A WEEKLY REVIEW OF NEARBY HAUNTED ATTRACTIONS BY SCARE-SEEKER JOE ROVINSKY
This week’s review: 2014 Terror Behind the Walls. 2027 Fairmount Ave., Philadelphia.
easternstate.org/Halloween
Terror Behind the Walls is a major haunted attraction which takes place within the confines of the historical, famous and intimidating structure known as the Eastern State Penitentiary. Now a United States National Historical Landmark, it once held notorious criminals such as Al Capone and Willie Sutton. It is important to stress that this attraction is extremely popular and attracts the largest crowds we have ever seen at a haunted attraction.
Despite the large crowds, Terror Behind the Walls has continuously improved during the past three years. It’s extremely interactive and intense despite the number of people who travel through the attraction. Composed of six separate scenes or mini-attractions, it has great set pieces, incredible designs, excellent actors and is an experience that we suggest all haunted attraction fans visit.
Terror Behind the Walls allows guests to choose how intense their attraction experience will be. If you chose to wear a glow necklace, be prepared to get an in-your-face, physical and intense experience that we found to be extremely enjoyable. The interactive experience incorporates a variety of what we can call haunted attraction bonuses, actors may pull you away from your party, will “mark” you, will pull you into darkened cells and taunt, can make you crawl through tunnels and at times will pull you to special parts of the attractions only viewed by a lucky random few. The actors also will be very physical, be prepared to be touched, grabbed, pushed and shoved against walls in an experience that is frightening and intense. While at times we walked with a large group through each attraction, the attraction did a good job at keeping our group separate from the others. We ran into other groups only when there was a backup due to a scare, or if we had to rejoin the regular groups after a bonus event, but overall Terror Behind the Walls does a good job at managing crowds and line control while within the prison.
Terror Behind the Walls is composed of six separate attractions or themes linked together throughout the massive prison.
• In previous years, the attraction began with a walk through a boring plank filled maze, which was set up like a prison yard. This set did not have many scares, was brightly lit and was removed this season. Guests enter Lock Down via a prison bus and enter Cellblock 12. The attraction is extremely detailed, featuring cell blocks and prisoner actors waiting to escape, grab and threaten. The prisoners, of course, break from their cells and create a riot like atmosphere. While in Lock Down, there appears to be electrical problems throughout the cell block as currents flow throughout the scenes. The inmate actors are extremely aggressive, (we were “stabbed” by a prop shiv and were pushed against a wall and threatened by one of the intense actors). The scene also ends with an ominous hallway, filled with what appears to be dead prisoners who stand still as we traveled to the next area. While some of the dead prisoners are props, some are actors who do a good job at creating a jump scare. While Lock Down is an enjoyable experience, it moves too quickly. This part of the attraction is well done and would like to see Terror Behind the Walls expand it to include more cell block areas or opportunities for interaction. We also had one of our only line, crowd issues due to back up when we moved to the second level of the haunt.
• Machine Shop is the new addition to Terror Behind the Walls and was our favorite theme mini-attraction. The industrial, boiler-room setting is extremely interactive. While passing through the industrial set, an actor forced us into a cage and taunted us as other groups passed by. This was the first, but not the last time we were “marked.” Each time we participated in an interaction, the actors would stamp your hand or arm with an image such as spider or red x. When we left the boiler room area, we became totally separated from the group and had to pass through a long massive cell block hallway which was filled with fog, darkness and was only lit by slow strobe lights. The slow strobe light effect was highly effective, we were unable to see ahead of us and saw only the actors who were crawling, sneering and making demented noises. This area also led to another interaction as a member of our party was pulled into a dark cell block by an actor. The actor then proceeded to place the guest in a dentist like chair to be taunted, touched and grabbed while the rest of the party was forced to continue. This unique interactive experience is impressive due to the number of people which pass through the area. Machine Shop is a very impressive theme found within Terror Behind the Walls and hopefully this will be expanded next year. The effective lighting, interactivity and aggressive actors made Machine Shop our favorite theme of the attraction.
• Once we escaped the machine shop and were together again, the attraction continued through a prop-filled, outdoor/greenhouse scene called Detritus. This theme includes jungle-like vegetation, moving plants and an abandoned cemetery filled with walking dead. While unique and different from the previous attractions, Detritus was not exactly scary. The outdoor environment is detailed and the props were of highest quality, but it did not induce fear. There was an effective chainsaw scene which ended the theme, but overall Detritus was not as enjoyable and shorter than the other themes. Many actors also seemed out of place in this attraction and in complete site which may have been due to line or crowd issues.
The next theme, known as the Infirmary resulted in another interactive random event in which our party and two others were escorted to a hidden area of the attraction to visit with a demented doctor who was dressed like a burn victim. We became his “patients” in a unique interactive event. This interaction was highly entertaining and comical. The doctor proceeded to conduct various examinations on the party, checked ears and gave “medicine” to one visitor in a comical manner. Despite his scary appearance, the interaction was funny and the actor had the entire group laughing. While many do not go to a haunted attraction for laughs, this interactive role-playing experience added to the quality of the attraction. When he released us we had to catch up with the group but were still able to see the detailed hospital sets and detailed hospital set pieces which were a part of this theme.
• The Experiment is a 3-D attraction designed to mimic a funhouse or a carnival. The 3D effects are impressive, skulls and spiders seem to jump from walls and the imagery can be disorientating. While the 3D effects were well done, this attraction was not scary. This area of the attraction also had the most issues of line movement — at times we were completely stopped in line due to a backup. The Experiment is the least interactive amongst the attractions and while guests may enjoy the funhouse theme, the design of the set and lack of actors it did not provide many scares, surprises or even laughs.
