Gilly's is the perennial underdog haunted attraction that always seems to deliver. Once again this year the haunt had virtually no wait on a Friday night while other haunted houses in the area were backed up for thirty
minutes to an hour. What those line zombies missed is a haunt with great acting performances and operators who strive to please you, not pick-pocket you. While the Haunted Circus is not ground breaking or fight-or-flight
terrifying, it continues to improve and deliver a solid experience every year.
Signage / Visibility / Location
Lights and carnival music let you know you're in the right place. It's pretty amazing that the operators are able to build this haunt while maintaining a winter business selling and renting tropical flowers out of
their greenhouse.
Wait Area / Line Entertainment
The ticket girl is very sweet and can convince even the most undecided guests to enter the big-top. Old newspaper clipping pinned up in the covered wait area tell the backstory of the circus and actors make frequent
appearances.
Actors' Performance
The organizers and operators take great pride in their actors. By holding auditions they ensure that only the most dedicated and talented ghouls populate the various scenes. While the surprise scares and fear factor are
not as intense as other places, I was just as entertained by the great dialogue, unique accents, and novel characters that are created.
Sets Scenes / Props / FX
Much of the setup was similar to past years. The vortex tunnel (take your hands off the railings if you can), foggy chain link fence maze, and freak show all are present again this year. The addition of a marionette room is a great idea. The actors were much more memorable than the scenery.
Length
10-15 minutes. Just a touch on the short side so take your time and interact with the actors.
Crowd Control
Crowd Control? Gilly watches over the haunt while double-fisting two hatchets, do you want to screw with him?
A solid spook-house that I go to, and enjoy, every year. While similar to past years, the outstanding actors made it worth the return visit in '08.
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