FOR THE KIDS : Delightfully Scary Times on Stage at Arts Council Center : Children’s theatrical group in Thousand Oaks will turn the rooms into horrific chambers in which they’ll perform skits.

It’s that time of year again, when a kid’s thoughts turn to ghoulish delights like flesh-ripping zombies and werewolves.

Ah, Halloween.

The Young Artists Ensemble, the children’s theatrical group in Thousand Oaks, is putting a new twist on the old haunted house theme. They’re turning the rooms of the Arts Council Center into a collection of horrific chambers in which they’ll perform chilling skits.

It’s called “The Haunted Center II,”--so named because it’s the second annual fund-raiser for the kids’ group. Last year the Halloween extravaganza was a sellout.

The kids are doing 10 performances during Halloween weekend, Oct. 29, 30 and 31. Two shows are already sold out. Tickets, at $6 apiece, are available only in advance.

This is not a show for young, “impressionable children,” according to director Mark Reyes, who came up with the script.

Those gritty enough for this experience will actually walk through the performance as they travel from room to room at the Arts Council Center. In skits that last a few minutes, the children portray a variety of creatures and characters in gruesome settings like “A Salem Witch Hanging,” “Jack the Ripper,” “The Hunt for Dracula,” “A Living Mummy” and “Man-Eating Plant.”

Then, the audience gathers for a horror-filled variety show, “Leave It to Cleaver.” The cast includes mad doctors, hunchbacked assistants, damsels in distress and a singing werewolf.

“It’s a little twisted,” Reyes said.

About 47 youngsters, ages 10 to 19, are working on the show, performing, or designing and constructing sets and costumes. Audience members are urged not to wear costumes for the show.

For younger children who are a little more squeamish about Halloween, the ensemble is also presenting a scary and funny spoof, “Under Jekyll’s Hyde,” at the Arts Council Center. This one is billed as suitable for the whole family. And costumes are encouraged.

Directed by Barbara Wegher-Thompson, this show runs during the day on Oct. 30 and 31. Tickets are $4; advance reservations are recommended. Kids can also take a trick-or-treat journey through a junior version of a haunted house.

The Young Artists Ensemble is a cooperative effort of the Conejo Recreation and Park District, the Arts Council of the Conejo Valley and the Conejo Valley Unified School District.

HAUNTED HOUSE

If your kids want to be chilled to the bone, take them to the Ventura Jaycees’ “Factory of Terror” at the Ventura County Fairgrounds in Ventura. It opened Wednesday and runs through Halloween.

This is the granddaddy of haunted houses. The Jaycees have taken a 6,000-square-foot building and converted it into chambers of fright, beginning at the front door with a greeting by the Grim Reaper himself.

This is not an experience recommended for children under 6, says the Jaycees’ Dave Atkin. Nonetheless, 8,000 terror lovers went through the factory last year. The Jaycees have been doing this for 18 years as a fund-raiser for Ventura schools, and last year the effort brought in $8,000. They get some help from local students who appear as spooks and other ghoulish characters.

The factory is open Sunday through Thursday, 7 to 9:30 p.m.; and Friday and Saturday from 7 to 11:30 p.m. Cost is $6.

CRAFTS

Kids can take a Halloween workshop and learn how to make masks, trick-or-treat bags, decorations and more. Ventura’s Recreation Department is offering the session Saturday from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the Barranca Vista Center, 7050 E. Ralston St. The class is for kids 6 to 11 and costs $12. To reserve a spot, call 658-4726.

Ventura County Life contributor Jane Hulse is a parent and knee-deep in kids activities. If you have any family news, send it to her at Ventura County Life, 5200 Valentine Road, Suite 140, Ventura, 93003, or send faxes to 658-5576.

Details

* WHAT: The Young Artists Ensemble production, “The Haunted Center II.”

* WHERE: Arts Council Center, 482 Greenmeadow Ave., Thousand Oaks.

* WHEN: Remaining show times are Oct. 29, 7:30, 9, and 10:30 p.m.; Oct. 30, 9 and 10:30 p.m.; and Oct. 31, 6, 7:30, and 9 p.m.

* COST: Tickets are $6 and must be reserved in advance. Call 499-4355.

* FYI: Show times for “Under Jekyll’s Hyde” are Oct. 30 and Oct. 31, 11 a.m. and 1 and 3 p.m. at the Arts Council Center. Tickets are $4 and should be reserved by calling 499-4355.