Le Petit Theatre Du Vieux Carre
Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre is located on St. Peter Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is home to several ghosts that include: actors, stagehands, and patrons. The theatre originally opened in 1922 and ever since then it has been performing plays, recitals, and musicals for the residents of New Orleans. The building is actually home to two theatres; one is for a children’s theatre, and the other is a large stage that holds an audience for hundreds of theatre enthusiasts. The lobby in between the two theatres is quite large and gives easy access to a large courtyard from there.
The original building was built on the corner of Chartes and St. Peter streets and was designed by a man named Gilberto Guillemard for a wealthy member of society at the time, Baptise Orso. The construction of the building was completed in 1794, but it was destroyed that same year by the great fire. It was rebuilt and finished in 1797, when Don Manuel Gayoso de Lemos, whom was the last Spanish governor of the colony, lived there. This area of the current building is where the children’s theatre is and a part of the lobby. The large theatre was constructed in 1922.
After three buildings located on St. Peter street were demolished, the large theatre, dressing rooms, and offices were then built onto the complex. Two actresses have died in tragic fashion while at the theatre. Katherine was the name of a young actress who had started to perform well in small roles in the year 1926. She caught the attention of an excellent director, and she was picked for the lead role of an upcoming production. However, just days before the opening night, the director replaced Katherine with one of her rival actresses at the theatre. This ended up putting Katherine into a bad depression.
During one of the plays, Katherine decided to end her misery. She walked up to the catwalk over the stage, tied a rope around her neck, and jumped over in front of the entire audience. Everyone from visitors, to patrons, and to staff members have the seen the ghost of Katherine either on the stage or in the attic. In the attic, she is seen crying among a wide variety of costumes. Psychics who have come to the theatre have detected her emotions of anger and bitterness. Some people even claim feeling the terror that she had as she jumped to her death.
Two years prior to this in 1924, a 22 year-old woman named Caroline died in the courtyard. She was a great actress but she could not deal with her life outside of her acting career. Caroline had been the lead role of several productions and appeared to be heading for a great career on the stage. She was also dating an actor who had his share of achievement as an actor as well. They were together one night on the balcony over the courtyard enjoying each others company before a show. This all changed in an instant when Caroline slipped and fell over the balcony to her death.
The ghost of Caroline is often seen wearing a wedding gown, which was the costume she was set to wear for the opening scene the night of her death. People have reported seeing her apparition in all different types of costumes and wigs as well. The staff members of the theatre believe that Caroline is a happy ghost and has found a job by helping them find lost items. Normally when something cannot be found, the staff calls out to Caroline and ask her for help in finding the missing item. Minutes later, the item will appear out of no where. Her presence is also said to be calm and peaceful.
There is also another spirit at the theatre by the name of Sigmund. Sigmund is believed to have been a stage carpenter at the time of his death at the theatre. His ghost is believed to do the opposite of Caroline’s, and he takes items away and tries to hide them. He also is known to play jokes with the stage crews and attempts to cause confusion whenever it is possible. People in the audience have reported seeing Sigmund standing in the wings as the plays are being performed. People who see Sigmund describe him as a short man with white and black hair, and of course muscular arms.
One visitor even reported an encounter where Sigmund placed his arm and hand on his shoulder. Sometimes, only Sigmund’s lower legs and boots appear as he walks the dark spots of the backstage. On one night, a young man was waiting for his girlfriend to come out of the office. While he was waiting, he spoke to the spirit of Sigmund, unbeknown to him that Sigmund was a ghost at the time. They had such a good and interesting conversation that he even invited Sigmund to eat dinner with them. One would assume that if that happened, it would have been quite an awkward meal.
A group of children ghosts have also been reported at the theatre as well. They are seen running around and laughing in the small theatre. Some of them seem to have taken a liking to playing with office equipment, such as with the phone and fax machine. There is the spirit of a little girl named Stephanie that has sat in the laps of visitors who take a rest in one of the seats during their tour. It is not known as to why the spirit of Stephanie haunts the theatre because she was raped and murdered under a New Orleans Bridge. This group of children ghosts haunt both this theatre and the Crescent City bookstore on Chartres Street.
Up to this point, all of the ghosts at theatre seem to be relatively playful and harmless, but there is an evil spirit here by the name of Perry. Perry turns into the form of a dark cloud and he blocks doorways and hallways. He also makes strange noises that people cannot describe. His apparition also appears on an empty stage without a shirt, and he yells and shakes his fist at anyone that starts to walk near him. Most people believe that Perry is the spirit of a slave who died in an older part of the theatre. There is also another spirit in the theatre by the name of Alejandro Venegas.
The ghost of Alejandro is seen on the balcony, second seat from the right aisle in the front for just about every performance that takes place here. The apparition of Alejandro appears to be an old Spaniard with black hair and a mustache. He is dressed in formal attire of the early 1800s. His presence is so real that people with the ticket for the seat have gone back to the box office to have the man removed from their seat. The staff replies by saying when they go back to their seat, he will be gone, and he normally is. It is believed that this man was once a patron of the theatre and fell in love with an actress here. If one goes to visit the Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre, they will expect to be hit with a plethora of paranormal activity, ranging from the spirit of a tragic accident, to a spirit of tragic suicide, to a group of children spirits, to the spirit of an old stage carpenter, to the spirit of an angry salve, and to the spirit of an old Spaniard.
(Source: Dwyer, Jeff. Ghost Hunter’s Guide to New Orleans. 2007.)
