CHERYL’s elaborately themed Halloween dance party will not disappoint. Credit: Eric Harvey Brown
Another Halloween is upon us, along with the very Brooklyn concern of having an embarrassment of riches. Whether you like your Halloween to be funny, toxic, dance-y, or kid-friendly, Oriana Leckert of Brooklyn Spaces has rounded up some terrific ways to spend the 31st, from the spooky to the spectacular.
Thursday, October 31
For cultural fun for the whole family:
BAMboo!, BAM’s Peter Jay Sharp Building, 4–7pm, free
Here’s a great Halloween for kids: BAM’s 12th annual block party! This year’s festival is Egyptian themed, featuring sphinxes, snakes, a hieroglyphics artist, and of course plenty of candy.
For an evening that’s truly scary:
Haunted Canoe Tours to Dutch Kills, Broadway Stages Boatyard, tours from 5:30–10:30pm, $15
North Brooklyn Boat Club offers a place to be really scared this Halloween: perched atop the toxic waters of Newtown Creek. In addition to guided boat rides, there will be scary stories around a bonfire and “fried troll skin treats.” When planning your costume, make sure it won’t be ruined by adding a life jacket!
For a caffeinated costume party
Haunted Brown Throwdown, Gimme! Coffee, 7-9pm, free
At Gimme’s Lorimer locale, the baristas are having a latte art throwdown, and we’re all welcome to witness their espresso and foamed milk pyrotechnics as they battle for the crown of coffee art. Come in costume and enjoy the gratis pizza and beer.
For a bookish costume bash:
The New Venetian Halloween Carnival, Housing Works Bookstore, 7–9pm, free
Fabulous Brooklyn indie publisher Melville House Books will host this literary steampunk soirée. The event promises “every single pair of old-timey goggles this city can muster,” as well as a costume contest, dramatic readings, silent cinema, and steampunk author Jean Christophe Valtat.
For an offensively funny fête:
Shouting at the Screen, Indie Screen, 8pm–midnight, $10
Okayplayer presents the inaugural event in a new monthly series that features comedians Wyatt Cenac and Donwill as loud-mouthed Statler & Waldorf, shouting at classic blaxploiation films, Mystery Science Theater 3000–style. Stay after the film for a dance party with DJ Tara spinning funk and soul.
For a deliciously devilish dinner:
Chaos Cooking: Blood + Guts, Gowanus Loft, 8pm, $25 / $45 if you don’t cook
If you’ve ever been to a Chaos Cooking event in their old Bushwick location, you know what a blast it is when a bunch of strangers each prepare a dish from scratch—all at the same time and in the same space. This Halloween edition will be hosted by the Gowanus Girls, and tasty costumes are expected. You’ll also need to BYO ingredients and utensils, plus a bottle of wine to share.
For a wild, rollicking dance party:
R.I.t.E., Brooklyn Masonic Temple, 9pm–3am, $20
Cheryl throws crazy elaborate parties, and this Halloween should be no exception, featuring “hallucinatory live musical performances, satanic DJ sets, phantasmagorical visuals, and sinister secret society séances,” You can check out their deliriously wacky promo here.
Find even more events on the Brooklyn Spaces events calendar.
