It is a scary world out there. And the level of anxiety that most of us carry is such that we hold a scream in our chest.
We spend a lot of energy trying to hold that scream in. But if one lets it out—in safety—it is the quickest way to relief. One might find oneself laughing and feel a bit of peace. For this, let me recommend the master of horror, Drew Dominguez, who together with his business partner, Judy Groverman Walker, operates Blind Scream haunted house.
It’s in Santa Rosa, on the cursed ground of the old Sears Tire Center. And one can trust Dominguez, as he’s a safety rep. for Kaiser Permanente construction—this will be therapeutic.
CH: Drew, even though you are seasonal (with Blind Scream), I see you have held the building lease more than 10 spooky years.
DD: That allows us the ability to build all year, so it has a whole different feel than most haunted houses that are around. It used to be that each year we would have to find a building for a short-term lease, set it up for a month, run it for a month and tear it down for a month.
CH: There is a deep depth of detail. I could spend an hour in the first room—a gruesome carnival concession stand—pouring over the details. That is, if I weren’t running in terror.
DD: We want to submerge you in the story and suspend your disbelief. Most haunts are kind of flat in comparison.
CH: And you change 25% of the haunt each year! Drew, I saw a cast list with 35 different parts. There were some classics like chain-saw maniac and séance ghost, but there seem to be a lot of original characters too.
DD: The haunt tells the continuing story of a family called the Hunters, led by patriarch Doc Hunter and his wife, Mama Santé.
CH: They’re pretty twisted. I see their story coheres the themed rooms as a whole—but then you also liken visitor experience to a roller coaster ride?
DD: There are highs and lows—desensitization, rooms that feel calmer, misdirection—like in a magic show or film-making. I will guide people to look at something—a squeaking creature in a cage—so I can get them from behind!
There’s so much more. I wasn’t able to mention the in-house special effects studio, the terrifying animatronic monsters, the original music and field-recorded sound effects. One will just have to go and see! linktr.ee/blindscreamLINKS.
