44 Halloween Events! Dressed-up dogs! Masquerades and concerts! Costume and cosplay contests!
A new trail to the Prospect Park waterfall! 'Rocky Horror' and 'Nightmare Before Christmas!' and 'Blair Witch!' And, of course, the best Halloween parade in the city.
Welcome to a special edition best Park Slope events newsletter. As always, links to sources are in (parentheses) after each event, and you can also follow our IG for more urgent updates about event changes.
News
🎃Fox5’s Profile of the Great Pumpkin: A delightful profile of North Slope Halloween hero Charlie Pigott and his half-ton stoop pumpkin. [Find the Pigott’s pumpkin and five other must-see stoop decorations with our Park Slope Halloween map] (Fox5)
🚶🏽♂️Waterfall Trail Opens In Prospect Park After 28 Years: “The Brooklyn trail leading to Fallkill Falls has been officially closed since 1995, according to a representative of the park.” (Patch)
🍝Giovanni’s Brooklyn Eats Is Coming Back to a New Location After ExtensiveFire Damage: “When one door closes another one really does open.” (Giovanni’s Instagram)
Get Involved
🍎Windsor Terrace Apple Tasting @ Food Coop: “We are thrilled to partner with Councilmember Shahana Hanif to host an apple tasting and celebration of local food justice at the coop this Saturday.” (Instagram)
🥪Sandwich and Snack Donation @ CHiPS: “As our lines grow longer each day, our soup kitchen is running out of sandwiches on a daily basis. We need your help to provide sandwiches to our hungry guests! Please drop-off sandwiches to CHiPS at 200 Fourth Avenue between 9am-11am Mondays through Saturdays.” (Instagram)
💡Submit Your Idea for Participatory Budgeting: From Councilmember Hanif’s Instagram: “Our office is excited to release the online ideas map for … an initiative where we allocate $1.5 million dollars in capital funding and $50,000 in expense funding to projects submitted and then voted on by our neighbors. Ideas collection lasts until 11/9, and we are looking for community members to share their ideas with us about how to make our neighborhoods strong with improvements to libraries, schools, and parks!” (Participatory Budgeting NYC)
Worth Booking Now
We have a knack for knowing what sells out.
🍝‘Big Night' Feast @ Nitehawk w/Pasta Louise Menu on Nov. 15: “Chef Primo (Tony Shalhoub) and businessman Secondo (Stanley Tucci) are immigrant brothers from Italy who open their dream restaurant, Paradise, in New Jersey. However, Primo’s authentic food is too unfamiliar for the local tastes, and the restaurant is struggling. When famous Italian-American bandleader Louis Prima is scheduled to appear at Paradise, the two brothers put all of their efforts into the important meal, which will likely decide the fate of their restaurant.” (7:15 PM, Nitehawk, $115)
☂️☂️‘My Neighbor Totoro' @ Nitehawk on Nov. 4 & 5: The big guy go on the big screen. (11AM, Nitehawk)
Events
Thursday, October 26th
💔Powerhouse @ IC Book Launch: Decodependence, A Romantic Tragicomic by Lila Ash: “The book launch of author and New Yorker cartoonist Lila Ash’s vulnerable and funny graphic memoir about her attempts to decode her life’s relationships through the lens of her recovering codependency.” (6:00 PM, Industry City Powerhouse Books)
📖Brooklyn Public Library Book Prize Shortlist Panel Event: “This BPL Book Prize event will feature two panels featuring authors who have been shortlisted for the 2023 Prize, moderated by BPL Librarian and Prize Chair Jess Harwick. The panels will be followed by a short reception in the Dweck Lobby.” (7:00 PM, Central Library)
🏳️⚧️Brooklyn Reads: None of the Above with Travis Alabanza and Alok Vaid-Menon: “Celebrate the New York release of ‘None of the Above: Reflections on Life Beyond the Binary; with award-winning writer, performer, and theater maker Travis Alabanza. Alabanza is joined in conversation by Alok Vaid-Menon, an internationally acclaimed author, poet, and comedian who wrote the foreword for None of the Above. The program culminates with a book signing with Alabanza.” (7:00 PM, Brooklyn Museum, $16)
😂🥀😵Live After Death: Ben Wasserman: “Within the span of three years, comedian Ben Wasserman lost his dad, granddad, uncle, and four friends. In his new show Live After Death, Wasserman blends comedy, clowning, and crowd work as he leads the audience on a hilarious yet moving journey through grief, honoring and celebrating the ones we’ve lost along the way. Expect vulnerable conversation, juggling, some dancing—it’s part catharsis, part circus…total chaos!” (7:00 PM, Green-Wood Cemetery, $50)
