Spooky World presents Terror in Rhode Island review
Last year, the team from Events INSIDER went on a 10-day Halloween blitz! In October 2013, I visited 28 attractions to bring you reviews and information on everything Halloween in New England. We went indoors and outdoors as far north as New Hampshire, as far south as Rhode Island, and as far west as Connecticut. Don’t forget to visit http://EventsINSIDER.com, where we list more creative October events than anyplace else!
Spooky World presents Terror in Rhode Island is the first haunted attraction in Rhode Island that I’ve reviewed, and since it’s just a few minutes’ drive from Providence, the location couldn’t be better. You’ve heard of Spooky World of course from the carpet bomb advertising and its long history in several locations in New England, including this year in southern New Hampshire at Nightmare New England. I’m forced to confess that I was skeptical. When I visited Spooky World locations in 2003 and 2007, they seemed more like cash cows than theatrical experiences with artistic visions.
So I was pleased to find a slight improvement at the Rhode Island location in Cranston. Spooky World there is set up more like a carnival, with sideshow games, vendors, and big inflatable attractions such as the “Wrecking Ball”, where you see if a giant inflatable wrecking ball will knock you over. The way to appreciate Spooky World is to see it as a carnival night, a place to have fun, rather than getting the ultimate scare. From my theatre reviewer perspective, about half the actors did not seem thrilled to be there, and there were few special effects. All three attractions are temporary plywood constructions set up outdoors.
The Devil’s Playground is a ‘corn field’, again using plywood rather than an actual field of corn, the metaphor further confused by there being a cemetery in the corn field. The attraction is almost entirely actors trying to startle you rather than having believably twisted or gruesome scenes, but it’s nice to be outdoors at night, and kudos especially to the women actors in this attraction.