Looking for fun ideas to celebrate Halloween and show off your awesome costume? Here is a roundup of fun, artsy, scary activities and events to keep you on your toes this Halloween weekend. Be sure to check out the Discover Monadnock events calendar for the latest on arts and cultural events in the Monadnock region of New Hampshire.
Dance at a Halloween Party 🥂
Firstly, on Friday, October 27, take advantage of the chance to dance the night away in your costume at the Park Theatre‘s Halloweenie Halloween Dance Party! The Jaffrey theatre uses their Eppes Auditorium for all sorts of live events and films. Every once in a while, the seats get swept away for an awesome party! House DJ, CJ the DJ, will spin the tunes to bring out your best monster mash or creepy crawler. A cash bar will be available. This is an 18+ event!
That same night, 30 minutes away, Machina Kitchen & ArtBar, a swanky restaurant and cocktail bar in downtown Keene, will throw their Halloween Dance Party. Show off your best costume for a chance to win a prize! DJ Rebecca Hamilton will keep the beats going from 10PM-1AM. While you’re having the time of your life dancing, remember to check out the specially crafted Halloween drinks at the bar! Machina regularly hosts themed Friday-night dance parties. Check them out to see the latest!
Attend a Burlesque Show 💃
If you’re worn out from all that dancing on Friday, take a break by watching a show on Saturday! EveryBody Burlesque presents A Boolesque Show the following night (October 28) at the Keene Public Library’s Heberton Hall. Co-founders Ms. Lavender Lovegood and Cheri Flambé MC the performance. With quirky, creative, captivating dancers and performers, each celebrating their unique beauty, this show is one not to miss! Each performance benefits a local nonprofit; this one supports the Monadnock Center for Violence Prevention. Shows are every other month.
See a Live Theatre Screening 🎭
If theatre is more up your alley, try the Peterborough Players! See their live screening of the National Theatre London’s production of Nick Dear’s Frankenstein, based on the Novel by Mary Shelley, on Saturday. Notably, this production stars BBC Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch and Elementary’s Johnny Lee Miller. The Players offer all sorts of theatre events! View peterboroughplayers.org for current screenings, events, and shows in the lovely Peterborough, NH.
Watch a Scary Film 🧛
In addition to their fun dance party, the Park Theatre will be playing Halloween-themed films all throughout the weekend. Sit down with a bag of popcorn to be terrorized by The Exorcist, Ghostbusters, Friday the 13th Part III, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, and Dracula. Films show on a regular basis!
In nearby Brattleboro, VT, Epsilon Spires, a historic cathedral-turned-creative-arts-venue, always has unique events! Specifically, they will be playing a surrealist Japanese horror film (the first of its kind!) A Page of Madness. This film is one of the few silents to make it out of WWII. Prepare to be creeped out in your seats by this psychological thriller – are you seeing from the perspective of mental ward patients or their caretakers 👀? A live soundtrack by the Anvil Orchestra accompanies the film. Saturday, October 28th.
On Halloween night, Epsilon Spires will be showing Masque of the Red Death. The short stories of Edgar Allen Poe inspired this Roger Corman film about evil aristocrats making deals with the devil in an attempt to avoid the “red death” plague sweeping through the countryside. A costume dance party with themed treats follows!
Go on a Haunted Halloween Walk 💀
The Monadnock Country Club in Peterborough presents Spooky Walk on the Golf Course this Friday and Saturday evening. Go on a scary adventure with the family, and follow up with a fall-themed bite or beverage! The country club keeps kids in mind, reserving the most frightening scares for the last hour of the event. Make sure to bring your scariest jack-o-lantern to win a prize! Check out their fall festival earlier in the afternoon for craft beer tastings, crafts, and artisan booths.
On Saturday, A Company of Witches presents their annual performance and witchy forest walk. The evening will commence with the company’s “Witches Dance” at The Satori Center for Nature and Forest Therapy in Marlow. The Satori Eclectic Gardener’s Guild will provide a witches brew (hot mulled cider) and savory snacks. Finally, embark on an eerily-lit ramble down the Satori Center’s main forest bathing path. Beware of meeting the witches who will beckon you to their shadowy forest lairs with glee!
For more seasonal happenings, check out 5 Fall Festivals in the Monadnock Region. For more Halloween and non-Halloween themed events, classes, activities, and the like, keep an eye on that calendar!
