The weekend before Halloween is almost here, and you know what that means! Tons of spook-tacular events for your little ghosts and goblins. This year’s festivities include trick-or-treating at Lincoln Center, a haunted celebration at the High Line, an outdoor Halloween fest at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and a costume parade plus pumpkin flotilla in Central Park. For those who prefer some non-Halloween fun, there’ll be a performance of “The Ugly Duckling” at Symphony Space and a Children’s Fall Festival at the Queens County Farm Museum. For more Halloween happenings occurring throughout the city, click here.
Saturday, October 29
Lightwire Theater: “The Ugly Duckling”
Symphony Space
11am & 2pm
This Saturday enjoy the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale of “The Ugly Duckling” performed by the award-winning Lightwire Theater at Symphony Space. The company, featured on “America’s Got Talent,” will bring the story to life with high-tech wiring to create glow-in-the-dark 3D puppets and props. Tickets are $17.
LC Trick-Or-Treat 2016
Lincoln Center
11am-1pm
Bring your little ghouls and goblins to Lincoln Center where a festive Halloween celebration will take over its plazas, including costumes, candy, live performances, and more. Activities abound such as a scavenger “haunt,” a craft workshop with the Children’s Museum of Manhattan, a costume parade, story-time with author Peter Brown, and a David Bowie-themed children’s dance party! This event is free.
Haunted High Line Halloween
The High Line
11am-3pm
Learn all about the history of the West Side of Manhattan during this free celebration at the High Line. Listen to historic tales about the meatpacking district with the Meatpacker Ghost, and enjoy face painting, a scavenger hunt, dancing, and live music! This event is free and will take place rain or shine.
Ghouls & Gourds 2016
Brooklyn Botanic Garden
12-5:30pm
Take part in Brooklyn’s wackiest Halloween parade at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden! Kids will jump at the chance to dance with “Victorian creatures” from the Mettawee River Theatre Company and have the opportunity to learn all about creepy crawly bugs at Dr. Rutledge’s Insectorium and Petting Zoo. Plus don’t forget to stop by the Children’s Book Barn for readings and autographs from local authors and illustrators such as Melanie Hope Greenberg and Nancy Carpenter. Entertainers scheduled to perform include the Shinbone Alley Stilt Band, Billy Jonas & the Band, and Phydeaux’s Flying Flea Circus of Fate. Admission is $15 for adults and free for children under 12. This event will take place rain or shine.
Sunday, October 30
Children’s Fall Festival
Queens County Farm Museum
11am-4pm
Spend the day before Halloween at the Queens County Farm Museum’s Children’s Fall Festival. The afternoon will feature games, bounce houses, the ConEdison Ecology booth, pig races, live country music, a Haunted House, pony and hay rides, and much more. All are encouraged to come dressed in costume! Admission is $5; additional fees apply for some activities. Fest-goers are urged to arrive early.
Halloween Parade and Pumpkin Flotilla
Central Park
3:30-7pm
Head to Central Park for a costume parade, pumpkin carving demos, spooky stories with Story Laurie, and a pumpkin flotilla on the Harlem Meer. This year’s event will feature a live bat demon-stration presented by the Organization for Bat Conservation and a craft project hosted by Martha Stewart Living. Click here for pumpkin flotilla rules and guidelines. This event is free.
