‘I love the spirit of it’: Elburn family converts property to haunted house every year
The Kamme-O-Circus haunted house in Elburn has been bringing thrills and chills to the community for years, and its owners expect to see the biggest turnout ever this year.
Homeowner Mike Kothe estimates that about 700 people entered the Kamme-O-Circus during a Halloween Party on Oct. 19.
The free haunted house at 1128 Liberty Drive is open for the rest of the Halloween season from 5 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, 1 to 11 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 10 p.m. Sunday.
The Kamme-O-Circus is a haunted house experience the Kothe family has cultivated for 23 years.
Kothe and his wife Anne first began decorating their house for Halloween in 2002 in Bolingbrook. With only two strobe lights and a fog machine, it took first place in the local decoration competition.
It has since evolved into a two-story display requiring months of preparation, a team of actors and security, and thousands of dollars invested every year.
“As it grew, I got more joy seeing people interact with the displays,” Kothe said. “Next thing you know, we were making more and more elaborate attractions, and it was getting bigger.”
Kothe said the circus started to take off in 2014 when his wife started investing money into the display each year for him to make it bigger and better. He said it became a full-blown haunted house by 2017.
The Kamme-O-Circus is a family business of sorts, with Kothe’s wife providing most of the funding and their two daughters helping with designs and construction each year.
Kothe’s wife sponsors the circus through her real estate business, the Kothe-Johnson Collaborative. Kothe said they spend between $3,000 and $6,000 every year to put on the circus and probably have invested more than $40,000 since 2017.
Kothe takes a lot of time off from his job as a data specialist for AT&T during the Halloween season to work on the haunted house.
The haunted house requires a lot of carpentry and programming by Kothe. He designed and built most of the structural elements of the haunt, which he expanded to two stories several years ago. He programs all of the animatronics and automated elements and records all of the audio clips heard in the haunt in his home studio.
Kothe said what he loves most about the Kamme-O-Circus is seeing people’s reactions and creating something fun. He says his neighbors and other community members enjoy watching him set it up each year.
“I love the spirit of it, seeing people out with friends having fun,” Kothe said. “To me, it’s that time where you can let your guard down, not be afraid and face your fears. A lot of people aren’t afraid of clowns because of us.”
The two-story haunted house has 10 to 12 actors working each day during the weekends and requires a large security team.
Clowns always are the theme of the haunted house. This year’s subtheme is classic horror movies.
In the past few years, Kothe said, the haunted house has averaged more than 3,000 guests each season and nearly 1,000 every Halloween. He is expecting to see the biggest turnout yet this year.
“I don’t think anyone is into it as much as I am,” Kothe said. “We’re pretty crazy. I’m already thinking about next year. I never stop.”