Massive Halloween Carnival, Dance “Thriller”, Open Studios, Lantern Parade,
10/21/09 by
Johnny Monsarrat
Top of the list (and for the last time) it’s my own festival, the Boston Monster March, which has been pushed to Sunday because of rain. It’s a giant carnival, costume charity walk, and live concert, with $19,000 in prizes and volunteer giveaways, to benefit the Samaritans for suicide prevention.
The formatting on this new blog needs work. I *will* get to it next week!
Here’s your week in weird. Enjoy it! Want this weekly? Subscribe to email, Facebook, or Twitter.
-Johnny
The Week in Weird |
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| Boston Monster March & Massive Halloweel Carnival | 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| We’re moving to the RAIN DATE! I’m running the largest festival in October, and it’s being postponed to Sunday due to rain. It’s a costume charity walk (a daytime one for kids and an evening one for adults), a huge carnival with 2 mechanical bulls, 3 giant inflatable obstacle courses, and more, and a live concert. It’s all free to those who register and walk for the Samaritans, to help prevent suicide. (Or just show up and pay a donation.) Please start a fundraising team! And click “Volunteer” and forward the email to friends. City Hall Plaza, Boston, MA. more more |
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| Zombie March to the Monster March | 10/25 | Boston Metro | ||
| As part of the celebrations, another group is organizing a lurching zombie mob to stroll the streets entertaining people and looking for braaaaaains… with the destination being City Hall Plaza. There *is* a rain date shift to Sunday, but it may not be on the page yet. City Hall Plaza, Boston, MA. more |
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| Woburn Annual Halloween Parade | 10/25 | North Shore |
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| Here’s another great Halloween festival. They claim that 80,000 people attend. More than 90 floats with 25 bands. 1pm. Holiday Inn Select, 15 Middlesex Canal Road, Woburn, MA.781-933-0933. more |
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| Horror Thon | 10/24 | Boston Metro |
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| It’s all Halloween all the time at this 12-hour vampire movie marathon at the Somerville theatre, 7pm-7am. Somerville Theatre, Somerville, MA. more |
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| The Halloween Ball @ Belcourt Castle (RI) | 10/23 – 10/24 | Newport Area |
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| The masquerade ball is again at one of Newport’s amazing mansions. Call immediately for tickets, will sell out! $95 but open bar, appetizers and a DJ and a band. 657 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, RI.401-846-0669. more |
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| Hawthorne Hotel’s Reality Bites Costume Ball | 10/23 | North Shore |
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| If you can afford it, no doubt this costume ball is the place to be Halloween evening. It may sell out, so buy tix in advance. $90.. Hawthorne Hotel, Salem, MA. more |
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| Haunted Salem Scavenger Hunt | 10/24 | North Shore |
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| Also in Salem, this “tour group” company has one of their scavenger hunt events, which you can find regularly in Boston. Basically you and a team roam the city trying to find information (not steal stop signs). It sounds like fun! They have one at 4pm and the other is already sold out! Salem, MA. more |
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| Nosferatu with Devil Music Ensemble | 10/23 | North Shore |
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| Salem is also hosting live music to go along with the silent film Nosferatu. And the museum and Salem are worth visiting anytime! 6:30-9:30pm. Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA. more |
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| Salem State Zombie Monster Mash | 10/24 | North Shore |
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| Learn Michael Jackson’s Thriller at the Boys and Girls Club of Salem, and then go to Salem Common at 2pm to dance it in a worldwide spectacular with hundreds of groups that is choreographed on the Internet. I actually went to this in 2009 and it was so much fun! Salem, MA. more |
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| Things That Go Bump in the Night & Trail of Terror @ Sturbridge Village | 10/24 | Southern Mass |
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| Spooky storytelling, magic, games, trick-or-treating, seems pretty kids-oriented, but it’s *always* a good idea to visit Old Sturbridge Village! And they’ll have a semi-spooky “haunted trail” which is some kind of haunted-house themed forest. Buy in advance, they’ll sell out (so they claim). 1 Old Sturbridge Village Road, Sturbridge, MA.508-347-3362. more |
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| Things That Go Bump in the Night at Gore Place | 10/24 | Metro West |
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| This one seems even better, and closer! It’s a spooky weekend with Victorian lantern shows, wagon rides, and an evening tour of the mansion with actors in costume and special effects. Tours from 6-9pm. 52 Gore Street, Waltham, MA.781-894-2798. more |
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| Halloween Night Hike and Hayride | 10/24 | Worcester |
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| Gee, I guess all these parks are hopping onto the Halloween hike bandwagon! This one features a hay ride and a live vulture. Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary, 113 Goodnow Road, Princeton, MA.978-464-2712. more |
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| Great Pumpkin Nights @ Worcester Ecotarium | 10/24 | Worcester |
