Creep LA 2021

2021 is bringing the cautious return of full-blown immersive entertainment. It’s modified of course, to fit the times, but it’s the real deal. And Halloween is the best showcase for LA’s premiere immersive shows. This has to include Creep LA, an annual favorite that is always one of the most anticipated, and most talked about, events of the fall. I had issues with their 2019 show, but I loved their 2018 entry and thoroughly enjoyed two of their other shows I attended as an audience member, not press. So I was very eager to see what they cooked up after a year out of the spotlight.

Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself

In 2021, CreepLA lands at a new venue called The Ghost Light in Hollywood, which is the name of the performance area inside a bar called The Three Clubs. I had never been to this bar before, but it seems to have a good reputation among locals. The partnership with the bar is extensive, as Creep has fully taken over the space during shows. It only opens to the public again after 10 pm. My understanding is that Just Fix It Productions and The Three Clubs aim to keep the venue operating past the run of Creep as a kind of hub for future immersive shows. I love this idea!

Tickets are booked in 75-minute appointments, and you must be on time. Each group is exactly 6 people. First, they check your vaccination card, either the paper version or online. Everyone is also provided a custom mask, which was a nice touch, even if it didn’t fit quite as well as the one I was already wearing. Safety established, groups are led inside and assigned an area of the bar. After hearing brief rules, patrons are free to get a drink and talk to the several roaming characters. Each of them has a different snippet of backstory to reveal, and more than a little of it is improv, with the actors riffing on the individual patron as well as what’s happening around them at the time.

After mingling, your group of six lines up to enter the heart of the show. Interacting with the lounge characters has informed you of “Hollow House” and the mysteries within. Time to see for yourself!

Runnin’ with the Devil

The set you walk into is a stunner. Production design is one of my favorite aspects of live theater, especially immersive, and this one is in rare company. You’re in the village square, with multiple diverse buildings. The layout allows for audience flow almost like that of a theme park dark ride. If necessary, that is. Even better is when your group has the whole town to themselves, which we did…until we didn’t. More on that later.

Fully one whole wall of the set is the entrance to Hollow House, which looms over the environs. Eventually, you get to enter, and here is where CreepLA becomes something akin to a haunted “maze” at one of the big theme parks. It’s largely a series of spooky vignettes. There’s a loose story tying them together, but I think JFI Productions is a believer in ambiguity and letting the audience create the connective tissue as their imaginations see fit.

You’re the Devil in Disguise

All of the scenes are high quality. Some are better than others, which may come down to personal taste. My poor ear for dialogue had a little trouble in some parts that used audio effects, but this is a problem with my hearing, not the show. There are no branching paths (although a lounge character told me to look for one, I now think it was thematic and not factual). Personalized interactions are few, but my friend was pulled aside briefly for a separate moment that did not impact the story or flow. A couple of times I was at the back of the group and had to hurry to catch up in order to not miss the start of the next scene. Even with a small group of 6, the narrow halls effectively spread people out so there’s no time to linger to take in the surroundings. And boy, will you want to linger! I really can’t emphasize enough how awesome the set is. How they got SO MUCH real estate out of what looks like an ordinary bar on the outside baffles me.

I greatly preferred this year’s CreepLA to 2019. I love the Haunted House genre, and Hollow House has just enough backstory and lore that it works as a unique entry and is malleable enough to allow creativity. This review comes down to quality vs. quantity. I mentioned earlier the tickets were for 75 minutes. My watch afterwards showed it had lasted 50 minutes. This felt like a huge discrepancy–a full third shorter than the allotted time. I confirmed we hadn’t missed anything, and there is a built-in buffer in case people linger at the bar. But since each group of six is ushered in together, on a schedule, I do not see how this could happen.

I also mentioned the town square scene is eerie when you’re alone, which we were upon entering. However, near the tail end of our time, another group entered before we cleared the scene. Creep could have been still working out the timing, but it’s certainly an area that could be utilized to stretch the show. Make sure each group gets an empty town square. Adding in a few minutes of “lingering” time per group gives the actors more time to prepare and lets us take in more of the impressive (have I said that yet?) set.

The Devil Went Down to…Hollywood?

The cast is top-notch, as usual for a CreepLA performance. The interactive moments in the bar were just the right amount to let you feel like you had agency, without making it a mad dash to learn everything. The set hid some neat surprises I haven’t even hinted at. I think the ultimate factor is: CreepLA is the best haunted maze you will do this year. But it’s shorter than you want it to be, and there’s only one. Ticket prices are comparable to Six Flags Fright Fest and Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights. Neither of those will offer the level of acting and writing that you find here. But they sure offer a lot more “scares,” so it’s up to you which is more important. CreepLA runs Wednesday through Saturday until Halloween. Tickets are all sold out on their website, but we can hope for an extension or more dates to be added!