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The Ecopocalypse wants to scare you into sustainability
Sustainable food and environmental awareness aren't usually associated with haunted houses, but this Halloween local entrepreneurs Matt Sparks and Peter Kirby hope to combine all three elements into a downtown extravaganza they're calling “Ecopocalypse.”
Kirby and Sparks have imagined an Austin completely destroyed by natural disaster. The attraction would give a glimpse at the city's possible future, one unable to recover from tornadoes, drought and wildfire — real threats the region faces.
Don't confuse this with any ol' haunted house. Ecopocalypse has a clear message and hopes to fabricate an event unlike anything the city has seen. “What this is, is not a haunted house...” Kirby says in the event's Kickstarter video. “We're creating an experience that has real actors helping put you in that transformative, powerful situation... 'promenade theater' is probably a better expression for it.”
But there is a light at the end of the haunted attraction. “If you can survive this experience, you emerge into Foodtopia,” Sparks explains of the haunt's finish line. “It's the alternate universe if we make better choices and stop breaking the darn planet.”
Foodtopia, additionally the site of Ecopocalypse's Gala event, will be filled with lush gardens, food vendors and a general sense of making a difference.
The eco-conscious event, located at the Coppertank Event Center near the most intoxicated apex of downtown, hopes to capitalize on the millions of citizens who raid the center of the city every Halloween. High foot traffic is a given, but the kind that would pay $20 to wander through a dark maze is still uncertain.
None the less, Sparks and Kirby are crafting a novel concept around an important issue to this generation, and in doing so, hope to improve the city along with those who live in it.
Watch the plea to prevent Ecopocalypse:
They do need your support, though. To facilitate that, the duo has opened a Kickstarter campaign to build funding for the event. They have already rented the 30,000 square-foot space and need help filling it.
Your donations will go toward hiring actors, building sets and filling the center with enough natural terror to scare visitors into caring about the environment.
Ecopocalypse's fundraising campaign ends Sunday and the attraction is set to open in early October. Help Sparks and Kirby spread the word of environmental awareness while scaring droves of downtown citizens this Halloween.
