of their wits was amusing enough as we remembered how they screamed in terror as they were being wounded up the ferris wheel a few months ago. It wasn't a nice first time experience in all their 12, 13, and 14 years respectively.

But I also assured them that the scary figures they will be seeing are just humans dressed and made up for halloween. As an example, they also donned themselves in scary clothes and makeup a few days before and had fun scaring each other.

Perhaps this is the reason why the show is more of an interactive thrilling performance show than a terror-filled trip, to avoid any untoward events such as costumed actors ending up being beaten by visitors.

For my seventy year old father who's more concerned of being crushed by freaked out teenagers, he opted to stay outside and waited after our 15-minute horror trip was over.

He just had his picture taken with his granddaughter beside a mannequin costumed as a white lady bathed in white light. At the holding area, while waiting for our turn, the girls also had their pictures taken with headless or horribly dressed mannequins.

An unsmiling guide led us in a maze of several chambers of different ghastly themes. As usual, the squeezing and pulling and screaming of the 20 or so bunch against each was more terrifying than the costumed actors. Only a mother with two toddlers and a baby backed out as it was too much for the little ones.

Thankful for the general patronage scare, my girls came out unscathed except for a broken slipper, and proud to say that the show wasn't scary after all.