Halloween: A Festival of Duds, Decor and Doings

Halloween used to mean witches, jack-o’-lanterns and a safe trick or treat around the block. And it lasted one night.

Lately it has turned into a major holiday rivaling the Fourth of July. Note the costume counters at every turn, the party goods galore. A trip to the local pumpkin patch seems as de rigueur as a sit-down on Santa’s lap.

And then there are the events. Halloween has turned into an extravaganza of expensive costumes, lavish decorations and several days and nights of parties and festivals.

The most ambitious event of the season is the Dragonwood Faire Autumn Festival, in its new location in Castaic Lake Recreation Area. A five-day celebration of medieval Halloween traditions, it’s sort of a Renaissance Faire with witches. Strolling musicians, the Danse Macabre, Gypsies, scary storytelling and more keep the action going at every turn. Graveyards, guillotine, stocks and pillory stand serve as stage sets for theatrical vignettes. There will be pumpkin carving contests, wrapped candies for youngsters who trick or treat at the many craft booths, a dunk tank, maze and pony rides--all with a medieval twist to them.

The costume contest (open to all fair-goers) has been divided into five categories: best nobility, most authentic, best fantasy, most bizarre and best Halloween. Proceeds benefit the Adolescent Treatment and Education Alliance, which deals with AIDS among teen-agers.

To reach Dragonwood, take Interstate 5 north, four miles past Magic Mountain, to the Lake Hughes Road exit. Drive east on Ridge Route Road and follow signs. Admission is $8.95 for adults, $6.95 for students and seniors with ID, and $2.50 for children ages 5 to 12; a five-day Faire pass is $37.50. Dates are Oct. 27-29 and Nov. 4-5. Hours are 10 a.m. to dusk Saturdays and Sundays, noon to dusk Friday. Information: (213) 395-0063.

DAY OF THE DEAD

Recognizing the history of a different culture, two events will mark the Mexican Day of the Dead. Jewelry, sculpture and plates will be among the artifacts on display in the Olvera Street Gallery, Friday through Nov. 5. The collection titled “Vive tu Recuerdo” (“Your Memory Is Living”) is on loan from UCLA. Combining Aztec and Christian traditions, the Day of the Dead celebrates the transition from this life into the next.

Also on display will be works by local Mexican-American artists. Workshops during the week will teach traditional crafts associated with the Day of the Dead, which is celebrated Nov. 2 in Mexico. The gallery, E-1 Olvera St., is open daily 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Information: (213) 628-4349.

Los Angeles Children’s Museum will offer its own celebration of “Dia de los Muertos” next Saturday and Sunday with activities throughout the museum. A slide presentation will show a celebration in Oaxaca, and visitors can build an altar. Children can make offerings out of clay, taste traditional bread, sing songs and make puppets.

Museum hours will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $4; children under 2, free. Taped information: (213) 687-8000. The museum is at 310 N. Main St., Los Angeles.

HAUNTED HOUSES

Elsewhere around the Southland, dozens of haunted houses will come to life (or death) on Halloween with a series of rooms and tableaux depicting ghoulish horrors. Although they can be a diverting alternative for parents who would rather skip trick or treating, most of the houses are too scary for preschoolers (and some impressionable elementary schoolers too). The best audience here is older children, teen-agers and adults.

The Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department will have more than 20 haunted houses around the city. Many parks will also hold carnivals, stunt shows, costume parades or trick-or-treat villages as well. Most haunted houses are open only on Halloween for a few hours and cost $1 to tour. A few have extended schedules.

Haunted houses are scheduled in these park recreation centers: Chevy Chase, Hollywood, Carlin G. Smith, Cypress, Elysian Valley, Montecito Heights, Yosemite, Central, Ardmore, Normandie, Branford, Victory-Vineland, Granada Hills, Mason, Winnetka, Encino, Peck Park, Rancho San Pedro, Wilmington, Penmar, St. Andrews, Baldwin Hills, Jim Gilliam and Palms. Call or visit the nearest park for details.

In Culver City, the municipal plunge will be transformed into a “Chamber of Blood” with different rooms depicting scenes from Stephen King novels such as “Pet Semetary” and “The Shining.” Tickets are on sale for the Oct. 28-31 performances, and advance purchase is advised. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for children 11 and under. Hours are 7-11 p.m. or sellout of 500 tickets. The house is at 4117 Overland Ave. Wear clothes you don’t mind crawling around in. And the faint of heart are warned away. Information weekdays: (213) 202-5689 or today (213) 202-5700.

Eagle Rock’s haunted house will go up at the Eagle Rock City Hall, 2035 Colorado Blvd., and open Friday and next Saturday, 6-9 p.m. Tickets are $3. Information: (213) 255-9880.

SCHOOL, COMMUNITY

EVENTS

Many communities and schools choose to hold their fairs in late October to enliven the festivities with costume parades and other Halloween fun.

At the 24th annual Larchmont Village Family Fair, Oct. 29 from noon to 5 p.m., Larchmont Boulevard is blocked off from First Street to Beverly Boulevard as merchants come out of their shops to staff the pony rides, petting zoo, game and food booths, train rides and the children’s costume contest. Registration begins 11:30 a.m. Information: (213) 461-6000.

Marquez Elementary School, at 16821 Marquez Ave., Pacific Palisades, holds its Halloween Carnival Oct. 29 from noon to 4 p.m. It will include a haunted house, carnival games, silent auction and food booths. Costumes are encouraged. Information (weekdays only): (213) 454-4019.

At Woodland Hills Elementary School, 22201 San Miguel St., the Fall Festival features a haunted house, performance by J. P. Nightingale, game booths, food and a bake sale. A photogenic pumpkin patch is waiting for youngsters in costumes. The festival is Oct. 29, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Information (weekdays only): (818) 347-9220.

