5051 W. Cal Sag Road, Crestwood, IL
years: 2013
Dead Central was a new haunt for the Tourers, and, as the name implies, had something of a hospital theme to it. It was located on the grounds of Hollywood Park, an amusement center in Crestwood, IL. Since we were going to be in the area, we decided to check it all out.
When we arrived there were several live actors roaming around, including one dressed as some kind of hospital patient who was interacting with various visitors and juggling as well. He managed to creep out a lot of people inside this busy amusement center, which is no mean feat given the bright lighting and loud conditions. Other actors were positioned in various places, including out on the patio where the haunt was held.. The haunt building was actually more of a tent, as we were informed when we were waiting in line that the owners only had one week to set it up as they had to move from their previous location. Nevertheless, given the live actor quality, w were looking forward to seeing what else was in store for us. The first room in the haunt was actually an area where we were read the rules. It looked like a waiting room in a doctor's office, and featured a flickering TV and desk light, as well as a live actor who read the rules to us. While this was happening a creepy clown poked his head out of a picture frame and just stared at us - a nice touch! The first couple of rooms continued the hospital theme, and included a moving prop on a gurney and a crazy nurse character who invited us to take some "medication." Following this there was a series of dark corridors, a dungeon area, and a final scene with cannibals cutting up body parts for dinner. All of the sets were detailed and the live actors had excellent makeup and costumes. All remained in character as well, regardless of whether or not they were in the haunt or outside of it. Our favorite part of our visit was watching the live actors scare some oft he other people at Hollywood Park. |
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Despite the sets and actors, though, we have to say that the haunt was very short. It was roughly about five minutes from start to finish, and for $12 that seems a bit too brief. While we understand that the haunt was set up with short notice, and perhaps it was going to be longer if it was at its first location, as it stood the experience was over far too quickly. While the actors and sets did make up for the brevity in some fashion, overall, we'd have to say that the value for the money was not that high. To be honest, we have paid less for haunts that are twice or three times as long as DEAD Central.
While we liked what we saw, we would hope that DEAD Central expands next year and makes the haunt longer. There is a lot of good stuff here, it's just unfortunately on display for too short of a time to create a really engaging haunt experience that visitors would love to return to again and again. The good news is that with some small changes, the experience could be even better.
While we liked what we saw, we would hope that DEAD Central expands next year and makes the haunt longer. There is a lot of good stuff here, it's just unfortunately on display for too short of a time to create a really engaging haunt experience that visitors would love to return to again and again. The good news is that with some small changes, the experience could be even better.