HALLOWEEN FRIGHTS
Spooky season offers many tricks and treats
LA TROUBLE-FÊTE AND MONTREAL ZOMBIE WALK
On Saturday, around 10,000 people are expected to take part in the Montreal Zombie Walk (held as part of La Trouble-Fête, part of the city’s 375th-anniversary celebrations), now the biggest such event in Canada. The Place des Festivals site opens at 1 p.m. for face-painting activities. Entertainment with zombie mariachi, dismembered human marionettes, a zombie military marching band and gruesome floats begins at 4 p.m. The zombie walk kicks off at 5 p.m. and will make its way west along de Maisonneuve Blvd., turn down McGill College Ave. and return to Place des Festivals via Ste-Catherine St. Beginning at 6:30 p.m. at Place des Festivals, there will be a dance performance by Gardy Fury and more than 100 zombies, followed by shows by PUP, Chocolat and Duchess Says.
La Trouble-Fête winds down on Sunday from 12:30 to 5 p.m. with the family-friendly Great Wizardry Fest, for kids who dream of becoming apprentice wizards. The esplanade of Place des Arts will be transformed into a wizards’ village for the Order of Little Wizards of Montreal, with a workshop on making magic wands, a carousel, face painting, magic potion making and an enchanted forest.
FRIGHT FEST AT LA RONDE
La Ronde promises some genuine thrills and chills at its annual Fright Fest on Saturday (11 a.m. to 10 p.m.) and Sunday (11 a.m. to 9 p.m.). There is the Massacre Museum; the Maison Rouge, a blood-soaked asylum for twisted clowns; scare zones featuring vampires, demons and a zombie camp; and ghouls who will haunt the streets of the amusement park as you walk from ride to ride. For tickets, visit laronde.com.
THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW
Diehard fans of the cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show have turned Montreal’s annual Rocky Horror Halloween Ball at the gorgeous Imperial Cinema (1430 Bleury St.) into what is now billed as “the largest RHPS event in North America,” with screenings Saturday and Tuesday at 8 and 11 p.m. A large cast performs live on stage during the screenings. Audience members come dressed as their favourite characters and are as much a part of the experience as the actual film and live cast. There is a new host this year: fierce Montreal standup comic Tranna Wintour. For ticket information, visit rockyhorrormontreal.com.
ROCKY HORROR LIVE
Meanwhile, The Rocky Horror Show has become a hugely popular tradition at MainLine Theatre (3997 St-Laurent Blvd.), the heart of Montreal’s vibrant indie theatre scene. Richard O’Brien’s iconic musical has been remounted with a live band and stars the superb Stephanie Mckenna as Dr. Frank N. Furter. As Tim Curry once said, “Never think about it as drag, ‘cause it’s not. It’s just what people wear in Transylvania, so just get over it.” The Rocky Horror Show continues at MainLine Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday at 8 p.m. For tickets, visit mainlinetheatre.ca.
GHOSTS OF MOUNT ROYAL
Local storyteller Donovan King presents a special Halloween edition of his popular 90-minute Haunted Mountain ghost tour. Participants meet at Barfly (4062 St-Laurent Blvd.) before heading for the slopes of Mount Royal, where a theatrical tour guide will share real-life “ghost stories, mysteries and legends about Mount Royal, including haunted hospitals, abandoned castles, cemeteries teeming with undead spirits, and all sorts of paranormal activities on the mountain.” Haunted Mountain is presented Saturday and Tuesday, plus Friday, Nov. 3. There is also a Haunted Downtown tour, from Sunday to Tuesday, plus Nov. 5, at 8:30 p.m. For tickets, visit hauntedmontreal.com.
MURDER IN THE RED LIGHT DISTRICT
Another spooky walking tour is the 90-minute Haunted Red Light District Ghost Walk, about paranormal activity and spirits who haunt the streets and alleys of the Quartier des spectacles. Led by a professional actor and storyteller, participants will hear tales “of haunted theatres and hotels, a deranged Victorian waxworks museum, paranormal encounters in old brothels, a ghost street and ghastly murder.” The walk is held nightly at 8:30 until Tuesday. Participants meet outside Taverne Midway (1219 St-Laurent Blvd.). Not recommended for those under 14. For tickets, visit secretmontreal.ca.
THE GREAT PUMPKIN BALL
Children will learn and play at the Montreal Botanical Garden’s Great Pumpkin Ball. They can check out the good witch Esmeralda’s 800 squashes and pumpkins decorated by students and other visitors in the main greenhouse, as well as play in the Little Monsters Courtyard (ideal for age 10 and under). Daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. until Tuesday. For tickets, visit espacepourlavie.ca.
MILONGA MASKED BALL
The McGill Chamber Orchestra presents its annual Halloween masquerade ball and benefit gala Tuesday at Théâtre St-James (265 St-Jacques St.). Cocktails are at 6 p.m. and a gourmet dinner is at 7 p.m., with an immersive Argentine tango show, plus opera performances by MCO musicians and guests. For tickets, visit ocm-mco.org.
JACK O’LANTERN TOUR
Kids aged four to 10 will enjoy the 45-minute Jack O’Lantern tour exploring the cultural origins of Halloween, at Pointe-àCallière, Montreal Archaeology and History Complex (350 Place Royale in Old Montreal). English tours are on Saturday and Sunday at 12:45 and 3 p.m. For tickets, visit pacmusee.qc.ca. Montreal’s voguing revival continues at the House of Horror Halloween Vogue Ball at La Sala Rossa (4848 St-Laurent Blvd.) on Saturday at 9 p.m. Categories include creepy clowns, bloody nurses and dead designers. For tickets, visit casadelpopolo.com.