Braving the bay: What it's like being part of the Scallywags Pirate Adventures crew

Jared Lewis dresses as a pirate almost everywhere he goes.

Whether he's in line at the grocery store, pumping gas or riding his longboard around the city, the Erie resident is often catching passersby's attention.

"I live it 24/7," Lewis, 35, said. "I have a pirate band, The Stormalong Scoundrels, Erie’s only pirate band, which by default makes us the best. We play modernized sea shanties, mostly from the 13th through 19th century."

Lewis even creates pirate content for social media and streams on the gaming streaming channel Twitch as a pirate.

It seemed fitting that he would take on the persona of Captain Skull for the Scallywags Pirate Adventures on Erie's Bayfront.

"Before this, I did street performance, mainly music and circus acts, then I started adding a pirate aesthetic to it and learned a bunch of sea shanties," Lewis said. "I was working at a kitchen up here and saw a hiring post on Facebook (for Scallywags) so I thought I’d give it a shot. This is probably the most fun job I’ve ever had."

Creating authenticity

For the past five years, Lewis has played what he refers to as the classic "Saturday morning cartoon villain."

"It just has a lot of historical adaptation to it ... with the larger-than-life evil laugh, over-exaggerated mannerisms," he said. "Very much what you’re expecting from a pirate."

Since joining the Scallywags cast, Lewis has worked on shaping his character with the help of Rodger Dobry, entertainment director for Presque Isle Boat Tours and a fellow pirate.

Summertime fun:How to beat inflation and snag fireworks deals this July Fourth

Dobry, of the Belle Valley area of Millcreek Township, came to Scallywags seven seasons ago to play "Captain Jack Sparrow" from Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean. It didn't take long for him to create his current pirate character Captain Jolly Rodger.

"I’m very Irish, so my pirate is Irish and I talk with an Irish accent," Dobry said. "I can’t say I based him off any movie, but my Jolly Rodger outfit for the kids' cruises is based off Tim Curry’s Long John Silver from 'Muppet Treasure Island.' That’s my favorite pirate."

Dobry also handles a lot of the behind-the-scenes work that makes Scallywags Pirate Adventures run. He's written the scripts for the shows and custom-made every pirate's costume.

"I’ve been sewing since middle school," he said. "It was one of those things when I came on board originally, people were wearing Party City costumes, and I thought we could do so much better. So, everybody’s costume is unique, nobody looks the same."

Authentic characters, costumes and scripts create an elevated experience for guests and crew members alike, Dobry said.

"It’s a very unique experience," Dobry said. "I’ve been doing theater my whole life, but I’ve never done anything like this. We do skits that tell the whole story, but in-between there’s downtime and that’s when we start improvising. It gives a lot of room to play."

An entertaining experience

With a schedule of running six days a week, sometimes from 10:30 a.m. to almost 10 p.m., the cast and crew are always finding ways to keep each other entertained, said Mark Welser.

"If somebody comes on at 3 p.m., they expect you to have the same amount of energy you had at 10:30 a.m., so you have to keep it consistent or they’ll know if you’re not giving it your all," said Welser, 40, also known as First Mate Bruce Ballard.

Welser, of Erie, said crew members constantly try and make each other break character, or even attempt to one-up one another.

Related:Music acts Ja Rule, Mýa, Jimmie Allen, X Ambassadors to headline main stage at CelebrateErie

"And I get to be funny and have an outlet for my jokes that nobody at my house wants to hear," he said. "But really, giving kids the chance to yell at an adult, because when you give it to them, they give it right back and they don’t get to do that at home."

It's a chance for children to relax and release some energy, but Dobry hopes the Scallywags Pirate Adventures can be a relaxing escape for people of all ages.

"We try to make it entertaining for everyone on board," he said. "We allow an atmosphere for people to just kind of be kids again.

"It’s a lot different than going anywhere else with your kids because you can take them to Waldameer (Park & Water World) but even then you’re standing in line, and you have to behave yourself. Here, we’re pirates and we’re meant to misbehave. At least to a certain extent."

Baylee DeMuth can be reached at 814-450-3425 or bdemuth@timesnews.com. Follow her on Twitter @BayleeDeMuth.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Scallywags Pirate Adventures crew share job experiences, characters