HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM)– You just know fall is close when the days get shorter, the leaves change color, and the Field of Screams folks drop by the station to say hello and introduce themselves to potential new fans.

Kylie Helzer, director of the show’s makeup and costume department, introduced us to some of the inmates actors- Simon (“He belongs in our asylum for many reasons,” she explains), Cookie (“He’s our cute little bear. He loves to snuggle,” she says in a way that gives “snuggle” an air of finality), Ernie (“As you can see, he just loves clowning around”, at least on the undamaged side of his face) and her chauffer Dennis (“He’s just a lovely pal”).

Kylie is not only in charge of costumes and makeup, she’s the resident tooth fairy, and her costume is one of her masterpieces. From feet to crown, it’s festooned with…teeth. Given the fact her belt holds actual dentist tools, I refrained from asking if the teeth were real.

Just some of the friendly folks who keep people screaming at Field of Screams.

It’s a special year for Field of Screams. “This is like our Halloween year,” says Kylie, “It’s our 31st year.”

With a special year comes some special new additions. “We have a new scene in The Hayride. And then we also have a new bar,” says Kylie. “It’s called the Chainsaw Bar.” They’ve also added an axe-throwing area and ramped up the chills on all four of their attractions.

Change is good, But there’s also a…healthy?…respect for tradition.

“Obviously, we change some things, but we keep we keep the fan favorites around. So we don’t like to change around too many rooms at once because a lot of people, they see it and then they know that it’s still there,” says Kylie. “And then they are like, ‘Oh, my gosh, this room is still here. Oh, we love it. We love to see all these costumes that are the same and stuff like that.’ They like to see familiar faces.”

Fields of Screams will be open on weekends from September 1 to November, finishing with the 11th annual 5K Zombie Fun Run to benefit the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition. There will also be special off-season events in December, February, March, and May for those who feel a need to be more terrified. For more information, click here.