Welcome to the House of Horrors: Horrid Gift Shop Expands With Event Space, Coffee Shop

For the horror fan who has everything, there's no better place than Horrid. When you step into the horror-themed gift shop at 1974 South Acoma Street, the spooky vibes are instantly strong.

You're greeted by a life-sized Ghostface killer from Scream carrying a valentine. Art the Clown from Terrifier is guarding the snack dispenser, and in the corner, Leatherface holds a sign that says "Welcome to Texas." Genre-related goods are everywhere, from button-ups to bucket hats. There's art, candles, bones (of course), bath bombs, patches, pins, vinyl and more, much of it produced locally and all of it on the creepy/kooky side.

Horrid, which is owned by Emerald Boes, isn't the only business there. There's also Nic Johnson's coffee pop-up Scr3am and Sugar as well as the event space Creepatorium, which is co-owned by Boes and performance artist Presley Peach (they/them). They call their trio the "House of Horrors," and the house is about to get bigger: After the entire north half of the building, formerly occupied by the dance studio Collabratory Complex, suddenly became available last November, the three owners jumped at the opportunity to expand their offerings.

Scr3am and Sugar is building a permanent cafe in the Acoma-facing northwest corner, and will gradually widen its menu to include breakfast and other food options. The Creepatorium, which was previously renting space at Collabratory Complex and other locations, will finally have a permanent location directly behind the coffee shop, allowing it to expand its already bustling event schedule; the new space is also available for private event rental. Another regular contributor to the group, House of Horrors nail artist and apothecarist Yurintzi, will be bringing her pastry chef skills to Scr3am and Sugar, as well as operating an apothecary in the cafe. There will be some newcomers, too, including a tattoo parlor opening March 1.
It's an exciting time for the group, but it's also been a challenge. Although Boes and the others were anticipating this opportunity, they were also under the impression that their neighbors were exiting in October 2024, not November 2023. Without deep-pocketed investors or significant capital to burn, things are tight, which is why they're seeking community support for renovation costs through a GoFundMe. They have at least a couple more weeks of construction work remaining, but they think the effort will be worth it; Boes says that creating fellowship was always more important to them than commercial success.

"I really want to stress how community-based we are," she says. "Of course it's a business and we're trying to create businesses that are successful, but we're really doing [the expansion] because we have this larger vision of supporting this community." Noting a significant lack of gathering places for Denver's horror lovers, she says, "We want to kind of be that spooky alternative hub."

The Creepatorium's busy event schedule testifies to that. It hosts movie nights, a book club, workshops, full-moon events, burlesque shows and increasingly elaborate vendor markets. Its next fair, Chronic Carnival, on April 20, is highlighting weed and horror-friendly makers, followed by a metal show from local bands Honey Bunches of Death, Condemned to Burn and Dropout. The music will be accompanied by performances from local burlesque troupe Blassphemy, which "combines two of life's greatest things: butts and breakdowns." Finally, Peach's own burlesque group, the sex-positive, genre-bending Consensual Circus, will perform its show "Sinister and Smoke."
The biggest upcoming event at the Creepatorium is the third annual Sacrilegious Sunday, on Sunday, March 31, a full day of activities aimed at promoting self-love and healing from religious trauma, plus a good dose of desecration and debauchery. Inspired by a traditional Easter Mass, with a sermon accompanied by ass-shaking and heavy music, there will be workshops, classes, creative stations and free beer from Ratio Beerworks.

The event center is also debuting a monthly all-ages show, Circus Sunday, beginning Sunday, March 3. Circus Sunday will showcase a rotating cast of performers mixing laughs and thrills, and is particularly near and dear to Peach, who is also a professional clown in addition to their burlesque work. "I'm excited to have more family stuff," says Peach. "It surprises people a lot that we're very family-oriented."

"There are a lot of spooky families, but there's not really a lot of family-friendly spooky events they can do, except at Halloween time," adds Boes. "There's tons of kids that come in here and they're like, 'That's Freddy, and that's Jason, and that's Pinhead,' and they love it!'"

So whether you're looking for a crocheted Jason Voorhees, an ube latte or just somewhere the whole family can hang out and be weirdos together, Horrid and the House of Horrors want to be your destination. "Everyone's welcome; it's a safe space for everyone," Boes confirms. "We want people of all walks of life to feel comfortable and hang out with us."

Circus Sunday, 1-3 p.m. Sunday, March 3, the Creepatorium, 1974 South Acoma Street. Admission is free for kids under twelve; general admission is $15. Find more events at creepatoriumdenver.com. Contribute to the Creepatorium and Scr3am & Sugar expansion at gofundme.com.