Sally Corporation, a leader in designing and building interactive dark ride attractions, has designed a walk through themed horror attraction, House of Nightmares, which opened at Gröna Lund, Stockholm, on April 25, 2015.
House of Nightmares features animatronic characters and props, CGI video effects, live wire illumination, video projection, Pepper’s Ghost illusions, ultraviolet illumination, live performers, special effects, lighting and sound, scenic elements and “element X” – “the undercurrent of dread, suspense, fear and anticipation.”
“Nothing is as frightening as your imagination suggests it may be. It’s the idea of what may be inside which sets the stage for the frights to come. Before guests even step inside we want them to be nervous, anxious and ready for anything”, says lead designer, Drew Hunter. “The macabre Dr. Morphio and his obsession with nightmares inspired us as we designed all aspects of the haunted house.”
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House of Nightmares is themed around the story Dr. Morphio, an American scientist and TV presenter from the 1940s who specialized in the nature of human subconscious and dreams. At the height of his fame he was discredited when it was revealed that he had taken his personal research too far, conducting experiments on human subjects in which he attempted to forcibly extract their dreams from their minds and bring their nightmares to life.
Commenting on the project, John Wood, CEO of Sally Corporation says, “We were thrilled with the opportunity to work with such a fine group of professionals and with such an historic and remarkable park as Gröna Lund. The attraction is a complete redevelopment of a classic walk-thru haunted house…guaranteed to bring out your worst nightmares!”
The marketing from Gröna Lund built up anticipation of the attraction before opening with a poster campaign, a zombie kiss-cam scare prank inside a movie theater, and a House of Nightmares commercial so frightening that it was banned from airing before 9pm.
"After two years of dreaming, planning and building, I'm thrilled to see the House of Nightmares opening for the public today. I'm extremely pleased with the horrific end-result from the fabulous crew at Sally Corporation. Working with them has been one of the best and most memorable collaborations of my career", says Peter Osbeck, Ride Manager at Gröna Lund [image below with Drew Hunter].
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