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Over 90 performers are taking part in Pirates of Emerson this year. (Photo courtesy Pirates of Emerson) 
Over 90 performers are taking part in Pirates of Emerson this year. (Photo courtesy Pirates of Emerson) 
Pirates of Emerson is reopening at the Alameda County Fairgrounds during weekends and select Thursdays from Sept. 26 to Nov. 2. (Photo courtesy Pirates of Emerson) 
A performer at Pirates of Emerson dressed in their scare-wear. (Photo courtesy Pirates of Emerson)
Resurrecting in Pleasanton this weekend, Pirates of Emerson is set to open for another season of haunts.
Now in its 35th year, the Halloween-time theme park boasts over 90 actors across four haunted houses as well as carnival games, live music and a virtual reality experience.
With no way to fit all the spookiness in one building, the park is located on 6 acres of the Alameda County Fairgrounds.
“It’s definitely an intense atmosphere. There’s smoke machines, strobe lights, loud music and people getting in your face and chasing you with chainsaws,” proprietor Brian Fields told Pleasanton Weekly. “It’s not for the faint of heart.”
Beginning as an at-home operation for the Fields family in Fremont, the attraction has grown to become larger than ever expected, he added.
In preparation for thousands of annual visitors, nearly all year is spent designing and building new settings and effects, according to the park website.
“It’s completely immersive when you go through our haunted houses,” Fields said. “You don’t walk by the scenes and look at things. You walk through the scenes and you’re part of it.”
“When you get in there, you can’t help but be scared,” Fields added.
Pirates of Emerson prides itself on being young adult-oriented over being a children’s haunted house, Fields explained.
The attraction is recommended for ages 13 years and up, and anyone under 16 years old must be accompanied by an adult who is at least 21 years old, according to the park website.
Live music performances at Pirates of Emerson are set to include Creepo, Black Son Massacre, Shark in the Water and Live the Day.
Pirates of Emerson is scheduled to run during weekends and select Thursdays from this Friday (Sept. 2) to Nov. 2. For more information and tickets, visit piratesofemerson.com.
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