This past weekend Insomniac Events welcomed nearly 110,000 attendees to the 6th edition of their mega Halloween festival, Escape: Psycho Circus. Over 60 DJ’s played to a sold-out crowd at 4 massive stages, over the course of two spine-tingling days.
In what was an incredible display of production, music and unforgettable experiences, Insomniac once again proved why they are ahead of the game and absolute professionals at what they do. Here are 4 things we just loved about this year’s festival:
1. THE VIBES
This year’s festival was sold out just days before the gates opened. Over 110,000 guests attended the festival and many of which were new to the festival scene or were attending their first Insomniac show. Everyone we encountered was incredibly friendly and had nothing but smiles on their faces. At this year’s event, you could tell people were there to make new friends and have nothing but a good time. We met a couple near the bathrooms and they talked about how much fun they were having and how excited they were to attend their first Insomniac show. We asked them if it was everything they expected, and they said “it’s everything and more!” It was great to see new faces and see how excited they were to just be at the festival. While some may have encountered some negative people, we couldn’t say that ourselves. Everyone we met was having an amazing time and was extremely friendly.
2. THE ESCAPE ASYLUM
For the first time ever, Insomniac completely transformed one of the buildings at the NOS Events Center into a fully immersive haunted house. This wasn’t your average haunted house, however. This was a full-on movie set. We were able to do a tour of the attraction after the event had ended, and really took the time to see all of the intricate details Insomniac had put together. The attraction featured more detail than we could ever imagine. Over 15 rooms were carefully constructed as if it were designed by a professional movie set designer. The rooms were dressed and exceptionally detailed. It was absolutely insane to see how Insomniac left no stone unturned. While the attraction was in operation, many costumed performers guided festival attendees through the interactive maze. The performers were all part of Insomniac’s theatrical Halloween trailers and took fans through a journey through Insomniac’s Halloween history. The Asylum looked even better than “Halloween Horror Nights” at Universal Studios in California. The detail was unparalleled and it was breathtaking to see Insomniac take a festival attraction to this level. Literally nothing compares to the “Escape Asylum.”
3. FACTORY 93
Insomniac’s Factory 93 brand made an explosive debut appearance at this year’s Escape: Psycho Circus. Fans were treated to an insane array of underground, house, and techno artists and the incredible Richie Hawtin closed the last night of the festival. The infamous diamond disco ball hung high above the crowd and theatrical performers appeared at the top of every hour. The vibes were on point and the production rivaled some European techno festivals. The stage felt like one huge nightclub with one unique vibe. We spent most of the time at this stage and we were so glad we did.
4. THE PRODUCTION
From mind blowing theatrical performers to stunning lasers, this year’s production was beyond words. There was tons of art to look at as you were moving across stages, and tons of lights strung throughout the venue. The venue was perfectly outfitted for Halloween and felt incredibly polished. If you’ve ever been to the NOS Center when a festival isn’t held there, you will see it’s nothing exciting. In fact, parts of the event spills out in the NOS Center parking lot. But the event never felt that way. The ample amount of production and decorations were definitely noticed. Insomniac transformed the NOS Center from a blank canvas into the ultimate spooky playground.
This year’s festival was a true testament to Insomniac’s outstanding creative abilities, and we can’t see what they will do next year.
Insomniac wraps up this year’s festival run with EDC Orlando this weekend, Dreamstate in San Bernardino November 25-26 and their expanded Countdown NYE Event also in San Bernardino December 30-31.
For more info about future Insomniac festivals, check out www.insomniac.com.
