Wicked Lit

Outstanding live theatre, great direction and costuming, over-the-top SFX and lighting, and if they're in the Mountain View mausoleum and cemetary, it's an incomparibly creepy monstrosity of a venue that even if you weren't attending a production... at night, with dim lights, and forever echoing halls amongst hundreds, if not thousands, of crypts, graves and final resting places, you are in for a night of psychlogical chills and twisted tales. Perfect for every campfire storytelling ever made.
The pre- (mid- and post-) show theatrics are outstanding, as well. Basically like a small version of visiting Renaissance Faire, it's an immersion theatre.
Productions are rotating constantly, and events are free if you're a supporting member (which is a bargain at $10/month.) Lots of off-season readings and other one-offs, too.
The 2015 season includes 3-45 minute shows with the audience divided so seating and viewing is optimal for everyone.
Concessions (beverages and snacks) are available for cash. Free parking available both street (all along the outside bordering streets ) and inside (but you must stay through the curtain call because the entry and exit alleys are used for the performances.)
I'm surprised there weren't more teens and children along for the performances, as these classic living tales are really much better than visiting the various theme park mazes and scare nights and simple haunted houses. But if your thing is having the actors come out an "Boo!" you from amidst the fake fog and having gory (and nowadays smelly) sets to walk through, this won't be your thing. This is Hitchcock and Poe, not Freddy Krueger and Jason (nor Blackout, you won't be taken hostage by terrorists.)
The one thing is, you do need to be relatively fit and mobile to keep up with the action - the plays are performed in multiple locations throughout the grounds (as mentioned during ticketing, you will be walking up and down staircases and across the entire grounds following the action as it goes from scene to scene.) And many of the locations are not ADA-compliant facilities. Wear comfortable shoes and prepare to keep up with the action. This is not sit, stare and be entertained theatre. It revives the experience of performances like Tamara, in which we learned there is no 4th wall in life.

I have attended several productions here at Halloween time over the years but this year it was a let down. I have no issue with going down to only two plays but both plays were a little too similar (both Irish taking place in the same era). They use to divide the groups up into three but now just divided up into two and the groups were too big for the spaces. It was hard at times to see what was going on. I missed traveling thru the Mausoleum for the experience, instead this time we were basically held in to seperate areas.

I missed the pre-show, it really help to set the mood and that is one thing that was so missing. The mood was not set, even being inside the mausoleum. Having the museum tour guides be the ones guiding us kept reminding us we were there to see plays. In the past the guide who led you to your starting point was setting the mood and the feeling of immersion that this was happening and you were no longer in Altadena. Really missed that feeling.

If they plan on continuing with only two plays the groups need to be smaller, standing for long periods on the hard mausoleum floor made for an uncomfortable experience.

This was my first time at Wicked Lit and I absolutely loved it!! The actors and production are amazing! The event takes place at a cemetery/mausoleum. Perfect backdrop especially for Halloween. I am certainly looking forward to next year to say the least.
*Tip- there's lots of walking on grass and gravel, make sure to wear soft souled shoes, also bring a sweater. It gets chilly at night.
**Free parking.

Wicked Lit!

Went last year for the first time and then twice this year to see both Production A (The Unnameable, the Chimes, and Cask of Amontillado) and Production B **new** (Casting the Runes, A Ghost Story, and The Body Snatcher). I brought a bunch of people with me to see Production A this year. It was amazing as always... Note to newcomers - if you are meeting people at the event, make sure that all members of your group receive the same color sticker on their program. You want to stay together in the same group. Also note that they have coffee, hot apple juice (which they insist on calling cider), and a few candy bars. $2 each or 2 items for $3. Bring cash, a jacket as you will be outside for a time, and comfortable shoes for walking and standing for short periods.

The plays are immersive as you walk following the characters and story progression through the creepy and eeriliy lit long hallways of the mausoleum... and through the cemetery across the street. Most of the acting is great.

Last night was unusual because they had BOTH productions going on at the same time. I was concerned that we would be running into each other in the corridors and we would lose the integrity of the individual plays with competing noise in the background. They actually handled it really well and there was only about 5 minutes when I was distracted by noise from another play. Production B was very good for the most part. I will not forget the images from Casting the Runes and The Body Snatcher.

The Ghost Story however, started out GREAT but then the second half was kind of ridiculous. What annoyed me most was the fact that because it wasn't as long as the other plays and they all had to end at the same time, the guide read us "The Raven" as we walked back. Now, I take my Poe seriously and want it done right or not at all. This guy read it from the folder, lost his place a few times, used a voice that I assume was supposed to be funny (and wasn't). It just wasn't done well. If they HAD to fill up that time, (and I hope they read this review) they should have the poem read at the original site and read seriously by someone who can do it properly... by candlelight... with some thunder, rain, and lightning in the background. I was not only disappointed, but mad that it had been done so poorly. I could have read it better (and not from a folder).

All in all, it's still a Halloween favorite and the location is fantastic and used well.