🇵🇸🇮🇱Author Conversation w/Michelle Goldberg: 'A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy:' “Author Nathan Thrall's reported features, analyses, and criticism have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Guardian, the London Review of Books, and The New York Review of Books. He spent a decade at the International Crisis Group, where he was director of the Arab-Israeli Project, and has taught at Bard College. Michelle Goldberg became an Op-Ed columnist for The New York Times in 2017.” (Congregation Beth Elohim, 7PM)
🖼Wunderkammer: A Taxidermy Showcase and Competition: “Join us as the nation's most innovative taxidermy artists fill you with awe and wonder as they showcase their most creative creatures in a showcase that awards the beautiful and bizarre. A cabinet of curiosities comes to life!” (8:00 PM, The Bell House, $20)
🎭👻🧙A Brooklyn Arcanum: Strange Chalices of Vision: “A Brooklyn Arcanum: Strange Chalices of Vision includes a night of Halloween plays about hoaxes, ghosts, the alchemical properties of alcohol, and deals with the devil that ‘encourage women to practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, master the seven arts, and become lesbians.’” (8:00 PM, Industry City, $15)
🍿🎃Shouting At The Screen Halloween Edition: “Each show, Donwill, Wyatt and a guest will present a classic film from the wonderful world of 70’s era Blaxploitation and Black cult cinema. The hosts will be mic’ed up providing commentary, lovingly poking fun at some of these films’ more absurd and problematic moments while also celebrating an important bygone era of Black independent cinema, whether that’s sharing obscure trivia or creating drinking games to highlight a film’s surprisingly large number of wide brimmed hats.” (9:15 PM, Nitehawk Cinema)
Friday, October 27th
🎨Small/Cool NYC Popup: “Apartment Therapy challenged top designers to bring future trends to life — in small (but flexible) spaces. Explore them all IRL at their shoppable pop-up showcase at Industry City Design District.” (11:00 AM, Industry City)
🎃🎈Frying Pan Brooklyn Halloween Party: “Get down and get spooky at Frying Pan Brooklyn’s annual Halloween Party on Friday, October 27th, featuring scary-good decorations, an all day Happy Hour with discounted drinks, food specials & random raffles. Shake it til ya break it with DJ Max at 8pm. This year’s theme is Y2K, so think early 2000’s fashions, movies and pop culture. Prizes for the best costumes.” (12:00 PM, Industry City)
👻🪴Spooky Plant Swap Party: “Join The Sill for a Spooky Plant Swap Party in Park Slope! Bring a healthy plant or plant cutting to swap with other guests in costume.” (5:00 PM, The Sill)
🎃🎵Open Note Halloween Special: “Join young musicians from around the Manhattan area for a spooktacular night of live music, costumes, and fun! Open Note Classical Concert Series presents: Halloween Concert 2023! Local musicians and young artists come together to celebrate the ghosts and goblins of classical music in the beautiful Old Stone House venue.” (6:00 PM, Old Stone House)
🎃🎧🎤️The Creep Out: A ’90s BK Halloween Joint: (SOLD OUT) “Don your baddest, Brooklyn-est ’90s wear for an after-hours Halloween celebration hosted by The Lay Out, a community platform honoring Black joy, rest, and reunion. Paying homage to our new exhibition Spike Lee: Creative Sources, join us for a spirited night of “beats and boos.” The evening features costume contests and prizes, a Black-owned-brands marketplace with Brooklyn Pop-Up and The Lay Out’s Buy BLK.” (7:00 PM, Brooklyn Museum $30)
🛼Lola Star’s Dreamland Roller Disco: “This week's theme is Stranger Things!” (7:00 PM, Prospect Park - Lefrak Center)
💀🪩Electric Lit’s Masquerade Of The Red Death: “This year we’re celebrating haunted houses in literature, and paying homage to Edgar Allan Poe’s story, ‘The Fall of the House of Usher.’ Join us for an evening of drinks and dancing in support of Electric Literature!” (8:00 PM, Littlefield, $50-$75)
🍸🪩City of Gods Halloween 2023: “City of Gods comes alive every Halloween to bring you an extravagant music & arts festival spanning two breathtaking nights. Our grand convergence of pantheistic powers, a gathering of immense opulence. This is your invitation to express your extravagance. We welcome all deities, demigods and demons, goddexxes, creatures of creation and those devoted to hedonism beyond the human realm.” (9:00 PM, Industry City)
Saturday, October 28th
