Halloween

In Toronto, Halloween isn't just a day for buying candy and dressing up the kids. Well, maybe it is for some, but for those of us who love the macabre theatricality of the day, Toronto has a two-week Halloween season rife with opportunities to express your inner zombie, witch, etc., many of them free.

The weirdest event may be the Toronto Zombie Walk happening this year on October 22. This is the 9th year of the walk and it just keeps expanding - last year, almost 6000 people donned make-up and joined the shamble. Trinity-Bellwoods Park is the meeting place and location for some of the side attractions, such as the Zombie Wedding scheduled for 2 pm. The walk starts at 3 pm. If you need to travel on TTC anywhere near the park on Saturday be warned - there will be "blood" everywhere. We took the streetcar to the event last year, getting on at Parliament. The car was at least 2/3 full of zombies - so don't wear your favourite new jeans! Even without dressing up, the event can be a blast - people get so creative with the costumes, and if you're a fan of the genre, it's fun to identify all the non-zombie zombie references.

 

A less gory event is Clay & Paper Theatre's Night of Dread. This is another walk, taking place the following weekend on October 29. The parade leaves from Dufferin Grove Park and winds through the streets for an hour, before returning to the park. The dress code for the event is black and white and dreadful, and the organizers have costumes and puppets available for the public to use during the walk. As you parade, you're accompanied by musicians, puppeteers, dancers and stilt-walkers. It's quite the spectacle, and as the pace is very sedate, suitable for almost everyone to participate in. Assembling for the parade begins at 4 pm, with the parade departing at 6.

The Toronto After Dark Film Festival is also running during this time period. It begins Thursday October 20 and runs for a week. While not free, it's pretty reasonable at $13 per film, and festival passes are available. It features horror, sci-fi, action and cult movies, and also includes pub nights after the final showing of the night. All movies are being screened at the Underground Cinema on Spadina, and for Saturday night's showing, those arriving in zombie attire get a discount.

Check out the What's On page for some of the many other free and nearly free events happening, such as:

Haunted High Park
Halloween Hoot Boo Barn at Riverdale Farm
City of the Dead: Necropolis Cemetery Tour
Ghost Tracking at Casa Loma

Fort York After Dark: Ghost Tour
Variety Village's Halloween Haunted House
Spirit Walk, hosted by Mackenzie House