Halloween Events 2012

With the end of October quickly drawing near, the city is getting decidedly spooky! There are lots of events going on, particularly this weekend, but also for the rest of this week and in to next. And all of this is on top of the walking tours listed in the last post. Most events listed below are free.

Night of Dread
This parade, put on each year by Clay & Paper Theatre, starts at Dufferin Grove Park on Saturday night at 6 pm. As the name might suggest, it features lots of dreadful over-sized puppets, shrines, masks and other imagery. After the parade, they continue the revelry with Pageantry in the Park. Dress code is black and white and dreadful, and the event is PWYC, although a $10 donation is suggested.

For those who would like to be even more involved in this event, Clay & Paper Theatre is holding drop-in community workshops every day prior to parade day where you can help them create all of the puppets, shrines, etc. that will be used during the parade. Workshop participation is free and it takes place in Dufferin Grove Park between 1 and 8 pm on Wed & Thurs, and from 10 am - 10 pm on Friday October 26.

Toronto After Dark Film Festival
While not specifically a Halloween event, what could be better for creating the mood than a festival of horror, sci-fi, action and cult movies? There are 2 screenings every night, at 6:45 and 9:45. Movies are shown at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema on Bloor near Bathurst, and tickets are $14, or $24 for a double feature. Festival ends this Friday, October 26.

Halloween Star Party
If you like a little science with your spooky, visit the Ontario Science Centre on Friday night for this free star-gazing Halloween event. High-powered telescopes will be set up for viewing the night sky, and there will be themed events such as a costume parade, storytelling and spooky science demos. And the best thing is, this is a free event. Let's hope the weather cooperates!

Phantom of the Organ
For music lovers, the Metropolitan United Church on Queen St. is holding a special concert on Friday night. The event will feature creepy music (of course!) plus strange tales, mood lighting, and a visit from the Phantom. Again, a great free event.

The PawsWay Halloween Party
Dog lovers haven't been left out of things either. The PawsWay, on Queens Quay West, will be hosting their annual Halloween party. Their will be games, prizes and activities, and free treats for all dogs that show up in costume. Just imagine the cute! This is a not-to-be missed event (for me at least!). From 5:30 - 7:30 pm. Participation is free (as is gawking).

 

Family Events on the Weekend
If you want to take the kids out for some themed fun, there are lots of options this weekend. Riverdale Farm is once again putting on the Halloween Boo Barn, on both Saturday and Sunday. It features a haunted barn for kids aged 3 - 10 years, as well as a pumpkin patch with opportunities for pumpkin carving. Costumes are encouraged. While entry to Riverdale Farm is always free, they are encouraging people to bring non-perishable food items for donation to the food bank.

On Saturday, Bloor West Village is having PumpkinFest in the Village with pumpkin carving, face painting, stilt walking, fortune telling and more. On Bloor St W between Jane and Runnymede, from 11 am - 4 pm, and it's free. Not to be outdone, the Kingsway neighbourhood is hosting Pumpkinfest in the Kingsway, featuring pumpkin decorating and live entertainment. At Royal York and Bloor, from 11 am to 3 pm, also free.

Many of the city's historic sites and family attractions are also offering lots of special programming this weekend, free with regular priced admission. 




Halloweek
Church and Wellesley Village bills itself as the best place to be for the week of Halloween and to back it up they have lots of events going on. Saturday night they're having a Jack-O-Lantern Competition at the intersection of Maitland and Church streets from 6 to 8 pm. Expect to see some amazing artistry at that. Then on Halloween itself, which awkwardly falls on a Wednesday, they're having a full-on street party with a live stage show starting at 7 pm and a costume contest at 9:30 pm.

Twilight Pumpkin Float
For something a little magical, head out to High Park on Sunday night and make your way to the wading pool in the northwest corner of the park. There, for a minimum donation of $2.50, you can carve a pumpkin and set it afloat.

Monster Dash
While not a typical costume parade, the Monster Dash, which is a running event that supports Holland Bloorview Foundation, could still be really entertaining. It takes place on Sunday night and runners are encouraged to wear costumes. They're out there supporting a good cause, so if you're in the neighbourhood (the run takes place in the area around Holland Bloorview, Leaside and Sunnybrook Park) get out there and cheer them on. You might be able to snap some great pics.

