Disturbia Screams in the Park, Rosemont

It was the stuff of nightmares. It was very much real. In the year 1895, Chicago Police stumbled on a scene of unprecedented horror: the house of America’s first serial killer, Dr. H.H. Holmes. The "murder castle" was three stories tall and took up an entire city block, a mammoth labyrinth outfitted with secret gas chambers, hidden trapdoors, and a soundproof basement brimming with torture devices. It had its fair share of victims, too—Holmes ran the place as a hotel during the Chicago World's Fair, so all he had to do was hang a "Vacancy" sign and the unfortunate flocked to him. Of course, no one today would be fool enough to enter Holmes' house, right? Right?

Disturbia Screams in the Park gives modern-day Chicagoans a chance to test their mettle against a replica of Dr. Holmes' castle, embellished only slightly with the addition of murderous ghosts, skeletal chaperones, and feral beasts that were once human. In the basement of MB Financial Park at Rosemont, scare-smiths weave fearful fantasies together with horrifying facts, and the worst part is how hard it is to tell the two apart. Fortunately, if you check the Facebook page, it seems a certain doctor will be in attendance to explain the difference.