Relocated. Reawakened. Renamed? The immersive haunt experience formerly known as “House Of Spirits” has been brought back by Meyer 2 Meyer Entertainment. and has been rebranded “Haunted Soiree: A Macabre Cocktail Party”. Though the previous name likely works better with keywords and word searches; we feel that the new name easily oozes class and elegance, which is exactly what the event identifies with. Now at its permanent location, the House of Spirits will no longer be roaming from venue to venue year after year. They will now be confined within the walls of the Nocturne Theatre, formerly known as the Glendale Center Theatre.
Haunted Soiree 2023: Experience
The experience was noticeably smaller than the previous season and the year before that. However, this actually did more good than harm for this event. With a large venue like last year’s Casa Vertigo, we found that we got lost quite a few times especially when all the levels looked the same. So much time was spent on course correction and non-helpful help that we missed out on 2 bars with their own specialty cocktails. The other challenge was trying to do everything: watch the performances, solve the mystery, take in the decor and consume 5 cocktails in less than 2 hours. With a smaller venue; all that is possible now.
We found that with the Nocturne Theatre, you cannot get lost while exploring. As long as you follow all the signs, you’ll get through everything. If all else fails, just keep walking and you’ll undoubtedly get into something or end up in a room that you were looking for anyway. We also found that this season had a less complicated storyline than previous years; which ultimately helped us get through it all. Nonetheless, attendees should be proactive if they want to learn the story and know everything about how each character connects to another. We highly suggest starting a conversation with the actors as soon as you’re able to do so. However, if you just want to attend for the ambience, performance and cocktails then that is perfectly fine too.
Haunted Soiree 2023: Conclusion
Meyer2Meyer Entertainment has really gotten this unique interactive Halloween experience locked down. We still have not seen an experience like this one. For less than a hundred bucks, you get: interactive theatre, performances, music, 5 specialty cocktails, a lounge area, a scavenger hunt and a maze and a unique story each season. We’d still like to see a little more time added to the 2 hour time slot limit so we can double-check whether or not we missed something. Though we noticed no dress code enforced; guests were dressed however they chose and some were in costume as well. If adults had our version of “trick-or-treating”; this has to be it or close to it. Our 3rd year visiting them, and they still amaze us.
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For more info, https://hauntedsoiree.com/
