Mysterious Mansion: Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Gatlinburg is a bustling tourist town, with scores of visitors coming to enjoy the attractions in the gateway to the Smoky Mountains. However, just off the main strip, hidden in the shadows of the mountains, is the long-standing haunted attraction Mysterious Mansion. Open year round, the foreboding entrance beckons for those brave enough to step into its foyer. Once inside, those curious about their surroundings can look up and see the landings of higher floors. Taking in the grand nature of this area, visitors might even catch a glimpse of some of the mansion’s inhabitants, staring eagerly down at those who dare to enter their home. By stepping through the entrance gate, visitors become victims in this expertly designed haunted attraction.
Mysterious Mansion’s set design is superb, with a ton of rooms all twisted by their demented occupants. From gore-drenched kitchens with carcasses being used to prepare meals, to an upstairs area that twists between bedrooms, corridors, and the interiors of decaying walls to create a labyrinth. The layout used feels logical, with rooms appearing where you would expect it to be. Having been in houses that have made some odd choices on room placements, like say an obvious attic scene soon followed by a cavernous, basement right after, a logical room placement goes a long way towards keeping the immersion strong. One of the plus sides of being a year-round haunt is that the need to tear down sets at the end of a season does not exist. Instead, sets can be worked on over time to reach perfect, which is exactly what the Mansion does.
The Mysterious Mansion manages the use of actors with the skill of a hardened veteran of the industry. Too many times, a year-round attraction will use little to no actors at all inside their house, instead relying on animatronics and props to generate scares. Mysterious Mansion has decided to go in a different direction, using energetic actors throughout the house. The house impressively uses actors multiple times throughout different rooms, using trapdoors and moving walls to allow characters to pop up in multiple rooms. Not only does this allow for actors to have the opportunity to get multiple scares on guests, it also allows for the house to provide the maximum amount of scares while using fewer monsters inside the location, In an era that is seeing haunted attractions both big and small struggle to find enough actors to fill out there mazes, Mysterious Mansion has found a workable solution that doesn’t lessen the attraction.
There have been reports and interviews with haunt owners in the last year or so that have discussed at length the issue of dealing with staffing issues. One of the solutions that has been mused about is focusing on a future with minimal actors, instead aiming to increase the use of props and animatronics to be the centerpieces of houses. While this mindset is understandable, it is my belief that this goes against the very heart of what haunted attractions are. Nothing can touch the importance of great actors in houses. I have been to houses that are run in smaller locations, or even in truck trailers, which can give the biggest houses in the country a run for their money just because they have managed to find passionate people that are energized and want nothing more than to get good scares. Many businesses use the eye-rolling terminology of being a “family” to describe their employees, yet in the haunted industry this is a true statement. Comradery is a big part of the haunt industry, and this idea of focusing less on the true lifeblood of what makes houses memorable can only make for an outlook that is depressing. Seeing Mysterious Mansion have a workable solution that is a reasonable middle ground gives some hope about the future of the industry.
The house has some slight issues. Pacing, both for within the house as well as for getting into the attraction could use work. Our group waited at least 15 minutes in the first room before being let into the house proper. In that time, any excitement and anxiety petered out and soon gave way to concerns and boredom. There are a couple scenes where it tends to work for only one person, one example being a small overlook a few floors up that gives a good view of the scale of the house, which offers a surprise to anyone who walks on it. However, once the first person or two do it, the surprise is done. These are relatively minor issues, and overall Mysterious Mansion is an incredibly well-done house, especially for an attraction open for the entire year. If you find yourself down in the Gatlinburg area, make sure to head off of the main road and into the shadows of the mountains, and visit this Mansion.
9 / 10
