Auditions were held recently for someone to mimic the voice of Old Man Gloom, featured as part of the 98th annual Burning of Zozobra.
Over 60 contestants auditioned to take part in Santa Fe’s biggest tradition, according to KOAT 7. Auditions for the unique cultural event were held at the Scottish Rite Center.
Candidates used a vintage microphone to groan and roar along with a recording of Zozobra; the character is a giant marionette effigy. They emulated the scary sound of the city's infamous boogeyman, also known as "Old Man Gloom." Voice actors have not been needed until now, as the event has not been held since 1983.
Raymond Sandoval, event chairman for the Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe, was pleased with the turnout.
"The more people who are involved in the tradition, the more people [can] get their families [and] get their young folks involved,” he told KOAT 7. "The longer the tradition will last, the stronger the tradition will be."
The giant effigy is built and burned prior to the annual Fiestas de Santa Fe.
Many of those who auditioned, like Bill Parnell, enjoy a long connection to the tradition.
"I was in a band called Lawyers, Guns, and Money and we actually performed right at the foot of Zozobra in the '80s," Parnell, a district court judge in Albuquerque, told KOAT 7. "That's how it was back then. I always appreciated the sound of the voice."
Parnell said the key is to let the microphone do the work.
"You have to have feeling in your voice," he said. "You have to be able to get that feeling across, but I think actually using that microphone, very many people could do it. It's the function of that microphone, I think, if you know how to use [it]."
Elaine Rodriguez was one of the few women at the audition. Her father was among the crew members who helped organize the annual celebration. Rodriguez, a Santa Fe resident, said she has been practicing the voice of Old Man Gloom since childhood and she was excited about auditioning for the role.
"My mother was born in 1924, when Zozobra started," Rodriguez said. "My father was a lineman for [the] Public Service Company of New Mexico, so he would put up Zozobra."
Felix Cordova also auditioned.
"Zozobra means the world to me," he told KOAT 7. "Every year, I can remember going to my grandmother's [house], and I was just like a little kid ... We'd play in the arroyos, we'd walk to Zozobra, and it'd be like a fun Santa Fe tradition. It's changed a lot over the years, but the heart still remains the same."
Ben Kramer attended the audition with his 10-year-old son.
"You go through these questions as a parent when a child obsesses about something," he said. "Has it gotten to the point where it's time to cut them off or do you just have to go with it? [His mother and I] wanted to be the kind of parents who just go with it. When we saw this opportunity, we knew that we had to come be around other people who would understand this passion."
Auditions were also held for someone to sing the national anthem at the event, which will occur on Friday, September 2.