If you thought theater was all about Shakespeare and monologues, think again. This October, Chicago will host a spine-chilling adaptation of one of the world’s most beloved horror franchises. Following up a sold-out run at Leeds Playhouse in the U.K., Paranormal Activity will haunt Chicago Shakespeare Theater for 21 grisly nights.
The endeavor is a collaboration between Chicago playwright Levi Holloway—who notably wrote 2024’s Turret, which starred Academy Award-nominated actor Michael Shannon and sold out nearly two months’ worth of shows at the Chopin Theatre—and Felix Barrett, artistic director of immersive theatrical experience Sleep No More. Holloway and Barrett’s foray into the Paranormal Activity universe follows James and Lou, who have just moved from Chicago to London in hopes of escaping the metaphorical ghosts of the past. It doesn’t take long, though, before the duo realizes they are haunted in ways they never imagined.
“Writing Paranormal Activity for the stage, collaborating with Felix Barrett in London—working to create an actual nightmare—has been a dream,” Holloway shared in a press release. “We strived to create something impossible, mixing the familiar with the uncanny, heart with horror. Chicago audiences have a nose for honesty on stage and little patience for anything else. They’ll find it here, right alongside all the mischief we’ve made to trouble their sleep.”
When the inaugural Paranormal Activity film was released in 2009, it redefined the found footage genre and proved that low budgets can still yield maximal scares. The film grossed nearly $200 million worldwide and spawned six sequels, a video game, a podcast and more. The stage adaptation, which is geared towards audiences 15 and over, reimagines the film’s ghost story through practical effects. While details surrounding the illusions—helmed by Chris Fisher, co-illusion and special effects designer for Stranger Things: The First Shadow—are left unexplained, the play bears trigger warnings for loud noises, sudden darkness, stage blood and gore.
Paranormal Activity will run at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater October 8 through November 2. The Theater will also host a handful of special performances: A “Paranormal Prom” on October 9 and two Halloween shows, complete with specialty cocktails and a costume contest. After its Chicago residency, Paranormal Activity will be haunting stages in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco before a 12-week season at London’s West End. Learn more and purchase tickets here.