Ahhhh! All Things Halloween Are Already Coming!
It’s scary how soon the Halloween season kicks into action. Second only to Christmas, its commercial success relies on eerie Americans getting into the spirit with new publications, productions, puppets, products, and a parade to ensure this year’s holiday is a scream—in a good way.
The Great Out-Gores
Chicago’s largest outdoor autumnal experience is Jack’s Pumpkin Pop-Up (Sep. 19-Nov. 1) at Goose island, where a corn maze with a hidden bar, carnival games, food trucks, and more than 10,000 pumpkins await.
Next month, LUMA8 presents the 12th Annual Arts in the Dark Halloween Parade (Oct. 24) along Columbus Drive. “I am thrilled and proud that our parade has grown exponentially over the past years, so much so that we need more space to accommodate the dozens of new and returning arts organizations that participate in our tradition,” says Mark Kelly, Arts in the Dark Parade Co-Founder and Artistic Director. “The inspiration and creativity brought with such verve year after year is always an incredible tribute to our city as a world-class cultural capital, and this year’s event on Columbus will be no exception.”
Creature Features
A flood of frightening films are set for an October release across Chicagoland. They include the chiller dillers: Beware Boiúna (Oct. 2), Other Mommy (Oct. 9), Crawlers (Oct. 16), Clayface (Oct. 23); The Cycle (Oct. 23), and Stiletto (Oct. 30).
Thanks to the Chicago Philharmonic and the Auditorium Philms Concert Series, Tim Burton fans can see and hear Edward Scissorhands in Concert Live to Film (Oct. 24). The 20th Century Studio classic features Danny Elfman’s iconic score performed live to the movie.
Heathcliff (Sky Cheema) and the ghost of Catherine Earnshaw (Elle O’Hara) add blood and guts to their heart and soul connection in Wuthering Heights: House of the Damned (2026). This scary spin on Emily Brontë’s 1847 classic will be available mid-October via Video On Demand.
Following a screening of the spooky movie In the Dark (2000), there will be a Q&A with writer/director Clifton Holmes at Music Box Theatre (Sep. 19). The historic venue will also host the Chicago premiere of Emily Robinson’s Ugly Cry (2026) during its Cinema Femme Short Film Festival (Oct. 11-13).
This dark comedy goes body horror when an aspiring actress’s self-criticism conjures up her younger self, who proceeds to haunt her about impossible beauty standards. Robinson, who wrote, directed and stars in the film, will be on hand to receive the fest’s Tribute Award before the screening and partake in a post-show Q&A with co-stars Aaron Dominguez and Robin Tunney, moderated by critic and author Marya E. Gates.
If that’s not spooktacular enough, the historic cinema will project a horror film everyday in October as well as hosting its 24-hour marathon Music Box of Horrors: The Final Chapter (Oct. 24). This year’s lineup includes James Cameron’s Aliens (1986) in 70MM; Black Sunday (1960); The Craft (1996) co-presented by Rated Q and Ramona Slick; Dracula (1958); Faust (1926); Scary Movie (1991); a new 4K restoration of Screamplay (1984) with film historian Elizabeth Purchell; Victorian Psycho (2026); and more.
Dead or Live Theater
A charming devil begins the debate about the price of one’s soul in Idle Muse Theatre‘s Witch (through Oct. 10) at The Edge Off-Broadway Theater. Written by Jen Silverman and directed by ensemble member Libby Beyreis, the play offers a new spin on a Jacobean drama.
Chicago City Opera presents the Chicago premiere of Der Vampyr (Oct. 7-11) by composer Heinrich Marschner to a libretto by Wilhelm August Wohlbrück. First performed in 1828, the gothic horror opera about vampires pre-dates Bram Stoker’s Dracula by half a century!
Under the direction of Porchlight Music Theatre‘s Elaine Cohen and Arlen Ruben, cast members Aneesah Jemei , Donnalesly Fondjo, and Kiana Beverly, among others, will perform the Tony Award-winning Little Shop of Horrors (Nov. 4-Dec. 13) at the Biograph Theater.
Melia Bensussen directs the world premiere of Dead Girl’s Quinceañera (Sep. 26-Nov. 1). This comic thriller by Phanésia Pharel performs at Goodman’s Owen Theatre. Meanwhile, at Petterino’s next door, theater-goers and magic lovers can enter a speakeasy theater where Dennis Watkins’ The Magic Parlour performs his special Halloween show: The Spirit Cabinet.
Trick or Sweet
To be the hostess with the mostest chilling dessert, check out the new Crystal Ball Cake Bites kit from I’m the Chef Too!. This limited edition item encourages kids to learn how to bake as well as learning how reflections and light work together to create optical illusions. Kits include a fortune-telling activity, pre-measured ingredients, specialty supplies, and easy-to-follow instructions for all skill levels.
Perilous Puppets
Rough House Puppet Arts returns to Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s Merle Reskin Space with its sixth annual House of the Exquisite Corpse (Oct. 8-Nov. 1). This year’s theme is lullabies and features creations by Abby Palen, Andy Slater, Caitlin McLeod, Charlie Malave, Dionne, J. Felix, Leah Lara, madigan burke, Ruby Que, Saskia Bakker, Tanima, Vim Hile, and Zhen Heinemann.
Manual Cinema and the Studebaker Theater co-present Manual Cinema’s Frankenstein (Oct. 30-Nov.1). The Chicago-based performance collective combines shadow puppetry, film techniques, and live sound effects and music to create a uniquely haunting show at the Fine Arts Building. “We’re so excited to be returning to the Studebaker Theater with Frankenstein…,” says Drew Dir, Co-Artistic Director of Manual Cinema. “Our adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel has been touring the Western Hemisphere for years, and we’re thrilled to bring it back home for an encore Halloween engagement.”
BOOks
Don’t Leave Her Alone hits bookshelves on Oct. 13. The debut novel by Spanish author Desirée de Fez blends body horror with fantasy as it explores the darker side of motherhood, womanhood, and the expectations placed on female bodies.
In Cynthia Gómez’s neo-Gothic horror novella Muñeca (2026), readers find out what happens to a queer, working-class witch when she loses control of her powers (as well as her heart)while trying to rescue a bewitched heiress in 1968. Also set in the 1960s, the psychological suspense novel The Man (2026) by Laura Sims follows a housewife whose self-portraits contain a silhouette of a mysterious dude. Like Don’t Leave Her Alone and Muñeca, The Man can be purchased through Penguin Random House, Target, and Amazon.
Don’t forget to get a recycled insulated lunch bag from Rebellious! It’s just the thing for carrying Crystal Ball Cake Bites or for trick-or-treating. Of course, true rebels may defy its food use and pack it with the books listed above. Made of 50% recycled material, the stylish bag features a color-matched zipper on the main compartment and front pocket; the inside offers aluminum foil insulation. Priced at $17.99 plus shipping, purchases help Rebellious continue to produce wonderfully wicked articles. Click here to order before it disappears!