🏃🏽District 39 PTA Fun Run Fundraiser: “Join City Council District 39 + the office of Shahana Hanif for the 15th Annual PTA Fun Run Saturday, October 28, beginning at LeFrak Center at Lakeside! Walk, run, bike or scoot the 3.3 mile route to raise funds for Brooklyn schools. Plus, enjoy pre-race activities including live music, double dutch lessons and more.” (9:00 AM, Prospect Park)
👻🚶Spirited Stroll: “A perennial favorite returns! Get into the autumnal mood and enjoy a cool, crisp day exploring Green-Wood’s beautiful fall foliage. Historian Jeff Richman will lead this popular tour filled with tales of murder, mayhem, spirits, and the utterly bizarre. Visit the graves of The Wizard of Oz (actor Frank Morgan), George Washington’s favorite dentist, the somewhat shady originator of Spiritualism, and many others.” (11:00 AM, Green-Wood Cemetery, $30)
🎨Small/Cool NYC Popup: See Friday listing. (11:00 AM, Industry City)
🍿🐲’Destroy All Monsters’ @ Nitehawk: “At the turn of the century, Earth’s monsters have been safely rounded up and studied on Monsterland. Chaos erupts when a race of she-aliens known as the Kilaaks unleash Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra and more monsters across the world.” (11:00 AM, Nitehawk Cinema)
🍿‘The Witches’ @ Nitehawk Cinema: “Based on the Roald Dahl book about a nine-year-old and his grandmother who turn the tables on a witch’s plot to turn all the children of Britain into mice.” (12:00 PM, Nitehawk Cinema)
🎃🍬Rock and Roll Playhouse: Parade + Trick-or-Treat: “Rock and Roll Playhouse will be hosting an extra special Fright City Halloween party. Ticket holders can pick up a trick-or-treat IC basket from the show and follow the trail through the campus to find all the treats. Costumes are encouraged with an Instagram giveaway for best dressed.” (12:00 PM, Industry City)
🪓Haunted Axe Throwing: “Trick Or Treat Yoself! Enjoy Halloween vibes, spooky axe throwing & zombie axe, costumes, delish drinks & food, fun games & more!” (12:00 PM, Kick Axe Brooklyn)
🎹Suzuki Pianoween! “Dressed in their Halloween costumes, students from our Suzuki Piano studio will perform Halloween-oriented music and other fun pieces they’ve selected or composed. Students will perform solo or in duo with their teacher, a sibling or a parent on a festively decorated piano” (12:30 PM, 139 St. John's Place)
🪄🎩Events for Youth & Families: Abracadabra! “Magic, laughter and fun will fill the air with Plaza’s highly-acclaimed interactive magic show! With a theatrical flair, audience members will laugh, stare with wonder, but above all – be fantastically entertained! Maybe the audience will even learn a few of the magician’s secrets!” (1:00 PM, Central Library)
🎃🎸🍭Rock and Roll Playhouse: Parade + Trick-or-Treat: “Rock and Roll Playhouse will be hosting an extra special Fright City Halloween party. Ticket holders can pick up a trick-or-treat IC basket from the show and follow the trail through the campus to find all the treats. Costumes are encouraged with an Instagram giveaway for best dressed.”(1:00 PM, Industry City, $5)
💀🎅🏽BKCM Movie Night: ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas.’ “Experience your favorite spooky musical movie in our Concert Hall with no shortage of tricks or treats. Popcorn, Halloween candy, crafts and karaoke – there’s something for everyone at this special movie showing.” (6:00 PM, BKCM Concert Hall)
🍿🎶🎤️💋‘Rocky Horror Picture Show' @ Industry City: “Specially curated prop baggies for sale, providing the audience with all the necessary items to fully immerse themselves in the interactive experience during the screening. The props will enhance the enjoyment and engagement with the movie, allowing the audience to partake in the delightful and eccentric rituals that have made Rocky Horror a beloved classic.” (8:00 PM, Industry City, $35)
🎃💄💅👠👑Switch N Play: Cursesd: “Beloved Brooklyn drag and burlesque collective Switch n’ Play returns to Littlefield featuring: Miss Mailice, Vigor Mortis, Divina Gransparkle and more.” (8:00 PM, Littlefield, $15-$25)
🎧🎤️Freddy’s World Famous Halloween Costume Contest & Dance Party: “Hot DJ’s, prizes, no assholes!” (8:00 PM, Freddy's Bar)
🎃🎶🎤️Cosplay Karaoke Halloween Party: “You may have noticed that Halloween falls on a Tuesday this year, but that's not going to stop That Bar from celebrating in style! Picture this: You, decked out in your finest cosplay, singing your heart out on a Saturday night. It's going to be epic! The night promises to be a blast, filled with fantastic costumes, killer karaoke, and an unforgettable atmosphere.” (9:00 PM, That Bar, $10)