Halloween Tour of the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres
While tours of this unique double-decker theatre are available throughout the year, the tour on Monday October 29 is a special ghosty version. No reservations required, but there is a charge of $12, cash only. Tours start at 7:30 pm.

Mimico Pumpkin Parade
Not sure what to do with your pumpkin after Halloween? Why not take it to Mimico Square in Amos Waites Park and add it to the countless others on display at the first annual Mimico Pumpkin Parade? Compare your carving to others and get inspiration for next year.

Day of the Dead
Learn all about this Mexican festival which honours the dead at Harbourfront Centre on the weekend after Halloween. Lots of entertainment, workshops and fun activities. November 3 and 4th.

The Wheel: A Samhain Masquerade
For those who choose to celebrate in the pagan style, there's a new event this year. The Wheel: A Samhain Masquerade will take place in Yonge-Dundas Square on Saturday November 3 from 5 to 8 pm. Featuring the Dragon Ritual Drummers and much more.

As a final note, if you're still looking for inspiration, or a final piece to make that perfect Halloween costume, this Friday - October 26 - both the Salvation Army and Goodwill thrift stores are having 50% off sales events.

Happy Halloween!

Ghostly Walking Tours

October is a great month for getting out and walking. The leaves are turning, it's cool but not usually bitterly cold, and there are lots of opportunities to take haunted walking tours to get you in the mood for Halloween. I was actually surprised at the number of options available. I haven't taken one in a few years, having been a bit disappointed in the off-the-cuff nature of the last tour I took - generally, I prefer a well-researched tour which brings in the history of the buildings and area, rather than just relying on stories told by the guide's friends and neighbours. Also, I find that a smaller tour size makes for a much better evening - it's worth asking your guide before you book what the maximum group size is.

From my browsing, here are a few of the walk options that seemed most appealing:

The Toronto Ghosts and Hauntings Research Society have put together a self-guided ghost walk of Toronto and offer it for free on their website. This means you can take the tour at your own pace, and without fear of crowds spoiling the mood. It provides some basic history on the building or location, along with the types of ghostly disturbances that have been reported on site. It doesn't tend to go in to a lot of detail about what or who the ghosts are thought to represent, but I think it's a good starter walk, especially because it's free.

Exhibition Place is said to be the home of many ghosts, and every Friday evening in the fall they offer haunted walking tours of the grounds. They start at 7 pm and cost $20 per person.

One of the consistently well-reviewed walking tour companies is Muddy York Walking Tours, and their tours aim to make Toronto's history interesting. They offer a Haunted Streets of Downtown Toronto tour and a Ghosts of the University of Toronto tour, as well as some other ghoulish sounding tours including Bloody York: Crime and Punishment, and Historic Cemetery Walk. Prices are $20 per person, but this goes down if multiple people book together ($15 each for 2 or 3 people, $10 each for four or more).

And finally, a relative newcomer on the scene, is the Haunted Walk of Old Toronto. This tour focuses on the area around the Distillery District and the St. Lawrence Market, and runs throughout the year. Cost is $18.75 for adults.

If you'd rather not get out there yourself but are interested in what buildings or spaces in Toronto might be haunted, check out this 2008 article from Toronto.com on Haunted Toronto.

UPDATE: While searching for events for the What's On page, I've come across a few more family-friendly Halloween-themed walking tours and I've listed them below.

Fort York After Dark Lantern Tours. Fort York, 250 Fort York Blvd. 7:30 - 9:30 pm. $12.50 plus tax, pre-registration required. Oct 23, 24, 25, 26, 27

Family Nature Walk: Halloween Howl. Walk led by staff of the High Park Nature Centre. Costumes recommended! Meet at the High Park Nature Centre, 440 Parkside Dr. 6:30 - 8:30 pm. $2 suggested donation. October 27

Spirit Walk. Ghost walk of some downtown laneways, ending at Mackenzie House with mulled cider and biscuits. Mackenzie House, 82 Bond St. 6:30, 7 & 7:30 pm. $12.50 plus tax, pre-registration required. October 27

If anyone tries out a ghost walk this fall, leave a comment and tell us what you thought!

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