‘Really fun, really scary’: Haunted Holland and Nightmare in the Quad presents Halloween themed activities for students

Students huddled together in fearful anticipation as they weaved through the underground tunnels of the Schenley Quad, awaiting jumpscares from Holland Hall RAs and residents dressed in frightening Halloween attire on Friday night.

Haunted Holland and Nightmare in the Quad are Pitt Halloween traditions that have taken place for over 20 years. The event was sponsored by both the Resident Student Association (RSA) and Pitt Res Life in the Office of Student Affairs.

Students entered this year’s Haunted Holland through Holland Hall’s north entrance and exited out of Bruce Hall. Each year, Haunted Holland is produced by students and set up in the series of underground hallways beneath the five residence halls of the Schenley Quad — Holland, Amos, McCormick, Brackenridge and Bruce halls.

Students also participated in Nightmare in the Quad, which took place on the ground floor of the William Pitt Union due to inclement weather. There, they enjoyed free funnel cake, popcorn, apple cider and doughnuts and participated in activities such as tote bag painting, basketball and mini golf. Students also had the option to participate in tarot card readings or caricature drawings while listening to music courtesy of WPTS Radio.

To enter the haunted house, students filled out a survey and were placed on a waitlist. Students like Calla Siegrist took part in indoor activities through Nightmare in the Quad while waiting to enter Haunted Holland.

In past years, Haunted Holland has incorporated a wide variety of themes including funhouse, graveyard, zombies, exterminator, supernatural, murder house, torture chamber and haunted hospital. 

Siegrist, a first-year communication sciences major, said the night’s activities leading up to the haunted house outdid her expectations.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect it to have this much, it was kind of a surprise,” Siegrist said. “I’ve seen all of the performances so far, and they’ve been incredible. Everyone has been serving astronomically. There’s so much free food, it’s incredible, and now we’re just waiting to get into the haunted house, which we’re so hyped for.”

Isabel Naranjo-Contreras, a first year psychology major, was pleasantly surprised by her experience in Haunted Holland.

“It was so much better than I expected,” Naranjo-Contreras said. “It was like a real haunted house.” 

Jaleeah Greene-Reyes, a first-year biology major, said going through Haunted Holland was worthwhile.

“It was really fun, really scary,” Greene-Reyes said. “I had a good time.”

Even though the event was organized differently than she had anticipated, Kami Alfieri, a first-year marketing major, said she was still able to find activities that interested her.

“It’s a lot cooler than I anticipated it being, though I was kind of confused because I thought that Nightmare in the Quad was actually going to be in the quad and not in here,” Alfieri said. “That was a little roadblock, but whenever we got in here, there were a lot of fun games. We didn’t do [them], but we did get apple cider and snacks, and the snacks [were] really good. Then I painted [a] tote bag.”

Rhea Slaughter, a first-year undecided major, was surprised to learn that the event featured activities other than the haunted house.

“I thought it was just going to be the haunted hall thing, so I thought it was a pleasant surprise,” Slaughter said. “We played with the basketball a bit, the apple cider was good, and the band sounded pretty good.”