The Ghoul Time Dispatch Vol. I
[caption id align="alignnone" width="4032"]
Nothing creepy about an abandoned high school… photo by Reed Barry [/caption]
Arts news by Nigel “the Night Rake” O’Shea
The wind and rain have brought us a prologue of Winter’s turn. The leaves are becoming orange and golden faster than blood drains from fattened October hogs. East Jefferson County loves a party and has always cherished Halloween as a rite of passage worthy of celebration. Indeed, ours is a community of Fall bounty, odd festivals, costumery, tomfoolery and a macabre curiosity for alternative metaphysical points of view. Our spooky Victorian seaport is the perfect backdrop to go with nonchalant attitudes about the shadows, for a specter seems likely to round every corner, a ghost likely to appear in every doorway.
We embrace the darkening months, where life and death hang in that liminal space of a fallen leaf, drifting for a moment before dropping to the ground, joining its brethren in the dark muck of decay. Alas, the TV and podcast charlatans have discovered what residents have always known: that ours is a preeminent locale for haunts! But I digress, dear reader, because there is so much interest in Autumnal arousal that I must report to you post haste! Local revelers can’t contain their Halloween spirit to a mere weekend. Stay alert to updates as we approach the thirty-first of the month!
School days, school days learn the rotten, cruel ways . . .
If the crumbling hallways of pedagogy’s past appeal to ye, then pull up a chair, children, because class is in session. A monument to education built in 1894, the Lincoln building is finally being torn down despite decades of do-gooder dialogue, defending and decision-making. Ultimately, deciders voted to decommission and demolish the large red brick structure.
What: Tours of the soon-to-be-demolished historic Lincoln Building
Where: Port Townsend High School, 1500 Van Ness St., Port Townsend, WA 98368
When: Tuesday, September 30th at 6 pm, Friday, October 10th at 4 pm, Friday, October 17th at 6 pm, and a New Weekend Date Added! Saturday, November 8th at 2 pm
How to take a tour: Just sign your life away here
Is it an open house?: No. It is a guided tour; you must stay with your guide at all times.
Can I wear my sandals?: No, you fool. According to the website: “Tours of the building will include stairs, uneven walking surfaces, poor air quality and limited lighting. Please wear sturdy, closed-toed shoes and bring a mask and flashlight.”
Is it creepy?: Cor blimey, yes. As you roam the ruinous staircases and halls or pull up a chair in an old classroom, you might hear the ghosts of the student body’s past echoing against the chalkboards. Bring a piece of chalk and leave your farewell epitaph to the old red giant.
Speaking of red giants, our historic giant red blossom of cinema, the Rose Theater, has a night of audient terror scheduled in the Starlight Room. No, it is not the farewell to Downton Abbey, something we all thought was long dead already. It is Montopolis Presents Ghost Almanac. It will be a night of music, sound effects and classic horror, with vintage synthesizer music accompanying old-time horror films. Montopolis is the musical project of Justin Sherburn. The touring Ghost Almanac queries: “What if the devil was a VJ? What if MTV broadcasted from hell?”
What: Montopolis Presents Ghost Almanac
What is that?: An “80-minute roller coaster ride of terror and old school beats”.
Where: The Rose Theater, 235 Taylor Street, Port Townsend, WA 98368
When: Thursday, October 9th at 7:00 pm
What Movies?:
Films include craven celluloid classics:
The Skeleton Dance (1929)
Haxan (1922)
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
The Haunted House, Buster Keaton (1921) (the complete short film)
L’Inferno (1911)
Betty Boop’s Halloween Party (1933)
The Vanishing Lady (1896)
Nosferatu (1922)
A Wolfe in Shift’s clothing . . .
[caption id align="alignnone" width="2048"]
Photo courtesy of The Shift’s Facebook Page [/caption]
Dear reader, my time before dawn is short but I would be remiss not to mention a few last early October events to satiate your appetite for Samhain. American Legion Hall Post 26 is hosting their annual fright night with live music featuring Kalan Wolfe & The Shift! Shake a leg bone at this 21 and over event that includes a costume contest and raffle.
What: Spooktacular Halloween Costume Party and Dance
Where: American Legion Post 26, 209 Monroe St, Port Townsend, WA 98368
When: Friday October 10th, doors at 8:00 pm
Is it all ages?: No. This event is for purported grown-ups in costumes.
Cost?: By donation at the door
You’ve got to pick up every stitch . . .
And last but certainly not least, The Witches Walk Spooktacular gathers the coven for its fourth year. Meet your fellow witches at Haller fountain at 2 pm and parade in broad daylight to the American Legion. There will be a costume contest and a costume exchange to trade up for new ghoulish garb. All of the kiddies will receive a prize and a candy bag.
What: Fourth Annual Witches Walk
Where: Starting at Haller Fountain in Port Townsend and parading to the American Legion
When: Saturday October 11th, at 2:00 pm
Is it all ages?: Absolutely. There are age categories for the costume contest, a costume exchange for outfits that have been outgrown, and plenty of candy to bust a gut!
What if I’m not a witch?: There is also a Wizard category if you must be a pill.
Ack, dear reader, my cult collaborator and companion, I must bid you adieu as I can feel the early light of dawn starting to singe my cyst-ridden sallow skin. But take heart (perhaps only one), I will return with more news of October’s evil events for all of my gruesome gadabouts and wicked wanderers.
Ta for now.
Nigel the Night Rake
