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  • Clown area or no clown area?

    For years we have done a clown area. For the past 2 years it has been a clown themed hall, for 2 or more before that it was a full blown room. I am considering getting rid of the clown area next year and just dispersing some of our clown props throughout the house and having clowns up front as crowd entertainers. What are your thoughts?
    65
    Yes! Gotta they have to have their own room
    61.54%
    40
    Yes, but keep it confined to a hall
    6.15%
    4
    Yes, but sprinkle them throughout
    9.23%
    6
    Get rid of em!
    23.08%
    15
    Last edited by SiouxFallsHaunt; 11-16-2009, 05:00 PM.

  • #2
    Originally posted by SiouxFallsHaunt View Post
    For years we have done a clown area. For the past 2 years it has been a clown themed hall, for 2 or more before that it was a full blown room. I am considering getting rid of the clown area next year and just dispersing some of our clown props throughout the house and having clowns up front as crowd entertainers. What are your thoughts?
    I'm a theme guy...so I like clowns only if they fit the haunt. I hate seeing clowns in haunts (or scenes) where a clown has no business. They are great for carnival, circus, or similar themed haunts though.
    sigpic

    There are three rules to designing a haunt. Unfortunately, nobody knows what they are.

    Website: www.HauntedMidsouth.com
    Haunt: www.ScarecrowTheater.com

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    • #3
      I agree about fiting the haunt. Does it fit into your haunts story line? is there a good reason for it to be in there? I prefer to think of a haunt as living a story.
      Proud to be able to work at
      http://www.haunted-hollow.com/

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      • #4
        I agree with finding a reason to fit a clown into your haunt, of course some haunts do multiple themes or themed rooms so there are many ways to fit a clown into a haunt, cue line is a great place to put a clown of course you always have to be careful to scare after tickets are bought and not before. In the end if it is working and people are not growing tired of it just play with it change it up but keep you clowns make them more sadistic or more abstract, play with the hall and room idea's to put a new spin on something that has been a good stand by for you. Clowns like chainsaws are one of those things that a lot of patrons expect to encounter, and in the end we are in the business of giving the people what they want.
        sigpic

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        • #5
          Originally posted by HauntedMemphis View Post
          I'm a theme guy...so I like clowns only if they fit the haunt. I hate seeing clowns in haunts (or scenes) where a clown has no business. They are great for carnival, circus, or similar themed haunts though.
          I agree. We have an awesome haunt here in town that every year is a must see. It changes every year and remains intense. But for the last 2 seasons, regardless of the outside portion theme it finishes in a room that has clowns. To me the last room is one of the biggest rooms to finish the experience. I am pumped throughout to only be let down at that point. It didn't fit the theme at all. I told them this year, that since it is a small room, darken it more, add fog so you cant see then turn it into a tight spaced odd angle maze then make the walls have electric current on them and let people get shocked as they feel their way through it. It would add better then the clowns.
          ~WelchWitch

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          • #6
            I say ditch the clowns, they have become a haunted house crutch that to many people lean on. Then you can add them back in three years or so to spice things up.
            www.Stiltbeaststudios.com
            http://www.youtube.com/user/Stiltbea...s?feature=mhee

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            • #7
              I feel that alot of regular customers have come to expect clowns form our haunt. People actually seem to get somewhat pissed when our walkaround clowns aren't there. I dunno if it's just that our clowns have worked up a reputation or if people just ALWAYS expect them but I know at our haunt, we won't get rid of our clowns anytime soon.

              I also feel in regards to themed houses that most average customers do not realize if a house is themed. Some reviews we get mention rooms or situations that are so far off from what we actually have happening in the house, it astounds us.

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              • #8
                I'm not into the whole 3d Funhouse kind of clown thing, but I do like the more old, creepy carnival style or even have a room like a child's bedroom with lots of dolls and other things that are normally good but can be twisted if done the right way and with that you can add a clown or to with the right costume, not even a clown suit, maybe just a pair of old jeans or flannel shirt. Like Captain Spaulding style. I am designing a room for our haunt next year that will be a child's bedroom and the theme will be the kid has had a continuous nightmare where a crazed clown is hiding in the closet ( kind of the classic monster lurking in the kids closet) and when you walk into the bedroom you will find out that the boy's bad dream is REAL and you will have to walk through the closet with all the clothes racked up (it'll be pretty claustrophobic) and you will come face to face with Huebert the Clown. Anyways I've gone a little off with this, but bottom line is I think as longs as clowns are used the right way and they fit your theme they are great! I don't like the haunts that are ALL clowns though, I don't think you should over use them like that.

