Our second haunt of the season was the incredible Sweet Dreams Scare House (SDSH). SDSH is a walking trail curving in on itself and its visitors’ nightmares. In many ways, SDSH is a smaller, old-school haunted attraction; however, this haunt is a growing presence, expanding year after year.
Sweet Dreams offers two slightly different shows ‘ a standard experience and a more intense, full-contact show. We opted, as always, for the full-contact experience (though one of our members wasn’t tagged for the R-rated show because of a bad knee), and we are extremely glad we did! The standard show is still a great experience, full of jump scares, creepy sights, and old-school haunt tropes. The full-contact version of the show, however, is full of adult humor, creepy insinuating comments, and hands-on action as the various monsters grab, push, shove, and manhandle the guests.
Before the show begins, guests can experience the Compound ‘ an extended part of the waiting area filled with several costumed actors, photo-ops, and more. The exterior and waiting area are also staffed with a fire-eater and, on some nights, a group of suspension artists.
We thoroughly enjoyed our evening at SDSH. So much so that we went through twice!
There are over fifty costumed actors haunting the forested hills of SDSH. These scores of monsters all maintain their character, overwhelmingly interactive with a lot of creative banter and responses. No matter how we reacted to their initial appearances and sinister quips, the various monsters and moonshiners, meth heads, and clowns all had more to say than just boilerplate one-liners. Even monsters that didn’t exactly speak seemed like they had just the right thing to say.
Guests for the R-rated show should expect some coarse language, cutting insults, and more than a little innuendo. We also experienced a fair bit of physical interaction as well ‘ being shoved into pig pens or locked into a fridge, being hugged tightly or pulled rapidly along. While those aspects would be absent for guests who opt for the standard show, the actors all seem versatile enough to deliver an outstanding show.
We enjoyed our time with the chatty bird, the plague doctor, the alien investigator, and all the clowns.
We’d like to take an aside here to point out a missing cast member who is still with the haunt. Sweet Dreams has memorialized one of their former actors by showcasing his costume in a case in the gift shop as well as a looped video recording in his old scene. There’s not a lot of explanation on site, but we wanted to give a shout out to the missing Voodoo King, long may his memory reign.
Variety of Characters – (35% of score)
Complete, Finished Appearance – (30% of score)
Creative, Detailed Costumes – (20% of score)
Creative, Detailed, Realistic Makeup – (15% of score)
From footwear to crowning-crests of corn, every inch of the SDSH cast is costumed and decorated. All of these fit the actors inside as well as the scenes in which they were located. While some of the costumes were less detailed than others, all of them took a creative approach and were appropriate for their respective locations. A lot of attention was paid to actors’ makeup, even those who were wearing masks.
Perhaps it was the onset of cooler weather, perhaps it was the skill of the makeup artists at SDSH, but the makeup on display during our visit was very well done.
If Masks, Effective – (25% of score)
Costumes Appropriate for Scenes, Themes – (30% of score)
Easy to Find, Navigate – (25% of score)
Safety – (20% of score)
From the staff waving visitor vehicles in past the roadside lights to the glowing lights of the various internal stops in the haunt (Tickets, Merch, and Food), we found it easy to find ourselves around the expansive parking lot. Guests are encouraged to wear appropriate footwear and clothing ‘ not only just because this is an outdoor walking trail, but if choosing the extreme show, guests can expect to likely find themselves up close and personal with the ground, the insides of containers, or being carried around by various filthy creatures of the woods. Securing loose articles (like eyeglasses or phones) as well as making sure that you’re not wearing anything that is going to get caught on loose branches or fingers.
The support staff at SDSH were a welcoming group; everyone we talked to and interacted with was professional, friendly, and helpful.
Staff Professional, Helpful, Friendly – (25% of score)
Ease of Finding Info Before Arrival – (20% of score)
Obviously a Haunt Before Entering – (40% of score)
Prepared for Experience Inside – (15% of score)
In truth, there are two areas before guests enter the trail of SDSH. The parking lot area may not scream haunt right away, but while we hung around outside, we got to hear screams come over the hill, and watch a chainsaw-wielding clown chase other guests from the exit out into the lot. Too, the resident half-blind fire-eater keeps folks entertained from the stage in front of the ticket window. We spent a half-hour or more trading witty banter with the fire-eater while he put on a fiery show.
Beyond this area is the gate to the Compound ‘ a sprawling area that winds a trail towards the true entrance, but is inhabited by several different entertaining folks. The Compound gives guests a solid glimpse at a few of the scenes and areas along the trail ‘ monsters, clowns, and other creepily-themed individuals dwell here to provide scares to those waiting, photo ops, and the like. Two of our crew even had their hair done by the clowns of the Compound.
It is in the Compound that the suspension act performs during the nights that they are on site. They weren’t performing the night we visited, but if you check with SDSH’s social media feeds, you’ll be sure to know when this additional act is present.
Sound Effects Effective – (20% of score)
Creative, Original Scenes, Props – (30% of score)
Detailed Scenes – (30% of score)
Achieve, Maintain Suspension of Disbelief – (20% of score)
Sweet Dreams, as mentioned, is an old-school haunt. Scares are driven by the scenes built up around the trail as well as anything that the actors can do. A great deal of detail surrounded us in each of the scenes. Though there is little d������������������cor overhead or underfoot, there were some scenes ‘ such as the entrance to the swamps where we walked across a wooden boardwalk over a fetid swamp ‘ that did provide some additional d������������������cor.
There is less sound bleed than one would expect from an outdoor trail. While we could occasionally hear the screams of other guests or the roar of a chainsaw from up ahead, most of the scenes were a complete surprise. Whether it’s choking fog, or an actor wrapping an arm around a neck, SDSH was an immersive and entertaining evening.
SFX Effective at Scaring, Entertaining – (35% of score)
Could Tell What Theme Was Without Asking – (15% of score)
Theme Well Executed, Believable – (25% of score)
Location Authenticates Theme – (10% of score)
How Scary – (15% of score)
This year SDSH didn’t have a single unifying theme to the haunt as a whole. However, each of the various sections of the haunt is self-contained and complete in its own right. Some of them are small ‘ was that an illegal moonshine still or just a neighbor of the haunt ‘ and some of them are expansive ‘ the swamps and bayou were great fun ‘ but all of them did a great job of entertaining us.
Provide Scares to Entire Group – (50% of score)
How Predictable – (25% of score)
Variety of Scares – (25% of score)
Each of the different sections of SDSH’s trail provides its style of fear (and scares). While there are a lot of sudden jumps scares from monstrous actors appearing out of nowhere, other scenes build up suspense, or have looming creepy inhabitants, or play off of different movie tropes to introduce an element of fear.
The actors did a good job of spreading the scares around to our entire group, making sure that even if they leaped from the shadows to scare the front of our little line, they still had some intimidating lines for the folks in the back. More than once we had to pause briefly along the trail to wait for one of our group to be released from the clutches and attention of the creatures along the way.
Despite going through the haunt twice in one night, there were still times when the monsters were able to scare at least one of us in several different scenes even on the second trip.
250 Saco Lowell Road, Easley, South Carolina 29640
