Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A • FA L L 2 0 1 8 70 e Mis- soula Haunted House is big on story. Every year so far, the Haunt has been characterized by a high-concept theme that has driven the scares and which read like the backs of VHS tapes found in the horror section of a video store: there's "e Reaping", in which visitors encountered cultists set on "sacrificing vic- tims to pagan gods to ensure a good harvest of crops," and "Once Upon a Nightmare, and Other Tales of Terror," in which "a possessed book… sucks you into its pages" in which the petrified victim encounters twisted versions of once-placid fairy tales. ey've even gone a little classic '50s sci-fi once, with "Quarantine: Death From Above," a paranoid potboiler about aliens turning humans into zombies in advance of their invasion. Designing something within the theme seems to be a big part of the fun for Davenport. He says that after they land on a story "inspiration generally hits me and I go down the rabbit hole of the most terrifying situations I can think of " within the theme. en he has to "weed through the scares that are impossible to pull off, the ultimate goal being, of course, to "make the Haunted House something that would scare me to go through." is year's theme will be "Sideshow Massacre," which Daven- port assures will be a grotesque mélange of "fortune tellers, trapeze artists, lion tamers, freak shows, etc." He's reluctant to say too much but says to expect a dark take on the "1940s-ish Barnum and Bailey-style circus." Unwary travelers and seekers after bad dreams in the area of Vic- tor and Missoula would do well find themselves in Kirkland and Davenport's grip this Halloween. But Montanans know that even the smallest, safest towns will be overcome by a pandemic of fear as community haunted houses run by the aforementioned Jaycees, churches, schools and others will shatter the peaceful sleep of innocent townsfolk throughout the state. Beware, for instance, the Anderson School Haunted House in Bozeman, whose kids transform yearly into ghouls, creatures, and menacing killers. And the Jaycees of Billings have also distinguished themselves in the field of apoplexy inducement with events like the "Two Moon Haunted Hallows," a one-mile hike through a forest filled with—gulp—clowns and spiders. Honestly, just writing this article has proven to be a scary experience. My palms are a little sweaty, and I'm jumping at little noises. My eyes are searching the shadows for movement. Suddenly, there's a noise. Do you hear it too? It seems to be… no, it couldn't, could it? It IS! The poster for this year's Halloween production Element Bozeman makes it easy to discover Main Street— just one block away—and its many restaurants and shops. Also nearby are Montana State University and the Museum of the Rockies. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) is 10 miles away. www.ElementBozeman.com

• Cover