👻🎪🤡🥃Sandy Jack’s Haunted Circus Masquerade: “Break out your best masked Halloween costumes, and come party with Undertaker Preethi in This Haunted Circus of Cursed Clowns! There will be signature drinks and a costume contest. Party until 4:00 AM.” (10:00 PM, Sandy Jack’s)
🏳🌈🎃🎉Global Warming Presents: Pumpkin Spiked: A QTBIPOC Halloween Party: “Global Warming wants to heat up the room with music, vibes and energy at every party. Halloween Costume with cash prizes for 1st and 2nd place winners.” (11:00 PM, Littlefield, $10-$20)
Sunday, October 29th
🕷🦇🌳Creepy Crawly Halloween: “Join Prospect Park Alliance at the Audubon Center for a special Halloween celebration. Take a second look at the creatures that give you the creeps, you may find you like them! Participate in fun activities and experiments that will make your spine tingle!” (12:00 PM, Prospect Park - Audubon Center)
🎃🐕🦺🐾Badass Animal Rescue Halloween Walk: “Every underdog has a spark, a hope of a forever home. Paw-to-Paw Fundraiser culminating in a festive event on Oct 29 at Prospect Park. Think dog costume contests and delightful activities!” (12:00 PM , Prospect Park)
👻🎠Haunted Carousel: “Take a spin on the spooky ride to your favorite Halloween jams at the beloved Prospect Park Carousel.” (12:00 PM, Prospect Park, $3)
🔱😱🚶Doomed Voyages Walking Tour: “Traveling opens the door to new possibilities, where every step can lead to new adventures and discoveries or—for those less fortunate—tragedy and woe. Join us as we delve into the ill-fated voyages memorialized at Green-Wood, spanning from the seas to the streets to the skies. You’ll learn about the devastating 1960 plane crash that changed Park Slope forever; the heart-wrenching tale of Robert ‘Little Dougie’ Spedden who survived the sinking of the Titanic, only to have his life cut short soon after, and many more stories that serve as poignant reminders of the perils often faced by those who dare venture afar.” (12:00 PM, Green-Wood Cemetery, $25)
🎃Think Talk Create: Halloween Bash for Kids: “Pick a wooden or ceramic Halloween character to decorate and bring to life.” (12:00 PM, Industry City, $50)
🎃🎉🥁Halloween Costume Contest 2023: “Get your most spooktacular outfit ready for our Halloween Costume Contest & Mini Parade! Join us in the Park from 12-2 pm for creepy arts and crafts projects with Private Picassos. The costume contest will begin at 2 pm. We’ll award the best costumes and then have a mini parade around the Park. We especially encourage homemade costumes with lots of imagination and recycled materials.” (1:00 PM, Old Stone House)
🍁🍁Fall Foliage Super Hike with Urban Park Rangers: “Join the Rangers on a fall tradition as we hike through Prospect Park beneath a canopy of fall colors. This will be a lengthy hike.” (1:00 PM, Prospect Park - Parkside & Ocean Avenue)
😱🚶🌳Creepy Crawly Walk: “Participants will search for Prospect Park’s creepy residents and explore hidden areas of the park.” (3:00 PM, Prospect Park)
😱🚶Haunted Walk @6/15 Green: “All are welcome.. if you dare.” (5:00 PM, 15th Street and 6th Avenue Garden)
🍿🎶🎤️💋The 10th ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ Live Band Karaoke Halloween Extravaganza : “Happy Rocky Halloween! The Occasionalists, Brooklyn’s premier live karaoke band, are back in their collective garters and glossy red lipstick to bring you The 10th Annual Rocky Horror Picture Show Live Band Karaoke Halloween Extravaganza. Like past years, the band (with some special guests) will be playing the complete RHPS soundtrack and you, the audience, can sign up to sing the songs with the band. Karaoke is followed by a special screening of the film.” (7:30 PM, Littlefield, $12-$17)
Monday, October 30th
🌈LGBTQuilting Bee: “We have an amazing array of quilt squares -- help us turn them into a display quilt! Over the past year, we've gathered beautiful, silly, and serious quilt squares from LGBTQ folks and allies. Join us to turn these pieces into a whole. We will have: sewing machines and hand-sewing supplies to connect our squares, limited supplies for last-minute quilt squares to add to the collection, snacks & Halloween treats, music, movies, fall vibes, fabric scraps, trimming, etc. to give away.” (5:30 PM, Central Library)
🙋📝826NYC's Trivia Night for Cheaters: “Your favorite game of chicanery, 826NYC's Trivia Night for Cheaters, is back for 2023! Join Host Janeane Garofalo at The Bell House on October 30th at 7:30 PM for a night of trivia that will test your knowledge and sense of ethics! This year's tournament is on Halloween Eve (is that a thing?), so costumes are strongly encouraged. Proceeds from this event directly support the 4,000+ young authors who come to 826NYC each year to write their own paths forward.” (7:30 PM, The Bell House)
