Searching for Bigfoot

Mike Familant of Sussex, New Jersey, has collected casts of suspected Bigfoot prints from dozens of sights since he began researching the cryptid in 2011.
Nathan Miller
Mike Familant of Sussex, New Jersey, has collected casts of suspected Bigfoot prints from dozens of sights since he began researching the cryptid in 2011.
A group of nearly 30 squatchers and skeptics gathered at David M. Hunt Library in Falls Village Thursday evening, Nov. 7, for a presentation from Bigfoot researcher Mike Familant.
Familant is the Bigfoot fanatic behind “In the Shadow of Big Red Eye,” a weekly show he produces to document his hunt for Bigfoot in the Eastern U.S.
Familant said he began his Sasquatch hunting career basically on a whim. In 2011 he bought tickets to join fans on a Bigfoot research expedition at Torreya State Park in the Florida Panhandle, put on by the crew behind Animal Planet’s “Finding Bigfoot.”
That first trip was life changing for Familant. He and his friend Jimmy had set up their encampment away from the other guests on the trip, both to reduce the chances of bothering the other campers with late-night fireside chatter and to improve their chances of encountering the elusive Bigfoot. The woods were quiet until the last night of the trip. Early in the morning, as Familant and Jimmy were relaxing by the fire, they began hearing knocks on trees surrounding the tent. Frightened, Familant retreated to the car to avoid any wildlife that might want to hurt him. Undeterred, Jimmy coaxed him back to the campfire to experience the strange encounter. Shortly after returning, Familant said a series of fist-sized rocks flew through the trees and landed on the ground with solid thuds around their camp. Familant’s friend then picked up one of the fist-sized rocks, and in an attempt to communicate with whatever might be throwing them, threw it back. “I knew it wasn’t a person,” Familant said. “Because at that exact moment a 15 pound, laptop-sized boulder came crashing down and lands just five feet from us.”
Familant said during his talk that getting friends and families outside is his biggest inspiration.Nathan Miller
That night in the woods convinced Familant of the existence of Bigfoot, and he has been producing his show ever since. “I would still be sitting in an ambulance on the street corners of Tampa if that rock hadn’t been thrown at me,” Familant said.
Now, producing “In the Shadow of Big Red Eye” is Familant’s full-time job. He spends over a hundred nights camping ever year, collecting footprint casts, video and audio in his search for evidence of Bigfoot. Familant’s travels have taken him across the Eastern U.S. into nearly every state east of Ohio.
Familant’s mission in producing the show and touring the country for presentations is to “entice friends and families to get off the couch and into nature, to see something you wouldn’t normally see.”
“Growing up I was happiest in front of the TV playing a video game,” Familant said. But now, he spends most nights in a tent or on the road, hiking or on his way to the next hike to find Bigfoot in the Appalachian wilderness. Whether or not Bigfoot really exists, Familant said what’s important is discovery, curiosity and getting outside.
“Life with the possibility of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster,” Familant said, “is a hell of a lot better than life without it.”
One of the entries in this year’s Community Day Scarecrow Contest, Ichabod Hiccup, at left, seems to be particularly enjoying the solo performance of Wil Greenstreet, whose strolling pop-up saxophone performances delighted visitors to the village on Saturday, Sept. 20. For more photos, turn to Page A8.
A popular feature of the Millbrook Library lawn area was a carpet of children’s books being given away for free. Appealing to little Julien Gulbrandsen, 3, of Pleasant Valley was the story of a pancake, being read by her mother Lauren Gulbrandsen. It is likely that the little book went home with them.Photo by Leila Hawken
Family fun and community were the order of the long-planned Community Day, on Saturday, Sept. 20, as village turned out to welcome visitors from throughout the region for a day of activities, contests, parades, displays, sales and the joy of being together.Photo by Leila Hawken
Top row, left to right, Caroline Kinsolving, Christopher McLinden, Dana Domenick, Reid Sinclair and Director Hunter Foster. Bottom row, left to right, Will Nash Broyles, Dick Terhune, Sandy York and Ricky Oliver in Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap.”
Opening on Sept. 26, Agatha Christie’s legendary whodunit “The Mousetrap” brings suspense and intrigue to the Sharon Playhouse stage, as the theater wraps up its 2025 Mainstage Season with a bold new take on the world’s longest-running play.
Running from Sept. 26 to Oct. 5, “The Mousetrap” marks another milestone for the award-winning regional theater, bringing together an ensemble of exceptional local talent under the direction of Broadway’s Hunter Foster, who also directed last season’s production of “Rock of Ages." With a career that spans stage and screen, Foster brings a fresh and suspense-filled staging to Christie’s classic.
The Playhouse’s casting includes Dana Domenick of Falls Village who leads the cast as Mollie Ralston, the newlywed innkeeper with a secret. Reid Sinclair of Norfolk plays Giles, her husband and partner in hospitality — and maybe in something more sinister. Will Nash Broyles from Lakeville plays the eccentric and enigmatic Christopher Wren, and Sandy York of Sharon will play the role of the imperious Mrs. Boyle. Dick Terhune (Litchfield), Caroline Kinsolving (Salisbury), Ricky Oliver (Pawling), and Christopher McLinden (also Lakeville) round out the cast as the play’s increasingly suspicious guests — and one very determined detective.
As always, Sharon Playhouse has gathered a top-tier creative team to match its cast. The Swader brothers (Christopher and Justin) return with their signature scenic designs, while Kathleen DeAngelis’s costumes and Bobbie Zlotnik’s wigs promise to anchor us firmly in postwar England, even as the plot spirals into timeless psychological suspense. Lighting by Wheeler Moon and sound design by Graham Stone will help turn the cozy theater into a stage crackling with tension.
If you’ve never seen “The Mousetrap,” here’s what you need to know: it’s the murder mystery that truly defined the genre. Premiering in London’s West End in 1952 and still running strong over 30,000 performances later, Christie’s ingenious puzzle unfolds in a snowbound manor house where everyone has something to hide, and no one is safe from suspicion. Its final twist is famously kept secret by audiences — a tradition of theatrical discretion that only deepens the sense of shared experience.
“The enduring success of ‘The Mousetrap’ lies in its suspense, yes, but also in its structure,” said the Playhouse’s Artistic Director Carl Andress. “It’s a masterclass in storytelling. And with Hunter Foster leading this incredible cast of local artists, we know our audiences are in for an evening of mystery, laughter, and yes, plenty of gasps.”
Tickets are available now at SharonPlayhouse.org.