‘Blackout’ and ‘The Purge: Fear the Night’ intense horror-theater experiences to share historic Los Angeles location for Halloween

in Entertainment, Events

The historic Variety Arts Theater in downtown Los Angeles will once again be transformed for the Halloween season this year, not as side-by-side horror-theater experiences reinventing the definition of haunted attractions.

Following last year’s successful Blumhouse of Horrors haunted house, Hollywood producer Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity, Insidious, The Purge) is creating an all-new interactive walk-through experience this year in partnership with directors Josh Randall and Kristjan Thor, founders and creators of the highly-praised Blackout haunted houses in New York and L.A – which is also taking place in the same location.

The Purge: Fear the Night

For six weeks, The Purge: Fear the Night takes visitors inside the backstory behind the recent film “The Purge.” Guests become “delegates” to the annual convention of the New Founding Fathers, the dystopian governing party of a near-future America, in which all crime is legal once a year for 12 hours.

“We had such a fantastic response last year, and we wanted to build on what we learned and take it to the next level,” Blum said. “This experience goes way beyond theater or movies or even haunted houses – it is a full night of entertainment that lets people explore all six floors of this incredible building on their own, and suffer the potentially terrifying consequences of their decisions.”

The experience begins in the grand theater of the New Founding Fathers Headquarters amidst the annual Founder’s Convention. But not all Americans believe in the Purge and that the intense opposition will have frightening, even deadly, consequences while wandering through.

The Purge: Fear the Night stars Sept. 27, open to anyone 18 years of age or older, with tickets distributed on a timed-entry basis with two entries per night. The experience lasts between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 hours, depending on guests’ own pace. More information and tickets are available at www.purgelive.com.

(Universal Studios Hollywood will also feature a Halloween Horror Nights scare zone based on The Purge, but that will be a far more traditional “haunted” experience than The Purge: Fear the Night.)

BLACKOUT:elements

After five years of revolutionizing the haunted house industry, Blackout will premiere a new type of horror theater this fall, called BLACKOUT:elements. The immersive performance takes visitors into an intense world of fear in which, after signing a waiver, all guests walk through the completely alone. Immersing themselves in the elaborately designed set pieces, guests are forced to interact with characters in a series of twisted scenarios, lasting roughly 30 minutes.

Unlike theme park haunted houses, BLACKOUT:elements crosses traditional boundaries, with visitors encountering complete darkness, crawling, stairs, water, physical contact, violence, and even shocking sexual situations. Participants carry a flashlight and wear a protective mask at all times and are not allowed to speak – only scream. Naturally, it’s for ages 18 and up only.

This year, Blackout is not only being performed in New York and Los Angeles during the Halloween season, but also adding Chicago dates in December.

More information and tickets can be found at www.blackouthh.com.

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