Hundreds of hours went into bringing spooky phantasms to life at LFK’s ‘Nightmare on Mass Street’
Nightmare on Mass Street. // Photo by Nick Spacek
From Thursday, Oct. 3, through Sunday, Nov. 3, Lucia in downtown Lawrence is transformed into Nightmare on Mass Street—a Halloween-themed pop-up put together by their neighbors at 1313 Mockingbird Lane—the toy and collectible shop right across the street.
If you’ve attended Lucia’s Christmas pop-up, Snowed Inn, in the past, you think you know what you’re in for, but trust us—you’re not prepared for how immersive Liz and Terry Taylor have made this experience. We overheard Terry mention that when they added up all the hours put in, Liz had done something like 256 just herself, and it absolutely shows in each and every piece. The entryway has pieces nodding to both A Nightmare on Elm Street and Beetlejuice, with the Freddy Krueger TV set from The Dream Warriors and both Delia Deetz’s massive sculpture and the Maitlands from Tim Burton’s film greeting you before you’ve even made it to the host stand.
Nightmare on Mass Street. // Photo by Nick Spacek
There’s a giant spider above the pickup window for Lawrence Kansas Wing Co, and as you make your way into the bar proper, you don’t know where to look. Every booth is themed after a different horror franchise, from Ghostbusters to The Blair Witch Project to The Evil Dead. Unsurprisingly, the Stranger Things booth, replete with Joyce Byers’ Christmas light alphabet, was occupied the whole time we were there.
There’s a requisite 12 foot Home Depot skeleton, a claw machine loaded with spooky plush toys, and a full-size diorama of the animated Real Ghostbusters trapping a spirit as you walk past the stage to the bathrooms. The bathrooms? Getting to them is a blacklight nightmare, but very well-executed.
Oh, and the entire patio is a haunted forest with a massive cemetery, as well. It’s madness. You’ll find yourself wandering around, marveling at each new thing and geeking out about the details. The Evil Dead booth has a reel-to-reel in it, even! We lost count of the number of times we squee’d out in amazement.
Witches Brew. // photo by Nick Spacek
It being a pop-up bar, there are themed drinks, served in appropriate glassware. Glowstick hoops encircle Erlenmeyer flasks to make it feel as though they’re experimenting as mad scientists behind the bar to make your Dr. Jekyll’s Trial and skull mugs ably show off the blue hue of a Witches Brew. The Zombie, of course, comes in a tiki mug. Drinks are priced equivalent to their creativity, but you can still just snag a beer, if you’re feeling basic. There’s a good selection of Oktoberfest brews on draft right now, too.
We thought we’d pop in, have a drink, shoot some pics, and leave, but thanks to some yummy nosh from Lawrence Kansas Wing Co—the Sriracha cheese curds are the way to go—and an absolutely banging playlist, we stuck around for well over two hours, just chilling in the haunted forest and enjoying the vibes. We heard everything from Donovan’s “Season of the Witch” to Concrete Blonde’s “Bloodletting” to MGMT’s “Little Dark Age” and frankly, whomever programmed it deserves a high five.
The whole venue opens up tonight, so make your reservation sometime in the next month and head on down. They’ve got concerts, drag shows, trivia nights, and more if you’re looking for something more than just dinner and drinks.
Nightmare on Mass Street runs from Thursday, Oct. 3, through Sunday, Nov. 3, at Lucia in downtown Lawrence. Details and reservations here.
