Lighthearted art?
In most discussions of the Haunted Mansion’s origins, the attraction’s dynamic comes down to spooky vs goofy. If you know the history of the two men credited with the final designs of the mansion (if you don’t, check out yesterday’s post), you know that the overall concept is Marc Davis presenting a lighthearted romp through the spirit world while Claude Coats is described as advocating a dark, atmospheric encounter with the great beyond.
Certainly, there is a good bit of merit to that characterization. All you have to do is ride the attraction to see the rough three-act progression: creepy transition from reality with unseen spooks, séance room allows spooks to manifest, spooks appear and invite you to the party. At first blush, it’s pretty didactic. The opening section of the ride is spooky because it’s Claude Coats design. The last part of the ride is playful because it’s Marc Davis design. The two parts are held together by the séance room and X Atencio’s amazing score. Wham, bam, there you have it.
But it’s not that simple. Not at all.
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