REPLAY LINCOLN PARK, 2833 N. SHEFFIELD AVE., CHICAGO
Being the loyal Stephen King fan that I am, I was thrilled when the second part of his horror novel, IT, came out in the theaters right before Halloween. So, when I heard that Replay Lincoln Park, Chicago’s favorite arcade bar, designed a Halloween IT pop-up, my husband and I were “dying” to get inside.
When we arrived, a busload of people was being dropped off in front where large videos of Pennywise the Clown greeted them to the venue. Walking into the entrance, posters of missing children in Derry lined the walls. Luis Colindres, one of the six talented artists that helped transform the bar into the disquieting town of Derry, Maine, met us at the door and made sure we had one of their signature drinks, Pennywise Punch, while he guided us through the town. Completely creeped out by the human forms wrapped up in spider webs and suspended from the ceiling above us, we worked our way through the crowds to visit Georgie by the sewer, the funhouse complete with mirrors, and the run-down, abandoned house at 29 Neibolt street where the “Losers Club” confront IT, all the while trying to avoid Pennywise from every direction. We couldn’t leave without taking our chances with the Scary, Not Scary and Very Scary doors that promised surprises behind each.
Interwoven between the stations of chills, 80’s nostalgia and various knick knacks gave us the feeling of traveling back in time. While hanging out, my husband got to revisit over 60 free vintage arcade games like Frogger, Defender and Pac-Man with pinball, air hockey and skeeball there as well. There’s never a cover or token needed for the games, just a room full of fun. After a time of enjoying the atmosphere and the IT menu, we breathed a sigh of relief as we grabbed our red balloon and ran far from that sneaky clown.
Replay invites guests to visit and experience Stephen King’s IT through October 31st and will also have several events including IT trivia, various costume contests, karaoke and more. For information, visit them at www.replaylincolnpark.com .