I unfortunately have to concur with Brenda & Kid. We visited Wicked Lit last year and it was an incredible production. The technical productional values their team put on was some of the best I have ever seen outside a theater. The entire event was experience from the moment you arrived to transitioning between the different shows. It felt truly immersive and entertaining. They added little other activities to do between shows and excellent MC's to keep the groups moving. The separated groups were also smaller then this year. The event was truly a unique experience.

This year; it started out with a line outside a door until they were ready to start the show. There was absolutely no experience outdoors or pre-show entertainment to get you into the mood. You entered the doors, were then checked-in; separated into two groups and then went into your show. Each show was basically like being in a theater; then being in an immersive theatrical event.

Each of the performances were much more narrative play based then visually compelling. The story lines were simple/basic; nothing overly creative/unique.

The only redeeming fact of the event is the Actors/Actresses were very talented and did the best they can with the produced content. I felt all of them were excellent.

They did reduce the ticket price this year due to the reduced show. For us driving 40+ miles and arranging child care; it was nowhere near worth our time. I would much rather pay the higher ticket price and have a rememberable event.

I understand they ran into location issues/restrictions; it's time for a new location. It needed to be communicated clearly that this is nowhere near the same show as prior years; so guests come in with the correct expectations. We knew there was a change to the format, but didn't expect such a substantial difference. The show/venue was at most 15% of last year.

My husband brought me here for my birthday and it was such a fun experience. It's interactive theater, where you move around to see different scenes. There were three mini-plays and in between, there was a small performance which tried to wrap everything together. I liked most of the plays, but I think they spent a lot of time drawing you into the story only to be resolved in less than five minutes. The last play was in the mausoleum which was very spooky and eerie, but I had a hard time following the plot. All and all, a very fun and cool experience and something to be repeated each year since the plays change around Halloween.

My time to see a Wicket Lit production, and I'm a fan. From the moment I entered the parking-lot staging area I was completely immersed in this creepy world. It was fun to walk around the grounds and through the buildings. The sound and light atmosphere elements were really engaging. I also really enjoyed the age range of the actors. So much live theatre seems to be 20-somethings but this company is very diverse. I hope they'll be back again next year!

Fabulous production this year! I attended with two friends last night, and we each identified a different play as being our personal favorite (I love Ambrose Bierce, so guess which one was mine?).

What I thought was really fantastic this year was the frame. It meshed so well and so naturally with the plays. The four actors in the frame did an outstanding improv job with the audience, as well.

Loved it!

Loved it. The 4 hosts and cast of 16 or so actors were great.

There were 3 performances, and 3 groups of attendees that rotated between performances, with a break in between for everyone to catch a breather, take a restroom break or grab a snack at the concession stand. During the breaks the crowd was entertained by the hosts. No microphones were needed because these were real actors!!

To start with, it was cool because of the location. Outdoor mausoleums, indoor mausoleums, mausoleum chapel, and out in the cemetery. The performances took you everywhere except the mortuary prep room. Wear comfortable shoes. My boat shoes left my feet tired.

The timing was coordinated quite well, with the performances concluding at the same time, so everyone was together during the breaks. The lighting was good, the sound effects and soundtracks were perfect and appropriate, and it was simply an amazing night. I could tell a lot of work went into this.

This event is perfect if you love theatre, cemeteries, or dark tales. Ideally you would love all three. To be honest, i'm not too sharp when it comes to the dialogue on stories like these, so i was lost quite a bit and couldnt focus, but i had a great time anyway.

It was a 3 hour event and definitely different. There were young teenagers there (13-15), but it may have been too long for children younger than that.

Definitely worth a look.

Im a die hard Wicked Lit fan. I've gone every year (sometimes even more than once) for the past 4 years, but I was incredibly let down by this year. It was a butthole on a stick compared to the last few years.

It wasn't "spooky". The spookiest part is walking down the hallways to get to the next scene. I feel incredibly bad for the actors. They are SO WONDERFULLY TALENTED! Words cannot describe how amazing they were, this production just felt off. As we walked out we heard multiple people complain/ask why it was so different this year.

I don't know how they can continue to run like this. The plays were very similar and kind of boring. I hope next year will be much better.

If they are going to change the quality of the show, they should change the ticket price.

I love Wicked Lit, but this year was just bad.

This used to be the go-to Halloween experience in LA. In fact, when I lived in Portland, OR for a year-and-a-half, I actually flew back that October to attend!

Having said that, this has unfortunately gone downhill. It's sad, because it was so great - for years. A couple years ago, I believe it was, they cut back on the amount of playlets (for years it was 3 good shorts coming in at about 50 minutes each), and it was wonderful.

Then, I think it was last year, they cut one out and shortened the experience. It was still quite good, but not the same. It went from a good two hours or so to about 80 minutes. The ticket prices went down a little (as they should!)

The big problem is that this year, we got basically a "best of" experience featuring snippets of previous plays! And to see them all you had to get tickets for two separate presentations! One wound up paying even more (based on what you got) than in the past.

I read that the mausoleum asked them to tone it down, so I hope that they can come to an agreement and get this corrected by next year - I know of many people who feel this way and would welcome a return to the greatness it used to be. Hopeful.