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Elsa Events Other Haunts

21st Annual Marshall City Rec Haunted Trail

Dance of Death Logo

Of all the holiday seasons, the Doktor and I enjoy Halloween best of all. We have our traditions — Nosferatu at the Michigan Theater, decorations and frightening foods, the masques and costumes, the surprises and treats — and we’ve made room in our schedule for a new-for-us annual event, the Haunted Trail of Marshall, Michigan.

We’ll be at this year’s event, The Dance of Death, too. Opening last weekend, the final nights of the Haunted Trail are October 25 and 26 from 7:30pm until 11:00pm. The walk takes place outdoors along Marshall’s Riverwalk; attendees should park at Haunted Trail Entrance, 900 S Marshall (behind the power plant), Marshall, MI. The cost is $7.00. The Haunted Trail is not appropriate for young children; kids under 12 must be accompanied by parent.

Unlike the haunted houses that spring up this time of year, the Haunted Trail is a scripted theater event, with a plot, actors and a puzzle for attendees to learn about and figure out. Like last year’s Haunted Trail, I expect the Dance of Death to be an interactive story that will amuse, delight, and perhaps scare just a bit. I won’t mind at all; I’ll have the Doktor to hold my hand.

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"What We Fear" Events Performances

Theatre Bizarre 2013 “The Procession”

Theatre Bizarre is a little hard to describe: a masquerade run amok, immersive environmental theatre, a derelict circus ressurected for just one more night of tattered debauchery… In a different world, I would studiously document John Dunivant‘s magnum opus for a multi-volume dissertation but, in this sad beautiful universe, allow me just a few words and a couple photos.
small masonic
Elsa and I arrived early this year, while Detroit Masonic Temple was still bathed in twilight and the occasional blast of fire.

Foyer

Many performers mulled about the foyer, beside the Fiji mermaid and the scale model of Theatres past. These boxed representations are the circus I would run away to join, or at least display in my bedroom — handcrafted stages peopled with paper maché characters engaged in all manner of bizarreness and lit by blasts of flame. My favorite detail was a sword swallower who was part anatomical model. An occupational hazard, I suppose.

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Being an early bird allowed my hungry eyes and itchy camera finger to record some of the classic set pieces before the real fun began.

Zombo'sEmporium

This photo depicts the one moment when the PeepShow was not stuffed to capacity with patrons eager for Good Ol’ Timey Burlesque.
peepshow

Odditorium
One of the rooms was filled with what a friend called “Satanic Kitsch” which is an apt description. These massive paintings of horned beings on scuffed plywood echo props from a tawdry sideshow while evoking the iconography of 70’s demonism, scandalous and nostalgic. When the festivities began, this room shook with heavy metal and poorly-clad performers suspended by hooks in their flesh.
Asylum

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SatannicKitsch2

Other nooks of the massive structure were filled with sights that, let’s say, can’t be posted to Facebook. Thrilling, titillating amusements best left unmentioned.

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In the “Sinema” Elsa and I munched popcorn and caught bits of Caligari as well as a performance by the rollicking Detroit Marching Party Band. But there was music EVERYWHERE. Elsa and I shook our tail-feathers to rockabilly in a place we came to call “The Pumpkin Room,” bounced gleefully to techno in the central court, and even swayed and head-banged to the bands rocking out the Ballroom on the very bottom floor.

Ballroom

Any night of magical indulgence should have at least one regret and this is a photo of mine: the prizes awarded for the carnival games. I must have spent $20 throwing darts and tossing beanbags but did not walk away with one of these odd mementoes. I would have treasured it, not just as a souvenir, but as tangible proof that the visions of Theatre Bizarre were more than just a Mid-Autumn’s Night Dream.

prizes!

Categories
Food Party

Frightful Food: Entrails made of Bananas and Brown Sugar

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As a fan of horror and food, I was beside myself to discover Kitchen Overlord’s section on “The Noshing Dead.” Delicious recipes with simply GHASTLY presentation. I’m linking here to a dish that resembles entrails made from bananas and brown sugar but equally loathsome and toothsome are the raw muscles made from wine-poached pears. The Kitchen Overlord embellishes the recipes with a cute narrative flair too.

I am reading deeply here and taking copious notes for the Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers parties. Last year was good but with the tips from “The Noshing Dead” this year’s snacks will be KILLER.

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Nightmares

Nightmare #343: Faster and Faster

(Male, 40’s) This is a recurrent dream-image that I’ve had all my life– like as far back as I can remember. It may have started in adolescence, but I’m not sure exactly when.

The set-up of the dream varies– the how or why part — but the dream always leads me to a dark forest at night. There are noises around me, and I’m running. I’m not big on running in real-life, but in my dream, I’m running for what feels like a long, long time. Why I’m running isn’t completely clear either. Am I running after someone or am I running away? All I know is that I’m fearful and I’m running.

And just when I am so tired that I want to give up, a thought occurs to me, like I realize or remember something that I already knew.

So I get down on all fours, and I begin to run again. I can run faster than I ran standing upright and with more energy. And I keep running on my hands and feet through the forest.

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Elsa Events Movies Poe

Vincent Price Film Festival

Vincent Price with Raven

What better way to get in the proper mood for the Halloween holiday season than indulging in the cinematic brilliance of that master of horror movies, Vincent Price.

Happily, the historic Redford Theatre in nearby Detroit, Michigan will host a Vincent Price Film Festival on October 4 and 5, welcoming devotees to witness five classic Price films projected on the big screen.

Redford Theatre Marquee

Tickets are a bargain. The cost is $5.00 per show or $13.00 will get you into all three shows.

The following gems are on the menu:

Friday October 4 at 8pm:
Diary of a Mad Man (1963) followed The Raven (1963)

Saturday October 5 at 2pm:
House of Wax (1953)

Saturday October 5 at 8pm:
•8 p.m. Saturday: Masque of the Red Death (1964) followed by The Tingler (1959)

Don’t miss it!