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                • #9
                  I used to get scared of the small clown that sat in the chair in the movie Poltergeist. When the boy would was scared of it then it attacked, that freaked my crap out. Now not doing the "normal" clown thing would be cool and different.
                  ~WelchWitch

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                  • #10
                    Ya, lol, that thing still probably creeps me out. I haven't seen that movie in forever, I need to watch it again.

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                    • #11
                      Not trying to veer off topic, I am telling my age now, but another one that would be cool instead of normal clowns would be like in the 1978 movie "Magic" with Anthony Hopkins. The "dummy" he used while a ventriloquist freaked me out also. Something different.
                      ~WelchWitch

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                      • #12
                        We had clowns in the past and they were very effective. We justified having clowns because our theme and storyline is "fear" based and people were either encountering their own fears or the fears of others that had been extracted by Dr. Raycliff's fear extracting experiments. We always confined the clowns to one area. When we moved the attraction and renovated we eliminated the clowns and went for a more hardcore Victorian theme throughout. Two things we eliminated that we realized we needed to bring back due to popular demand were the clowns and the chainsaw. This year we brought the clowns back in the new second "Carriage House" attraction. I'm trying to find inspiration pictures of old style and/or Victorian era clowns. If anyone can direct me to some really good sites, I'd appreciate it! Of course in the Carriage House, the patrons are entering into the "Fear Extractor" machine, which was discovered by Professor Widget and re-ignited, so the experiences inside are supposed to be the fears of the patrons, which allows us to have the scenes in this particular attraction represent any time period and offers far more flexibility.

                        Kel
                        sigpic
                        Kelly Allen
                        Raycliff Manor Haunted Attraction
                        www.RaycliffManor.com
                        www.Facebook.com/RaycliffManor
                        www.HauntBook.com

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                        • #13
                          Kel, maybe you could do a more victorian style child's bedroom scene with lots of vintage dolls which you could probably find at a thrift store or even maybe make your own custom one. You could have it filled with some dolls like that and as far as the clown they could maybe be like more doll style clowns. Something like this http://www.blogcdn.com/www.cinematic..._00037-(3).jpg ( best pick I can find so far, if I can find any better ones ill post them)

                          Jake

                          Here's a few more pics http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV...304_SY400_.jpg

                          http://www.legendsalternateuniverse....g.w300h336.jpg

                          Both the same character
                          Last edited by scarygoat; 11-19-2009, 08:44 PM.

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                          • #14
                            Realistic, Scary Clowns!

                            Have an office setting, furniture, phone, swivel chair, official looking framed diplomas on the wall, an American flag on a stand or on the wall, then the clown sits at the desk.
                            Yes, a common thing in our country they couldn't ever get elected except some Other clowns keep voting for them, I guess?
                            I know, I crossed the line didn't I?
                            Nobody really wants this much realisim in their haunt.
                            hahahaah!
                            hauntedravensgrin.com

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                            • #15
                              Jake, We did actually do a Nursery this year with puppets in the room and we had Mary Annette shown here in the room http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/inde...ageID=22965193 The guests were really creeped out by her! I LOVE the Lon Chaney clown pic! That is an awesome inspiration picture! The costume shown in that picture is great for the direction we'd like to go with the vintage clown costume look! Thanks!

                              Jim, if I ever win the lottery I want to invest in you. You have such a creative and entertaining mind! At the top of my bucket list is still to visit Raven's Grin Inn! You always have me in stitches my friend!

                              Kel
                              sigpic
                              Kelly Allen
                              Raycliff Manor Haunted Attraction
                              www.RaycliffManor.com
                              www.Facebook.com/RaycliffManor
                              www.HauntBook.com

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