Springfield Theatre Centre

A downtown Springfield theater that's hosted performances for generations. Behind the scenes, there's reportedly a vindictive spirit with a long memory and a short temper.

The Springfield Theatre Centre at 101 East Lawrence, built in 1951, hosted performances for the Springfield Theatre Guild until 2004, when they relocated to the Hoogland Center for the Arts. The place has been considered haunted for most of its existence--there's a very good chance this is the most haunted building in Springfield.

The haunting is attributed to Joe Neville, an actor who left the theater after a dress rehearsal on May 13, 1955, and committed suicide at home that night. During an audit at his workplace, substantial funds had been found to be misappropriated, and a fellow employee blamed Joe. Described as an eccentric and unfriendly fellow, Neville loved the theater and was scheduled to play his first lead role when he died. As one long-time Theatre Guild member stated: "If there was anyone who was going to come back as a ghost, it would be Joe."

Since Neville's death, strange phenomena have plagued the theater: sounds and lights without source, objects disappearing, doors opening and closing on their own, sets and prop pieces moving or falling without assistance, and heavy objects hurled at unsuspecting victims. Most distinctively, the pungent aroma of facial cream--a product banned from the building for years--periodically permeates the air.

Staff tell weird tales of Joe's presence. Props have fallen from rafters and struck people. Staff members have been pushed offstage. A filmy, white figure once appeared on an overhead catwalk. When two men building a set expressed skepticism about the ghost, a saw started by itself, plywood sheets fell to the floor, and unseen hands pushed over a standing ladder.

The front counter in the lobby is a focal point of activity. Many people, including patrons with no knowledge of the theater's haunted history, have noticed the door swinging open and closed on its own. On one memorable occasion, a girl reported having her hand held by an invisible escort while crossing a room.

A vindictive actor terrorizes visitors still, even after the theater's closure as a performance venue.