🍿📹😱‘Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch 2’ @ Nitehawk Cinema w/ Director Q&A: “Eager to cash in on the runaway success of microbudget The Blair Witch Project, the studio fast-tracked a sequel with a leftfield choice – documentary filmmaker Joe Berlinger. Rather than replicating the found footage experience, something Berlinger found disingenuous, his pitch was to skewer the concept of manipulative marketing with a story involving a group of young Blair Witch fanatics who reject that the movie is fiction, setting out to find proof of what they believe is real.” (8:00 PM, Nitehawk Cinema)
Tuesday, October 31st
😱🎶🍬Boo!KCM: “The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music hosts our annual Halloween event for the whole family! Join us outside of our Park Slope building for spine-chilling musical performances, a haunted instrument garden and, of course, candy! This event is free for all to attend – as long as you’re in costume!” (4:00 PM, Brooklyn Conservatory of Music)
🪦🌌Green-Wood After Hours: “Long after Green-Wood’s gates close to the public, explore its historic grounds under the cover of night. You’ll weave through the Cemetery’s stunning landscape and visit the graves of fascinating figures in New York and American history. This not-to-be-missed walking tour ends with a visit to the Catacombs, which are normally closed to the public.” (Multiple times, Green-Wood Cemetery, $30)
🎃👻🧟🥁Park Slope Annual Halloween Parade: The big finale, the best family-friendly Halloween Parade in the city, travels down 7th Avenue from 14th Street north to 3rd street and ends at the Old Stone House. (6:30, 7th Avenue at 14th Street)
💅💄👠📖🎃🥂Drag Story Hour NYC: Halloween Benefit. “DSHNYC’s Halloween Benefit will be a fun and fabulous evening where we can celebrate all we’ve accomplished together, with speakers, performances along with our storytellers, board members, and supporters in a celebration of gender diversity, drag equity, and forward momentum! There will be raffles, awards, and of course, dancing. Costumes and/or attending as the best version of yourself is highly encouraged!” (7:00 PM, Gemini and Scorpio Loft)
🎃Union Halloween: “Come party at Brooklyn's spookiest comedy venue on Halloween Night. You're gonna die laughing. Dress in costume for the chance to win prizes and respect*!” (7:30PM, Union Hall)
🍿🧛‘Nosferatu’ @ Nitehawk: Live Sound Cinema score by Order of the Illusive (7:30 PM, Nitehawk Cinema)
🕺🪩Habbaween: “It’s time for the annual hABBAween celebration y’all and this year it’s spookier and groovier than ever. On Halloween Proper the legendary ABBA tribute band returns to Littlefield and they’re playing nothing but hits. Calling all Dancing Queens in the tri-state area for an unforgettable night of disco. PS did we mention there’s a costume contest…?” (8:00 PM, Littlefield, $15-$20)
😂🎃Dan Joe Halloween Show: “Dan Licata and Joe Pera present a special DVD show for Halloween.” (8:00 PM, The Bell House, $15)
🔮‘Marley & Esther Are Psychic’ @ Union Hall: ‘This Halloween season, Esther and Marley take you on a spiritual journey— a séance, if you will. They will be talking to the dead (like your childhood dog Skipper), helping the audience connect and move through loss and grief live on stage. So join Esther, Marley, and four other comedians their the journey to cast away demons, read people’s future, commune to the spirits, and help everyone leave one step closer to reaching their full potential.’ (10PM, Union Hall)
Wednesday, November 1st
💀🏵🌹🎵Day Of The Dead Family Celebration: “Discover the rich history and traditions associated with the holiday Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) through family-friendly crafts, performances, music, activities, and food.” (4:00 PM, Green-Wood Cemetery)
🙄🎥‘Excess Baggage' w/intro @ Nitehawk: “Introduced by Mark Pagán, host and creator of the podcast Other Men Need Help. Using Clueless caché to produce her first feature, Alicia Silverstone optioned this romcom vehicle, starring alongside rising 90s actor’s actor du jour—the smoldering Benicio del Toro (in his first leading role)—in director Marco Brambilla’s Demolition Man follow-up.” (8:30 PM, Nitehawk)
Let us know what you’re doing/dressing as/building in the comments!