Samuel Long-- Pittsburgh Post Gazette
Sep 3, 2025
The urban legend is based on a real person that lived in the Western Pennsylvania region.
Though the American theater scene is evolving, one Pittsburgh company likes to take some summer time to return to the basics of storytelling.
Pittsburgh-based Vigilance Theater Group is holding its second Campfire Stories show, where the company’s cast tells spooky stories squeezed from American folklore around the campfire. Opening night takes place at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Camp Guyasuta in Sharpsburg and three more shows take place on Saturday, then Sept. 12 and 13.
Tickets, which start at $35, are available at vigilancetheater.com.
One of this year’s stories explores the legend of the “Green Man,” also known as Ray Robinson, who was disfigured by an electrical accident and used to walk along roads at night, glowing green in the headlights of passing cars. Some locals reported seeing him in South Park or the North Hills. Others recall sightings in McKees Rocks or Brookline.
The regional myth spread in the mid-1900s. In a Post-Gazette article originally published in October 1998, individuals who grew up with the legend of the Green Man talked about seeing him walking along Route 351. Some had personal interactions with Robinson and there were supposedly photographs taken of him walking along the road.
Local connections made the “Green Man” the perfect story to tell around the campfire for Vigilance’s show, said 26-year-old resident director Brooke Echnat of Fox Chapel.
“Many of us growing up here have heard the legend, heard the myth and things like that,” Echnat said. “We really wanted to dissect that legend but also really bring the humanity and empathy to the forefront of that story.”
Sydney DuBose, a 26-year-old resident of Squirrel Hill, is the cast member telling the story of the Green Man. In addition to the online research she did about the story, DuBose also asked her friends native to the region about Robinson’s story.
She was struck by the differences in the urban legend of the Green Man and Robinson’s actual experiences. Many of the people who knew the Green Man believed him to be a kind person, DuBose said, and her research gave her perspective on what it may have been like for Robinson to fit in following his electrical accident.
“It’s kind of a bittersweet story because it’s great to see that this person was able to exist and have a quote-unquote normal life or was able to have peace and fulfillment from his life,” DuBose said. “But it’s also not so great to know that some of his legacy comes from this supernatural and urban legend lore that maybe isn't as based in reality.”
Because of this, DuBose uses a lot of empathy while telling Robinson’s story. But she’s also glad to spread the word as many of the Western Pennsylvania native individuals she talked to didn’t realize the legend of the Green Man is based on a true story.
“It’s been interesting to see how verbal stories can grow and transform,” DuBose said.
Echnat was an assistant director for the first iteration of Vigilance’s campfire stories back in 2023. She said this time, the company is leaning into the “campsite” of things. Audience members (who will get to make their own s’mores) will become the campers of the fictional “Camp Moonside” where the counselors will be leading their annual scary story competition.
It’s similar to the way movies and television presents campfire stories to its audiences, only this time the entertainment is in person, Echnat said.
“That truly connects us back to the beginnings of storytelling,” Echnat said.