Daytona Florida

The Daytona Playhouse

Spirits from a 1920s’ home have moved right into the playhouse.

Spirits have their own quests while enjoying the playhouse program.

DESCRIPTION/HISTORY

The Daytona Playhouse is a small community theatre that has been in existence since 1946, though this current building wasn’t built on this location until 1956.

Their web site states their purpose: “Since 1946, we have entertained appreciative audiences with wonderful performances in the very best community theatre tradition. The Playhouse, a nonprofit organization, is also a source of numerous and varied volunteer opportunities in theatre production and management.”

This handsome, two story, charming little theatre is tan with red striped awnings, and can seat 264 people. The season pass for 6 plays, (Sept-May) is $72.00 for adults, $66.00 for seniors. A ten percent discount for groups of adults and seniors is also offered. If tickets are bought for individual productions, all seats are $15.00 for adults, $13.00 for seniors and a dollar for those under 18. The way that this first floor theatre is constructed, the view of the stage is good from anywhere in the theatre auditorium, which explains why all tickets cost the same for each age group.

Before 1956, a 15 room white-painted home stood on this property, owned by both the Beckwith and Doern families, who must have sold the property to The Daytona Playhouse organization. It makes sense that a private home once stood here, as it has a fine view of the river, on a large parcel of land and the road that leads to it reminds the visitor of a private driveway.

HISTORY OF MANIFESTATIONS

Around the late 1920s/early 1930s, a young couple, Alice Beckwith and Andre Doern lived together in this white house. Andre became inspired and went to Spain in the 1930s to fight in the war there. After he left, Alice found that she was expecting a baby. She began to slip into a deep depression, perhaps aggravated by hormones and eventually dove into the Halifax River, and drowned. Meanwhile, unknown to Alice, Andre was killed in the war effort in Spain. He also didn’t know that Alice was pregnant, and that she had suffered a mental break and killed herself and the baby.

In other stories found on hauntedhouses.com, sometimes entities come back to their earthly home to try to find their loved ones.

Sometimes entities are obsessed in finding/keeping their earthly belongings that were lost to them, or their wishes concerning their heirlooms were ignored, or they died before they could deliver or retrieve their heirlooms, causing them to be stuck in this world and can’t move on.

MANIFESTATIONS

For more details, check out Joyce Elson Moore’s book, Haunt Hunter’s Guide to Florida.

While the original house is long gone, some of the last residents of the home it seems have decided to haunt the land and have moved into The Daytona Playhouse, unwilling to move on to the next world because of personal issues. They are theater enthusiasts, pleasant, yet sad in countenance, and enjoy the rehearsals and productions, while trying to take care of their unfinished business, without much success.

Entity of Alice Beckwith —

is described by those who have seen her as being a young woman with strawberry blonde hair, who enjoys wearing large, plumed hats, and colorful clothing, like a flamingo/peach colored gown.

Entity of Andre —

His clothing is also right in style with the 1930s. The first incident where he appeared in a solid body state, he was wearing white pants, white shirt and a stunning red coat. Volunteers who were working inside the theatre, thought he was a real person. Imagine their surprise when he disappeared, after going into a small dressing area.

Both Alice and Andre enjoy watching rehearsals and performances, both from the back stage and the audience seats, sometimes startling the performers. When they are not enjoying the activities of the living, they search in vain to find each other, but they seem to be on different plains of existence.

Entity of an older Italian man —

Described as looking sickly, he seems to be looking for family heirlooms, such as rings.

STILL HAUNTED?

Yes Indeed!

While psychic groups and eye witness accounts of paranormal activity have long testified about a variety of paranormal experiences, a highly respected six member team from the Daytona Beach Paranormal Research Group (DBPRG) have recorded some hard evidence, gathered in Sept-Oct. ’09 that something is there. The team concluded that paranormal activity does exist, and “audio and electronic anomalies” were recorded.

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LOCATION

100 Jessamine Boulevard
Daytona Beach, Florida 32118
(386) 255-2431

Directly across the Intra-coastal Waterway from the mainland, The Daytona Playhouse can be found, near the corner of North Halifax Avenue, and Jessamine Boulevard, on property which overlooks the Halifax River. As North Halifax Avenue intersects both Oakridge Boulevard and Sea Breeze Boulevard; (roads that cross from and to the mainland), take N. Halifax Avenue north to Jessamine Boulevard, turn left and follow the road, which ends in The Daytona Playhouse’s parking lot.