05/03/2026
Meet the Family: Shaw (aka "Cricket")
When Shaw first joined Backwoods Haunt, He wasn't dreaming of developing personas or practicing scare acting. He just needed an escape, a chance to put on a mask and have some fun trying to scare people. That was it. Simple
"I never intended on anybody knowing what I was up to," Shaw admits. While our creative director Dru would talk about "developing a character" and "practicing," Shaw's internal response was pretty straightforward: "lol. I'm good on that."
But then came the night that changed everything, Five Minutes to Showtime
Someone had to fill in for Jason, who played the Scarecrow, one of the bigger character roles of the entire haunt. Five minutes before showtime, Dru patted Shaw on the back with all the casual confidence in the world and said, "You're gonna be a scarecrow tonight."
Like it was no big deal. Shaw was terrified
"I was scared to death. Honestly, I didn't wanna do it. I don't wanna act or be a character because I don't know how to do that," he remembers thinking.
But he got up there anyway. He did his best to mimic the real Scarecrow, channeling everything he'd observed. And about 30 minutes later? He was in love.
"I came alive and I set fire to the show that night," Shaw recalls. That moment of pure panic transformed into pure passion. He fell in love with the idea of creating his own character, bringing something unique to life on that stage.
And thus, Cricket was born.
When Shaw isn't bringing Cricket to life at Backwoods Haunt, he's living his most important role: being a dad to his 11-year-old daughter. She's his whole world, and he pours everything into being the best father he can be. Shaw is also an adrenaline ju**ie who loves to skateboard, snowboard, and surf. He's always chasing that next rush
But here's something that might shock you. one of his favorite things in the world to do is look for shells on the beach
There's something poetic about that contrast
Ask Shaw about his most memorable moment at Backwoods Haunt, and he'll take you right back to that night. Five minutes before the show. Dru's hand on his back. The moment everything changed.
It's a reminder that sometimes the things we're most scared to do become the things we fall most in love with. Sometimes we need someone to believe in us before we can believe in ourselves. Sometimes we just need that push
What started as a simple escape became something so much more. Shaw found a place where he could come alive, where he could create, where he could transform into something entirely different while somehow becoming more of himself in the process.
it's a testament to what happens when you take a chance, when you say yes even when you're terrified, when you let yourself fall in love with something you never planned on doing in the first place.
We at BackWoods Haunt are so thankful to have Shaw on the crew. Not only does he act in the haunt, when we started building this past season he jumped right in and put his sweat into the architecture. Come see Shaw aka Cricket in full force this upcoming October Haunt season
