New Type Of Fear Taking Over Philadelphia With Haunted Attraction Unlike Any Other
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Halloween is just a few weeks away, and if you're looking for a frightful new adventure, there is a spot that's breaking the mold by combining ghosts, goblins and dance. Some final tweaks are being put on a special dance performance.
Brian Sanders is the artistic director of the nonprofit JUNK Performance Troupe.
"We look at everything from dance to acrobatics, to theater and music," Sanders says.
And the performances he's perfecting is a terrifying new take on the old Halloween haunted house.
"Much of it is inspired by this building," he said.
The performance is set in the Sunday school of a historic South Philadelphia church, which has not been used since the 70s.
"There is something about the beautiful decay inside of all of that, that really resonates and works perfectly," Sanders says.
It's the first year of a multi-sensory haunted playground which Sanders calls the 2nd Sanctuary.
"I want it to be a celebration of the beauty of decay," Sanders said.
What makes this attraction unique isn't just the decrepit facility and the multiple dance performances, it's also the other elements, like virtual reality.
Guests wear hazmat suits and from old school phone booths, they are teleported through different scenes.
They are even placed on a gurney and zipped down Broad Street.
Inside a labyrinth, you make your way through the fog with performers dangling from above and then the center stage, known as Dancing Dead, live in the Hall of the Dearly Departed.
The 60-minute performance is set atop an indoor graveyard.
"I want people to leave with their own idea of what their beautiful monster inside of them is," said Sanders.
Tickets to the Halloween experience help fund the troupe year-round.
"We wouldn't be able to do what it is we do all year-round, which is present thought-provoking, engaging performances to the public," Sanders said.
For more information on how to experience the JUNK Performance Troupe in person, click here.
