Haus of Horror: 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' on Cockatoo Island/Wareamah

Overview

Much has happened on Sydney's Cockatoo Island/Wareamah, which has housed a prison, ship-building facilities, a reform school and a wartime boat repair port in its time. In recent years, the patch of land in the middle of Sydney Harbour has also hosted a film festival and haunted history tours — and now Haus of Horror is combining elements of both for its next immersive cinema screenings.

The movie-loving outfit has been popping up around the Harbour City for over a year, screening The Exorcist and the OG Scream in a haunted prison with sessions at Parramatta Gaol, taking Beetlejuice to Camperdown Cemetery in Newtown and more. Next comes two evenings of A Nightmare on Elm Street on Cockatoo Island on Friday, February 16 and Saturday, February 17, with attendees catching a themed ferry over, then exploring the site. When sunset hits, Freddy Krueger will start stalking.

If you believe the stories about Cockatoo Island's ghosts, you'll be in a particularly eerie place for this date with the horror-movie villain created by the late, great Wes Craven. You'll also be watching the film in its 40th-anniversary year. And, as is Haus of Horror's custom, pressing play on the film in a notable — and notably disquieting — spot is only the start of it. These folks take the immersive part of the setup extremely seriously.

Whether or not you choose to don a striped jumper for the occasion, your ticket includes the chartered ferry to over and back, departing from Barangaroo; moseying around not only the island but the unsettling installations that the Haus of Horror crew sets up around the Turbine Hall and Bolt Wharf; listening to a live DJ as part of the pre-show entertainment; and special guests roaming around, and also a photobooth to immortalise your memories.

A bar will be serving drinks, and there'll be snacks on offer — but you'll be paying for those separately.