Photo courtesy of Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts ensembleartsphilly.org
FunTimes Magazine Culture + Entertainment column, week of October 21, 2024.
It’s close to midnight
And something evil’s lurking in the dark
Under the moonlight
You see a sight that almost stops your heart…
– Michael Jackson’s Thriller
Boo! Scared ya! That’s right. All of you ghouls and goblins: Let’s get Halloween-ready with these mildly scary events; plus a few other free or low-cost non-Halloween activities to please your fall pleasure palate.
The focus is parties – block parties, Halloween parties, and Halloween block parties. Please don’t forget: When event-going, take precautions, especially when among groups and while indoors, with the ongoing risk of COVID-19 variants.
The Power Of Wine And Women
Thursday, October 24, 2024. Wine & Create: An Exclusive Networking Event for Women in Content Creation is all about sipping wine, networking, and learning. Fine wine and conversation. You can’t beat that! Experience an evening of creation and connection, and get tips from influencers. Find out how to reach the decision-makers and change-makers shaping the future of content creation. Network with other female content creators. Learn the art of community building from event-production and content-creation experts. Promote your brand. Presented by @sunkissedcreator. The featured speakers will be Dr. Afia, PhD, and Sonia Blount. Dr. Alfa, a psychologist, is an influential content creator boasting more than 63K engaged Instagram followers. She will share how she formed a thriving community and l how you can establish your brand in the digital age. Blount is the dynamic founder of Kabila Events, a top-tier event company and creator of the Philly Black Wine Fest. Pre-registration is required, $23; 7 p.m. EST. Our House Culture Center, 6380 Germantown Ave. E-mail: hello@sunkissed.artor eventbrite.
Salute To St. Vincent And The Grenadines’ 45th-Year Milestone
Friday, October 25, 2024.Pride and patriotism rule the day at the St. Vincent and the Grenadines 45th Independence Flag-raising Ceremony at Philadelphia’s City Hall. The event is a powerful symbol of St. Vincent and the Grenadines’s Independence, endurance, vitality, and unity. The St. Vincent and the Grenadines communities in Philadelphia will proudly gather to raise the flag and awareness of the nation’s rich history and cultural heritage. St. Vincent and the Grenadines, an island country in the eastern Caribbean, gained independence from the United Kingdom on October 27, 1979. Philadelphia City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier and Miss Caribbean U.S. Teen 2022 will be on hand. Claudia Richard will sing the Vincentian national anthem, and Jolie Curbin will lead the Pledge of Allegiance. The program will include presentations of community awards and performances by various Caribbean instrumentalists and dancers. The Saint Vincent and the Grenadines flag is blue, gold, and green. Blue represents the sky and sea; gold the warmth of the people, reflecting the golden sands of the Grenadines, and green denotes the lush vegetation of Saint Vincent’s agriculture. Free, 11 a.m. EST to noon. City Hall (north side, northeast corner). 1401 John F. Kennedy Blvd. E-mail:patrina@vincygems.com, 267-206-7350.
Music Light Show Is Magic
Friday, October 25, 2024. Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens in all of its mosaicked, mirrored glittering glory is turning up the volume at Twilight in the Gardens. Experience an innovative music and light show featuring video projections, mixed and generated live from synthesizers and analog electronics. Enjoy a live performance of jazz and electronic musical elements by musicians-producers Corey Bernhard + Sanche Ramírez, with lights and visuals by Luminous Abstract. Go on a self-guided tour of Magic Gardens’ rarely seen mosaicked basement, and view the exhibition, “Walking Round My Head: Works by Stephen Wright.” In the 1960s, Philadelphia artist Isaiah Zagar created the tiled showplace of bicycle spokes, glass bottles, ceramics, and other colorful recycled materials. $18 to $25, 7 p.m. EST to 10 p.m. EST. E-mail:info@phillymagicgardens.org,215-733-0390 orphillymagicgardens.org.
A Block Party of Unity
Saturday, October 26, 2024. “Meet Me on South Street” so goes the famous 1962 Orlons’ song. That’s a great idea, especially this Saturday at the U.S. Night Market. The multicultural festival is three blocks long; it represents the best of Philly’s block parties celebrating the city’s rich diversity. It will feature food trucks, food tents, arts and crafts vendors, live music entertainment, and a children’s activity area. Check out the Steve Westbrook Training Fitness Demo; the Polish Folk Dance Ensemble performance, and a ‘boo-tiful’ costume contest for dogs and one for kids (Pre-register at the event). Oshunbumi Fernandez-West, CEO of ODUNDE, created the event. Free admission, 6 p.m. EST to 10 p.m. EST. South Street, between 21st and 23rd streets. E-mail:usnightmarket@gmail.com, 267-324-9932 or usnightmarket.com.
Halloween On The Block…
Thursday, October 31, 2024. Celebrate Halloween in grand style; get spooked out at the annual Sweet and Spooky Spectacular, a night of scary fun in South Philly. The Da Vinci Art Alliance and Palumbo Park will feature carnival games, candy, costume contests, raffles, locally sourced prizes, boozy cocktails for the adults, music, dancing, photo booths, and many more treats. Free, but $5 donation (towards the cost of event supplies) encouraged; 5 p.m. EST to 9 p.m. EST (Pay as you go for drinks, games). EST. Da Vinci Art Alliance, 700 block of Catharine Street. Email: veronica@davinciartalliance.org, 267-388-2835 or eventbrite.
Haunted House Music
Thursday, October 31, 2024 to Friday, November 1, 2024. You have to love a DJ party that starts on one day and ends the next day. That’s the reality of Hallowink No. 9, a late-night killer costume party for thrill-seekers over 21 years young. Featuring Will Clarke and Josh Wink, the promotional material says they will “monster mash up the dance with you.” Presented by Goodie & Ovum Recordings. $25, 10 p.m. EST to 2: a.m. EST. Warehouse on Watts, 923 N. Watts St. E-mail:info@worshiprecs.com,wowphilly.com.
The World Of Writing
October 2024. In the Mighty Writers youth literacy program, nothing is mightier than the pen – or smartphone/ computer. Students, ages 8 to 17, can take their imagination and transform it into their own creative words. From Rome to Romania, become a storyteller and world traveler when you sign up for Mighty Writers’ Travel Writing Session. Using a travel blog format, you can be a real globetrotter when you journal your thoughts on foreign adventures and lands. Tell tales of pirates carousing around the Caribbean seas or great Renaissance artists in Italy. Free. Register now, and go on a worldwide journey. E-mail:gbernicker@mightywriters.org or mightywriters.org.
