Find out starting this weekend at Union Hotel

John Darklore (played by David Cheney) relaxes in his manor. - Submitted photos

Night Fright Production’s annual haunted house opens this weekend at the Historic Union Hotel.

“What Lies In Darklore Manor” is a dramatic haunted house-style attraction that includes 22 rooms and more than 60 actors and support people.

This year’s production is a “very scary but not gory,” said Jeri Mackley, owner and producer of Night Fright Productions.

Admission is $10 per person.

The haunt will be open to the public Oct. 10-11, 17-18, 24-25,  29-31, and Nov. 1 from 7 to 10 p.m. On Oct. 18 and 25, the haunt will also be open from 3 to 5 p.m. but will be toned down to be much less scary for younger children, and admission will be reduced to $7 per person.

On Halloween night the haunt will open at 6. Halloween night will also include Trick-or-Treat Hall, with rooms on the second floor sponsored by different businesses and open for trick-or-treaters from 6 to 9 p.m.

This year’s theme, “What Lies In Darklore Manor?”, is set in an old manor house that has been empty for years and has fallen into disrepair.

Explore the shadows of this forsaken dwelling and discover the secrets buried long ago and the horror that yet lurks within this house of fear.

For years no living soul has ventured in the once-elegant manor. Decayed remnants of the forgotten past weave a haunting tapestry of its former splendor.

Now a candle has been seen burning in the window and you have been summoned to a funeral at Darklore Manor. Will you have the courage to attend? To cross the threshold of the dead and enter the house and the forsaken Darklore crypt? Where buried long ago, darkness immortal has been unleashed. Resurrected from the grave it hungers for life once more.

This production has been in planning and construction all year with a complete makeover from last year’s event. Last year’s haunted attraction drew 2,600 people, up from the first year’s 1,700.

Left to right, Ben Ash, Debbie Clark, David Cheney and Allen Mackley hang skeletons for the haunted house. - Submitted photos

Actors, volunteers and support people for this event include people of all ages from 10 years old up to grandparents, with the majority of the actors being EOU students and high school students.

“It’s fun to do something that can involve the community and also give back through entertainment and donations,’’ Mackley said.

Including past and this year’s events, Night Fright Productions will be donating more than $10,000 of the proceeds to charities and organizations including Shelter From the Storm, Court Appointed Special Advocates, ArtsEast, the EOU drama club and the EOU sports program.

Community Connection will be running shuttle buses from the EOU dorms to the Union Hotel on Oct. 10, 18 and 24. Shuttles will depart EOU every half hour beginning at 6:30 pm with the last bus leaving the dorms at 9 p.m. Cost for the shuttle is $2 round trip, and free to EOU students who will also receive a coupon for an additional $1 off of admission.

Tickets are available at Sunflower Books in La Grande, at the Union Hotel and will be sold at the door. For more information visit www.NightFrightEvents.com .