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| While you’re near Worcester, there’s a kids attraction with hayrides, costume parades, train ride, games, displays, and of course Worcester’s big zoo, which has a polar bear and a forest canopy walk. 12-9pm. 222 Harrington Way, Worcester, MA.508-929-2700. more |
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| HAUNT for a cure & Haunted Cabins @ The Paul Center | 10/25 | Northern Mass |
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| This a festival meant mainly for families, i.e. kids, and they’ll also have a not-so-spooky daytime forest trail. 12-6pm. 39 Concord Road, Chelmsford, MA. more |
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| Framingham Haunted Trolley Tour | 10/24 | Metro West |
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| This is a 45-minute tour through Framingham that combines local history with con artist stuff like fortune tellers and paranormal investigators. 5-7pm. Framingham, MA. more |
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| Annual Great Pumpkin Float | 10/24 | Boston Metro |
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| You bring a small carved pumpkin, 6-8 inches, and they’ll give you a float to send it down the river. It’s free to join or to watch, but if you want to bring a pumpkin, register in advance. Rain date the next day. 5:30pm. Rain date next day, same time. I bet it’s a beautiful event with lots of cute kids in costume. Gallivan Blvd. Entrance, Pope John Paul ll Park, Gallivan Blvd., Dorchester, MA. more |
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| Dorchester Open Studios | 10/24 – 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| OK, now here are some non-Halloween events! It’s Dorchester’s version of the artists open house day. Walk around, view local art and speak with the creators, and buy something. Get A Map: Various Locations, Boston, MA. more |
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| Acton Open Studios | 10/24 – 10/25 | Metro West |
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| Acton’s doing it too. Free. Because you seriously need more pastel landscape paintings. 266 High Street, Acton, MA. more |
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| Digging in the Past: Massachusetts Archaeology Month | 10/24 | Metro West |
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| It works like this. You visit the museum, and outdoors on the lawn you get to make (and take home!) your own scarecrow. It sounds like just the sort of thing they’d limit to kids only. I hope not! Music, popcorn, and apple cider are provided, but bring your own old clothes to stuff with hay. 200 Lexington Road, Concord, MA.978-369-9763. more |
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| Concord Festival of Authors: The Day We Found the Universe, | 10/25 | Metro West |
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| Also at the Concord Museum is a science lecture on how humanity figured out what those twinkly things are in the night sky. 200 Lexington Road, Concord, MA.978-369-9763. more |
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| Annual Southern New England Weather Conference | 10/24 | Boston Metro |
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| It’s a lot of lectures, some interactive workshops, and singing, all to honor the weather. And they’ll have kite flying! The Clay Center for Science and Technology, Dexter and Southfield Schools, Brookline, MA. more more |
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| Jamaica Pond Lantern Parade | 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| I’m not exactly sure what this is, but I think it involves making and decorating paper lanterns that get floated on the Jamaica Pond with candles. 6pm. Rain date Nov 1. Jamaica Plain, MA.617-524-6373. more |
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| Tokyo Kid Cosplay Contest | 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| Have you been to Toyko Kid in Harvard Square? Then you know the store is *way* too small for a festival or party. From their website apparently they are way more interested in getting some free photos for promotion than holding an event. 6pm. Tokyo Kid, Cambridge, MA. more |
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| Boston Comic Con | 10/24 – 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| The place to be is really Boston Comic Con if you’re seriously into comic books, way more than is maybe sane. Make sure to dress in costume! 12pm-5pm. Back Bay Events Center, 180 Berkeley St, Boston, MA. more |
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| Spirits of Falmouth’s Past Return | 10/25 | Cape Cod |
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| This is a local town gathering to learn about history by re-enactors. RAIN DATE Oct 25. Falmouth, MA. more |
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| RI International Horror Film Festival & H.P. Lovecraft Tour | 10/22 – 10/25 | Rhode Island |
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| Three days! Forty-seven films created to scar you emotionally for life! But also a walking tour honoring H. P. Lovecraft on Oct 25 and a booksigning. So not entirely films. Various Places, Providence, RI. more |
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Also Fun |
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| Fright Night @ Joppa Flats | 10/25 | Northern Mass |
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| OK, now let’s downshift into Halloween events that (as far as I can tell) are targeted to small kids. I don’t have any kids (and neither do many of my 20-something readers) but it can be fun and relaxing to just show up — with NO kids in tow! — and watch everyone having a good time in their cute costumes. 6-7pm. This is some kind of haunted nature walk with stories. Pre-register. 1 Plum Island Turnpike, Newburyport, MA.978-462-9998. more |
