HARK!
I hear ...a GOF (Grumpy Ol’ Fart)...
Why has a kids’ holiday been usurped--once again--by corporate America?!
Will we ever grow up????
Obvious answers: Because there’s money in it; and no, never.
The dough story: “According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Americans are expected to spend more this Halloween than any other year -- $10.14 billion, up from $8.05 billion in 2020. About $3 billion of that will be spent on candy alone; which translates to about $30.40 that each person is spending on candy.”
Good grief!
On top of that, Americans will spend around $6 billion on costumes and decorations.
But beyond the stuff that’s just for kids…
This GOF remembers when “Halloween at the bar” meant the local dive had a couple ghosts--still up from the previous Halloween, or maybe about five years ago?--and cobwebs, which looked real because they were.
Now, bars are going bat sh*t (so to speak) for Halloween.
Womply did a study in 2019 showing “On average, bars pulled in 17% more in revenue and processed 25% more transactions on Halloween than on a typical Wednesday.”
This year, Halloween falls on a Sunday, so HARK Valley and other watering holes have made it ...Halloweekend.
Some of the highlights:
disGRACEful
The always-quirky Gracie's Tax Bar pledges to throw “a very disgraceful Halloween event.”
A five-buck cover gets you in the door for live music by Treasure Mammal and Lucky Baby Daddy, with DJ sets with Djentrification and Beast Infection.
GORB provides “scary ass visuals.”
Gracie's Tax Bar is at 711 North 7th Avenue, Phoenix.
Upscale
Tickets to Noche En Blanco (Saturday, October 30, 5 – 10 p.m.) are $25. The event at 116 E Moreland St. is produced by the Hance Park Conservancy in partnership with the City of Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department, which promises “a night of community fun where guests are invited to dress in white costume cocktail attire, enjoy live entertainment, and dine under the stars on the lush east lawn of Hance Park.”
Old Town glamoween
Also Saturday, Oct. 30, Halloween Crawl in Old Town Scottsdale launches at 7295 E Stetson Dr. “Throw on your best costume and get out to the Scottsdale Halloween Crawl in Old Town! Old Town is home to the trendiest bars in Scottsdale, and on October 30th they'll be filled with ghouls and goblins looking for the best party on this frightening holiday!”
Twenty-five dollar admission gets you three penny drink vouchers.
Monstrosity
A Monsters Ball starts at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 30, at Alwun House Foundation, 1204 E Roosevelt St, Phoenix.
DJ Rebot will be spinning “ghastly grooves.” The night also features the Blood Feud Family Singers, a Phoenix based quartet specializing in “up-tempo, down-hearted, poetic-philosophic, country-fried hostility for sentimental haters .”
And VaVaVoom Productions promises “a kinky twisted burlesque” -- call it “ghoulesque.”
“Alwun House will require that attendees show proof of vaccination or proof of a Covid19 negative test results within 72 hours of event.”
Admission starts at $15.
Thriller?
Charlie's Phoenix is hosting a Saturday night Halloween blowout, featuring a Michael Jackson impersonator.
“Fastpass” admission is $20 https://www.charliesphoenix.com/halloween
Glowga
Rott n' Grapes is rolling out the mats for Glowga on the Dark Side of the Moon at 6:30 p.m. Halloween night.
What it is: “Put on your most obnoxious neon attire and join us for a night of yoga, meditation, sound healing, black lights, glow sticks, music, drinks and commUNITY.”
Twenty-five dollars includes your first drink, body paint, yoga and sound class, plus a glow necklace.
Rott n' Grapes is at 4750 N Central Ave in Phoenix.
Time Warp
Butler's Easy at 8375 North 7th Street, Phoenix, is hosting a “Rocky Horror Picture Show” watch party Halloween night at 7. It’s free.
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