The city of Torrance sponsors a costume parade Oct. 31 at 7 p.m., a part of its Halloween Carnival, on the tennis courts at Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Blvd. Games include ring toss, sucker toss and dart throwing. Festival hours are 4-8 p.m. The Monster Mash limbo contest begins at 5 p.m., guess the weight of the pumpkin at 5:45 p.m., ghost walk at 6 p.m., bubble gum-blowing contest at 6:30 p.m. There will be pizza, hot dogs and soft drinks for sale. Information (weekdays only): (213) 618-2930.

Wonderworld Puppets present a special Halloween show on Oct. 28 at 10:30 a.m. at the Torrance Community Theatre, 1522 Cravens Ave. Froggie, the hero of most Wonderworld productions, will meet Big Foot. Afterward, Froggie and Big Foot will pose for photos (bring your own camera). Tickets are $4 and reservations are advised. Call (213) 532-1741.

Heritage Square Museum celebrates Halloween with a look back at Victorian traditions, in keeping with the architecture of its eight Victorian buildings. Next Saturday, there will be apple bobbing, pumpkin decorating, candy, ghost stories and trick or treating. Hours are noon-4 p.m. The museum is at 3800 Homer St., in Highland Park, just off the Avenue 43 exit from the Pasadena Freeway. Admission is $4.50 for adults, $3 for seniors and visitors 12-17, free for children under 12. Taped information: (818) 449-0193.

Alhambra Park plans an ambitious program on Halloween for parents who are looking for a trick-or-treating alternative. Fright Night begins at 6 p.m. with a costume contest (adults and children) at the band shell. “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein,” on the band shell’s big screen, begins at 6:30 p.m., followed by “Comedy of Terrors” starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone. At 8 p.m., it’s “Tales of Terror,” four stories by Edgar Allan Poe. The park is at 500 N. Palm Ave. Information (weekdays only): (818) 570-3243.

The Westside Arts Center plans a Pumpkin Carving Festival next Saturday, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Under the guidance of artist Lee Armstrong, participants will carve and decorate in unusual styles. Pumpkins, carving tools and decorations will be provided. Suitable for age 5 and older. The cost is $5. Reservations required.

The center is also offering two storytellings next Saturday. At 3:30 p.m., Kathleen Zundell will tell slightly scary stories for 3- to 5-year-olds and their parents. Truly scary stories are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. for the hardier 6-and-older crowd. Cost is $5. The center is at 1302 11th St., Santa Monica. Reservations advised. Information: (213) 395-1443.

The Fall Harvest of Games, at Rancho Los Alamitos, on Oct. 29 is an afternoon of old-fashioned activities. Gamespeople are encouraged to come in costume. There’ll be a pumpkin hunt, horseshoe pitching, hoop tossing, potato sack races and apple bobbing. Hours are 1-4:30 p.m. with the costume parade beginning at 4 p.m. Everything’s free except cider and doughnuts, including tours of the ranch house. The rancho is at 6400 Bixby Hill Road, Long Beach. Information: (213) 431-3541.

FOR GROWN-UPS

While youngsters are putting the finishing touches on their bumblebee outfits or out trick or treating, adults have plenty of treats to choose from too.

At the Mysterious Bookshop, 8763 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, members of the Hardcover Railroad Readers Theater Group will use various parts of the bookstore as stages to present readings from great horror fiction. Writers include Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen King and Shirley Jackson. The celebration, which includes food, drink and browsing the well-stocked shelves, begins at 7:30 p.m. next Saturday. Tickets are $15 at the door and $12.50 in advance. Reservations suggested: (213) 659-2959.

One of the most elegant Halloween events is scheduled for next Saturday: Masquerade ‘89, a masked ball with food from Bistango restaurant at the Atrium Building in Irvine, presented by the Professions and Finance Associates of Orange County. The Pacific Chorale will perform in this fund-raiser for the City of Hope that includes dinner, a silent auction and dancing in the courtyard. Tickets are $135 and dress is black tie, not costume. Reservations (during normal business hours): (714) 557-8344.

The Pasadena Historical Society presents Mystery at the Mansion at the Fenyes Mansion. Matik Theatre will perform an original 2 1/2-hour mystery-drama in which the audience helps solve the crime. The play takes place in Pasadena in 1939 and guests are encouraged to wear costumes of that period. Tickets for the performances tonight, Thursday, Friday and next Saturday are $60. On Oct. 31, the price is $75. Reservations are required: weekdays, (818) 577-1660; Saturdays, (818) 794-4575.

The Gardenia Restaurant and Lounge in Hollywood holds its eighth annual Wayne and Brenda Halloween Concert on Oct. 31 at 9 p.m. Billed as a “wacko romp,” the evening includes an audience costume party and special Halloween feast. The restaurant is at 7066 Santa Monica Blvd. Reservations required: (213) 467-7444.

The Art Deco Society of Los Angeles holds its fifth annual Hollywood Cemetery Walking Tour next Saturday. This offbeat tour will stop at tombstones and grave markers of the famous and infamous with commentary on how they died and the architecture of the graveyard. Tours will depart every 10 minutes from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. on a first-come, first-served basis. Meet at 6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, and wear comfortable walking shoes. Tickets are $5. Taped information: (213) 735-4584.

And should you be in need of seasonal finery, the Center Theatre Group Costume Shop, costume department for the Ahmanson Theatre and the Mark Taper Forum, is extending its costume rental hours, staying open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and next Saturday. If you want to rent a costume, you can do so here. The shop has a collection of costumes that have been designed for CTG and Music Center productions for the past 23 years. The shop is at 3301 E. 14th St. (at Lorena Street), Los Angeles; telephone (213) 267-1230.