He wanted to invest millions of dollars and put tons of long hours into putting a fantasy/theatrical/reality amusement park together.
He had the land.
He had $91 million and plenty of interested investors.
He wanted to share his dreams.
Being a skeptical reporter who had heard lots of big ideas including one for a Six Flags/Disneyland-like Park in the same area, I wished him well but doubted whether he could pull it off.
I looked at the model and listened to the ideas he had, from a pirate treasure ship moored in a man-made lake to the spooky woods full of magical, dark creatures.
It would be kind of like a Jumanji game come to life.
I came close to seeing the vision but it was so revolutionary and would take so much talent and money to make it real I couldn't totally buy into it. (This is even after I tried the virtual reality helmet and took a journey into The Void which was breathtaking.)
Nevertheless, I persuaded my editors at The Deseret News to run a story and a rendering.
And waited to see.
The months and years passed and I read a few stories about the success of The Void which was making money, news and waves.
I saw the ground broken at the site and construction start.
Bretschneider had a Halloween party on the grounds. It was lively and brought in a crowd.
I crossed my fingers for him.
Then my husband saw a notice about Evermore auditioning for people to be part of the scene.
He got a part.
We heard about an opening date.
We learned they were having a party to announce themselves and teaming up with Fan-X to create some buzz.
This weekend we bought a ticket to a soft opening on a night when my husband was not in the show so I could see for myself what it is.
And it is...different, quirky, magical, a little spooky and very adventurous.
There are lots of visual treats, plenty of creatures with stories to tell and agendas that require a little investigation.
It's a unique kind of venue.
We met vampires, witches, a dragon, an owl, zombies, gypsies and a great big king with a weird voice.
I bargained with a vampire to get information I needed to help a sick lad. I visited with a fortune teller, traded with a potion maker, successfully avoided a scary acolyte. (Didn't know what it was until my husband told me.)
It's like nothing I've seen before.
It's breathtaking.
I don't understand all of it. I think there's more going on than I know and I think I'd like to go again.
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