PRESS RELEASE: Exclusive Behind the Curtain Experiences at The Piedmont Grand Opera House This Fall

An ‘Evening of Spirits, Song & the Unexplained’ plus private ghost tours, spooky stories & much more!

MACON, Ga. (September 17, 2026) — Visit Macon and The Piedmont Grand Opera House invite you to an array of unforgettable, never-before-offered experiences ‘behind the curtain’ of Macon’s most elegant and storied theatrical landmarks. For the first time, guests will have the rare opportunity to participate in many unique ways to experience a collaboration only October can bring!

Macon Beyond: Spirits & Song (Saturday, October 17th) will allow guests to spend the evening immersed in part paranormal investigation, part intimate performance, and part journey into the stories that still echo through this historic theater. Macon Beyond: Spirits & Song will bring together paranormal investigation, Appalachian balladry, Southern storytelling, and a few spirits of both the supernatural and drinkable varieties.

Guests first gather on the historic stage of The Piedmont Grand Opera House for an intimate BBQ dining experience provided by Mercer University’s catering.

Music will then be provided by The Creek FM / streamthecreek.com featuring “The Nest of Singing Birds.” Recently featured on ABC News/National Geographic‘s special “Disney Celebrates America,” hosted by Diane Sawyer & segmented specifically for Good Morning America, Donna Ray Norton, Sheila Kay Adams, and their band of traditional Appalachian ballad singers will share the haunting songs, oral traditions, and old stories passed from one generation to the next. Food and drinks will accompany the experience as guests settle into a space normally seen from the other side of the footlights.

Following the musical performance, a truly special paranormal investigation experience will follow, hosted by actor/producer Carrie Genzel. Genzel is known for roles in horror television and film, including The Walking Dead, Supernatural, Jennifer’s Body, Dead Rising: Watchtower, Evil Feed, and They’re Watching. Also joining to lead the investigation through this gorgeous theatre will be spiritual medium Morrighan Lynne and lead investigatorJonathan Morgan.

Genzel, Lynne, and Morgan are known for their work together investigating Macon’s history, stories, and unexplained activity through Visit Macon’s Macon Beyond video series and the recently launched Arcwell Productions Original podcast, Echoes of the South™.

The investigation will guide guests into the theatre for an immersive paranormal investigation of its most intriguing spaces, learning its history, hearing accounts of unexplained activity, and using investigative techniques and equipment to see what, if anything, might answer back.

When the curtain falls, and the audience goes home…do all of the performers leave with them?

For tickets (available here), customize your experience, your way! Dinner and concert only is available for $50 (plus taxes and fees). The Investigation only is $30 (plus taxes and fees. We do hope that you’ll join us for the full experience: $80 (plus taxes and fees)!

For media opportunities with Carrie Genzel, please contact carriegenzel@gmail.com.

Macon Macabre: Behind the Curtain (Thursday, October 22nd, Friday, October 23rd, and Thursday, October 29th)

Choose from three unique occasions to join Rock Candy Tours’ Macon Macabre Guided Walking Tour through Downtown Macon’s nightlife & entertainment district, featuring stories of ghostly sightings, torrid urban legends, historical accounts, and stories of the macabre, followed by an intimate group tour of The Piedmont Grand Opera House after the stage lights go down.

Tickets are available for $35 → HERE

Macon Macabre: The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Friday, October 30th)

This one-night-only opportunity provides a Rock Candy Tours’ Macon Macabre Guided Walking Tour immediately followed by The Piedmont Grand Opera House’s annual performance of the Rocky Horror Picture Show with a live shadow cast.This includes a costume contest ahead of the movie, so come dressed to kill! The film is intended for mature audiences. Your package includes the tour, admission to the show, a prop bag, and a tumbler courtesy of The Piedmont Grand Opera House.

Tickets are available for $50 → HERE

“These October collaborations in our community are some of the most fun we get to have each year!” explains President & CEO of Visit Macon, Gary Wheat. “We saw the attention and sincere appeal for Macon’s October calendar of events over the past couple of years. We love the challenge of building on that by creating as many opportunities as we can for activities, guest engagement, and showcasing our destination where guests will want to stay, explore, and ‘investiage’ with us in new ways each year!”

Named by HGTV for the 3rd year in a row as a ‘Best Small Town to Celebrate Halloween’ and profiled by Travel+Leisure Magazine as ‘One of the Best Halloween Destinations for Its Haunted Mansions, Ghost Tours, and 'Witch Float' Down the River’ Visit Macon’s goal is to continue providing our visitors and locals a one-stop guide to experience it all. Visit the website for the best schedule of all of Macon’s Fall events! It also features a repository for our “Macon Beyond” video series that dives deep into the history of some historic locations rumored to still hold residual energy. Please visit maconbeyond.comoften, as we add more events every week leading up to October.

For more information, please contact Visit Macon’s Director of Marketing, Marisa Rodgers, at (478) 743-1074 x106 or email mrodgers@visitmacon.org, or the Executive Director, Piedmont Grand Opera House, Julia Morrison, at (478) 301-2933 or email morrison_j@mercer.edu.

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About Visit Macon: The mission of Visit Macon is to unify and lead our community in marketing the Macon-Bibb County area as a superior visitor and meeting destination. Visit Macon promotes Macon, Georgia to travel writers, meeting planners, group tour operators, and leisure travelers in an effort to bring people and revenues into the community and area businesses. visitmacon.org

About The Piedmont Grand Opera House: The Piedmont Grand Opera House is a vibrant community-assembly resource for all residents of Macon-Bibb County, as well as a draw for cultural tourism that significantly impacts the success of Macon’s downtown and corresponding economic vitality. It is our mission to nurture an appreciation of the arts in all citizens of Central Georgia, especially its youngest citizens, through attracting the presentation of quality productions as well as an immersion into a treasured architectural artifact that reflects more than 100 years of Macon’s history. And finally, as a performing arts center of Mercer University, the Piedmont Grand Opera House seeks to champion excellence as the premier theatrical venue in Central Georgia. Buy tickets online at thegrandmacon.com or over the phone at (478) 301-5470.