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| Haunted Old New England (& Dog Show) | 10/23 | Western Mass | ||
| Even though it’s Halloween themed, I really cannot recommend traveling all the way to the Big E for an hour of storytelling. However, there’s also a dog show that day so maybe you’ll go to see that, too. 7-8pm. 1305 Memorial Avenue, West Springfield, MA.413-205-5051. more |
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| Halloween Happenings @ Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary | 10/23 – 10/24 | North Shore |
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| Probably the best will be this nighttime guided walk through the park. 6-9pm. Ipswich River, 87 Perkins Row, Topsfield, MA.978-887-9264. more |
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| Halloween Prowl @ Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary | 10/23 – 10/24 | Southern Mass |
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| And another park night walk, with a campfire and “druids” in costume. Wicca fire. Costume contest, jack-o-lanterns. They’ll have pumpkin carving earlier in the week. 293 Moose Hill Street, Sharon, MA.781-784-5691. more |
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| Essex Clamfest | 10/24 | North Shore |
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| It’s outdoors, they’ll have clams, and live entertainment, arts & crafts, and lots of community booths. 11am-4pm. Memorial Park, Essex, MA. more |
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| Franklin Park Zoo’s Zoo Howl for kids | 10/24 – 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| A not-so-scary Halloween celebration for children only, although that doesn’t meet adults can’t come and enjoy the holiday spirit and the cute kids. 11am-3pm. 1 Franklin Park Road, Boston, MA.617-541-5466. more |
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| Open Band folk dancing | 10/23 | Boston Metro | ||
| This is an experimental English Country Dance where anyone can bring any instrument and you all play together and dance together. Is it weird? Yes. Will it be good? Who knows! Workshop: 6:15 – 7:15. Dance 7:30 – 9:30. Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church, 1555 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA. |
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| Abolitionism in Black & White | 10/23 – 10/24 | Boston Metro | ||
| On Friday they’ll have a “staged reading” of a play about slavery, followed by discussion. If they can stage it, why not act it out? And then Saturday a symposium. C. Walsh Theater, Suffolk University, Boston, MA. more |
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| International Climate Change Awareness Day | 10/24 | Boston Metro | ||
| This event takes place worldwide in many areas, to promote awareness of climate change. All Over, All Over. more more |
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| Hadley History Fair Weekend & 350th Anniversary | 10/23 – 10/25 | Western Mass |
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| I’m told this is one of their two big weekends to celebrate Hadley’s 350th birthday. Hadley, MA. more |
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| Boston Book Festival | 10/24 | Boston Metro |
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| Have your 15 seconds of greatness meeting Daily Show comedian John Hodgman briefly at this fair for authors and readers. Copley Square, Boston, MA. more |
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| Annual Pumpkin Float | 10/24 | Boston Metro |
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| 5;30pm. Free. Bring a tiny (no larger than 8 inches) carved pumpkin and watch them all float down the river. Pope John Paul II Park, Boston, MA.617.542.7696. more |
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| Pumpkins in the Park | 10/24 | Metro West |
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| 5:30-7pm. Free. The pathways in this park will be lined with pumpkins. Ghost stories & games, too. Francis William Bird Park, Walpole, MA.508.668.6136. more |
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| Brookline Annual Book Sale | 10/24 – 10/25 | Boston Metro |
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| I’m not sure why I’m listing this. Brookline, MA. more |
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Recurring |
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| King Richard’s Faire (Ren Faire) | 9/5 – 10/25 | South Shore |
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| New England’s largest renaissance faire. Weekends & holidays only. Plenty of Ren Faire vendors and people-watching, with 8 performance stages. Only 1/3 of the acts are worth watching, but definitely see the Aerial Angels, Paolo Garbanzo, and especially the jousting! Rt 3 S to Rt 44 W to Rt 58 S. Carver, MA.508-866-5391. more |
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Recurring Events |
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| Wachusett Mountain Applefest | 10/17 – 10/25 | Worcester | ||
| The Wachusett Mountain Applefest is fun, but truly hokey. The vendors tend to be “As Seen on TV” types rather than art festival types. But they do have a skyline ride (the ski lift, that costs extra) and great views and hiking opportunities. Rt 2W to Rt 140 S. Weekends. Other festivals, see site. While you’re in the area, make sure to stop by nearby Davis Farmland. Princeton, MA. more |
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Recurring |
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| Studebaker Day @ Larz Anderson Museum | 10/25 | Boston Metro | ||
| Oh Larz! Another present for me! 15 Newton Street, Brookline, MA.617-522-6547. more |
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