Things To Do In East Chicago

Hailed as the "granddaddy of Northwest Indiana's haunted attractions" by the Post-Tribune, Reapers Realm Haunted Attractions terrifies guests every Halloween season with multiple haunted sites. Most of its frights lurk within the three floors of a 1920s-era stone mansion. There, fog makes it tricky to see where demented demons lie in wait, and strobe lights illuminate famous movie monsters such as Michael Myers reenacting classic scenes of carnage.

More creepy creatures populate the Reaped Woods, where, in the past, a corn maze has hosted sights nearly as frightening as a scarecrow stuffed with old SAT scantrons. At the aptly named Carnevil, the screams echoing from the rides aren't just screams of delight.

The Holiday Star Theater, originally Holiday Theatre, opened in 1950. Classic Cinemas took over the theater in 1980 and renamed it the Park Forest Theatre. In 1990, Classic Cinemas restored the theater to much of its original 1950s appearance, and divided the auditorium into two screens, with capacities of 374 and 276 seats

Housed inside of an airplane-hanger-like building with a high, A-frame ceiling, Chicagoland Paintball's battleground yields paintballing matches during all seasons. The center suits up players in rental gear before sending them onto the green turf floor to navigate mammoth inflatable X- and barrel-shaped obstacles. After the paint clouds clear, teams can agree to an armistice as they nosh on pepperoni pizzas and slurp down slushies at the onsite snack bar. And in the adjoining lounge, they recharge and recover with free WiFi and cable TV, plus nearby shower facilities that promote cleaner car rides home.

Evergreen Racquet & Fitness Club boasts 94,000 square feet of facilities, populated by amenities both relaxing and recreational. Members can challenge friends or family members to a crisp volley on one of the club's five indoor tennis courts or settle landholding disputes in a rotating best-of-three series of racquetball, handball, and wallyball. The club's two-room fitness center contains all manner of muscle-toning mechanisms, including seven treadmills, three elliptical machines, and an expansive medley of free weights. Soothe sore protoplasm in the jet-propelled waters of the club's whirlpool, or cleanse the body of sweat and lingering childhood phobias in the surrounds of two dry-heat saunas (located in the men's and women's locker rooms).

The Illinois Theatre Center enthralls audiences with a wide range of theatrical performances that range from offbeat musicals to retellings of classic dramas. The Spitfire Grill, a musical adaptation of director Lee David Zlotoff's award-winning film, revisits the tale of a young woman recently released from prison who gets a second lease on life and a studio apartment. Wistful comedy Heroes centers on the lives of three war veterans living in an old folks' home who spend their final days reminiscing about ration-packet picnics. All performances are held in an intimate 179-person theater.

In 1903, Hammond’s first mayor, Marcus M. Towle, opened the Towle Opera House to provide the city with a venue for theatrical productions. Times changed, and with them the theater: the opera house became a cinema, and eventually a string of fashion shops moved into the space. The building seemed destined for a future of holographic retail, but in 2003—a century since the stage first opened—it was reborn as the Towle Theater. Since then, its intimate brick-lined confines have hosted such crowd-pleasing productions as The Musical of Musicals, the Musical and A New Brain.