Delco’s Monster House morphs into the Upside Down, Ghostbusters headquarters, and much more

Growing up in Marple Township, John DiMeo used to gather with a group of 30 or 40 kids to go trick-or-treating every Halloween and “just conquer the neighborhood.”

Today DiMeo, 43, is still conquering Halloween in Marple’s Broomall section, but now he’s using high-tech projection and audio equipment to bring his house to life in spooky and spectacular ways, like a Delco Dr. Frankenstein.

At the DiMeo home, the outside walls pulsate with hands pushing to get out; the facade turns into the Ghostbusters headquarters, the Upside Down from Stranger Things, and Halloween Town from The Nightmare Before Christmas; and the windows seem to dance in time (along with the cast of Beetlejuice), to Harry Belafonte’s “Jump in the Line.”

On a warm Friday night this month, about 50 people gathered across the street from DiMeo’s home — which he’s dubbed “Monster House Delco” — to watch his 35-minute visual feast that’s been perfectly adapted to, and incorporates the structure of, DiMeo’s home.

Kids in their pajamas ate Rita’s Water Ice on the sidewalk and parents in folding chairs sipped beers as they watched the DiMeo house become engulfed in flames, awash in blood, and, at one point, covered with red balloons (yes, there is a creepy clown segment).

“Is that somebody’s house?” said one motorist, slowly driving by.

Tiffanie Denig of Upper Darby brought her husband and kids to see DiMeo’s show after hearing about it on Facebook.

“People have been sharing clips and I’ve been watching it build up,” she said. “We absolutely love it. I’m sending videos of it to my son in Guam, who’s in the Navy.”

Tom Dorazo, 34, of Broomall, arrived 15 minutes early for the show with his son, 2-year-old Jordan. Dorazo said he learned about the Monster House from a neighbor who also has a strong Halloween decoration game.

“This is awesome! It’s really well done,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like this video production.”

For DiMeo, his wife, Jen, and their daughters, Lily, 14, and Violet, 11, turning their home into the Monster House is all about seeing the smiling, slack-jawed crowds gather outside, together.

“I think people need a little bit more enjoyment and reasons to get out, get off their electronic devices, and spend more time with the family,” DiMeo said. “I think a catalyst to that is really just an event, an event that people can converge on together and interact and just enjoy themselves. I think creating this space and this show gives that to people and that’s why we do it.”

DiMeo, a 1997 Marple Newtown High grad who works in information technology and marketing, has been decorating his home for the holidays since his family moved in 17 years ago. He started with just lights, then moved on to inflatables before leveling up to video projection for Christmas last year. This is the first year he’s done a projection show for Halloween.

“I think every year as I get older, it’s easier and easier to have less to put up and take down,” he said.

Amy and Irv Boyd of Broomall brought their kids, Mackenzie, 4, and Bobby, 18 months, to DiMeo’s Christmas show last year and returned this month for the Halloween production. Bobby couldn’t get enough of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and screamed with a glee tinged with terror when it was projected onto the house.

“Oh my gosh we love it!” Amy Boyd said. “When we found out they were doing a Halloween show, we had to come.”

DiMeo got the idea to branch out into video projection through holiday enthusiast groups he belongs to on Facebook. Members of those groups, and other online communities, also help him create his productions.

“I do make some of the shows, but we also hire much more talented people in video production than myself,” he said. “It’s more of a community that does this.”

The real magic behind the production, DiMeo said, is the Optoma projector, which has a very bright light that can cover a large piece of property from a short distance.

DiMeo maps out his house by shining the projector on it and drawing out the frame, windows, garage doors, and edges.

“The second step is just to create the show based on this mapping so it’s more of an artificial reality, an augmented reality, to make the show look lifelike,” he said.

The exacting nature of the process allows DiMeo to turn his garage doors into a long, creepy tunnel or make all of his windows appear as if they’re filled with zombies trying to get out.

The show, which repeats on a loop, features six themed segments: Ghostbusters, Beetlejuice, Disney’s Haunted Mansion, The Nightmare Before Christmas, clown house, and Stranger Things. There’s also a three-minute zombie pre-show.

Each segment is choreographed to music, which DiMeo pumps through an audio system and broadcasts on 91.9 FM.

The crowd at a recent show loved singing along to Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” from Stranger Things, and “This is Halloween” from The Nightmare Before Christmas. And when “Jump in the Line” came on during the Beetlejuice segment, a group of girls couldn’t help themselves from dancing in the street (under the watchful eyes of their parents).

People have brought their kids to the Monster House as a birthday surprise and DiMeo has hosted a special showing on off-hours for residents of Divine Providence Village.

He said he’s especially thankful to his neighbors, for “putting up with me all these years.”

Matt Spellman, 61, who lives across the street and whose yard people use as a seating area, came out during a recent show to grab a smoke. While he said he doesn’t watch the production, he thinks it’s great for kids and doesn’t mind the extra traffic in the area.

“It does drive my dog crazy because he thinks he has to guard the property, but he eventually settles down,” Spellman said.

Shows at the Monster House, located at 115 Sylvan Drive in Broomall, run from 7 to 9:30 p.m. every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in October. The show will also play Halloween night.

Those interested in attending are encouraged to download the FrightMaps app and follow Monster House Delco on Facebook and TikTok for updates on show times and information about the upcoming Christmas show.

“We actually have something very special for Christmas,” DiMeo said. “I can’t disclose that right now, but it will be exciting to come out and see.”