• Night Watch is the last theme or mini attraction found at Terror Behind the Walls. Last year, Night Watch was our favorite part of the attraction and this year, while it was not as unique or as interactive as Machine Shop, it still was excellent. Night Watch is a maze of darkness filled with fog and actors who have no problem trying to keep the guests from escaping. This part of the attraction employs effective use of lighting and tight spaces which created a claustrophobic feeling. Maintenance-worker actors wielding large metal weapons were very aggressive in trying to stop our group from leaving the attraction. At times we walked in the wrong direction due to the darkness and this resulted in a rather intense encounter with the very aggressive actors.
We recommend you visit Terror Behind the Walls, especially if you enjoy a very aggressive and interactive experience. Terror Behind the Walls combines intense aggressive acting with detailed set designs and interactive, random experiences which make each trip unique.
The HAUNT SPOT extra
Review: 2014 Fright Factory. 38 Jackson St. Philadelphia. frightfactory.tv
This weekend we again left the Scranton area to check out the two major haunted attractions in Philadelphia, Fright Factory and Terror Behind the Walls. Fright Factory is set in an industrial neighborhood in South Philadelphia and caters to a more mature, intense scare-seeking crowd. Parking is free and various actors roam throughout the waiting area to interact and in some cases torment guests who are waiting to enter this gritty, 105-year-old industrial building.
Fright Factory has been rated one of the top haunted attractions in Philadelphia by Fox 29 News and The Travel Channel. The attraction itself is a found in a large industrial area near Penn’s Landing and the environment itself is the perfect setting for an intense haunted attraction experience. According to the staff of Fright Factory, the attraction is 25,000 square feet and has undergone extensive renovations over the past two years to combine four unique sets (Chem. Industries, Philadelphia Haunted Asylum, Undercroft Cemetery and Amygdala) into one large attraction.
We visited Fright Factory last year to see the improvements and changes made to the attraction and overall we were impressed. However, last year we did feel that there was quite a bit of down time in between each main scene and that most of the time was spent walking through empty, plank-built hallways. We are happy to say that this concern from last year is no longer the case. Fright Factory is non-stop intensity from the moment of entry right up until the end of the attraction. This attraction uses darkness, tight corners, misdirection and fog in effort to create a sense of panic and fear which permeates throughout the attraction. The atmosphere inside the haunt builds fear and the actors themselves also add to the level of intensity of this attraction. At times we walked through pitch black areas of the attraction and had various actors seem to pop up out of nowhere, breathe on our necks and make such strange noises that it was almost a break from the panic when we encountered a scene or major set piece. Fright Factory does a wonderful job of building a sense of panic, includes drop scares and effectively builds tension from one set piece/scene to the next. Its dark corridors and mazes are filled with intense and insane actors who will taunt, will crawl on the floor, will pop up in the darkness and will not give up until they get your attention.
The set pieces or scenes found throughout the large attraction are, for the most part, extremely detailed and effective. The attraction started off with a trip through what appeared to be an abandoned demonic church, in which the level of darkness and fog prevented us from seeing the various actors who screamed that we were about to become the factory’s next victim. The scene itself is disturbing — a mini-maze around church pews, spurred a strange sense of curiosity and fear that set the tone for an intense, bizarre experience. Guests are then guided to a photograph area before entering the main area of the haunted attraction. Each major set piece or scene is set a part by a dark maze, filled with corridors that are filled with actors, fog and, at times, pitch black darkness. The detailed set pieces include an intense asylum set filled with demented actors, a trip through an abandoned cemetery, a visit with a cannibalistic cook, twisted morgues, rooms filled with corpses, a zombie infested zone and a twisted circus scene. The detail of these sets among the others is impressive and each set is set apart from each other by the previously mentioned dark mazes and corridors which prevent guests from seeing what horrors await them.
At times the scenes served as break in the action, as the level of panic caused through the dark maze made the light of the asylum or circus scene seem welcoming. It is important to stress that the actors are dedicated to providing a good scare and at times are very intense. If they know a guest’s name, then they will make the experience even more personal. Each actor will be sure to pass it along to the next. Some hide in the most obscure places, appear out of darkness and have no problem getting up and close with each visitor who travels through the attraction. The various props used throughout the Fright Factory are also of high quality and at times, due to the effective lighting, it was hard to determine if the prop was an actor or not.
While the improvements made to Fright Factory have made the attraction far more intense and enjoyable, the attraction could use just a few minor tweaks which would make it the total package of panic-inducing fear. The dark, twisted, actor-filled corridors made each room and set piece a surprise and provided the perfect environment for drop or jump scares as the various actors were always well hidden. The building itself and the neighborhood’s industrial environment add to the intensity of the attraction. While the effective lighting, acting and set design did a good job at building fear throughout the attraction, the ending could use improvement. After a journey of panic, in which at times we could not wait to get out of the claustrophobic dark environment, which was filled with a variety of sets and insane actors, the attraction ended on a flat note. We were expecting a larger finale to top off the scares but this was not the case. While this is not a major issue and did not hurt our level of enjoyment, a more intense grand scare finale would top off the attraction.
Fright Factory was an intense, claustrophobic and panic-inducing haunted attraction experience that we recommend if you are in the Philadelphia area. We encourage you to visit this attraction early as, while we did not encounter any line or wait time problems, it will get more crowded as the season progresses. The effective use of lighting, the use of the building’s environment, set design and quality of acting made this visit well worth the two-and-one-half hour trip. If you plan on going to Fright Factory later on in the year, we suggest purchasing a VIP upgrade, as again lines may become cumbersome. Fright Factory has improved immensely since last year and hopefully will continue to improve each year.
— joe rovinsky