Get your costumes ready

A scary good time: Get your ghoul on at more than 20 spooktacular Halloweenparties

No plans this Halloween? Fear not, we've got your rundown of enchanted happenings around town. With All Hallows' Eve sandwiched between two weekends and on a Wednesday this year, celebrate the weekend before, after or anywhere and everywhere in between. Get your costumes ready for several nights of spooktacular fun.

Thursday, October 25

Celebrate for a good cause as Hotel ZaZa hosts the second annual Bone Bash at 6:30 p.m. Funds benefit the Arthritis Foundation and tickets start at $250.

Friday, October 26

With a risqué burlesque theme, the Moulin Rouge Halloween Costume Ball at Eighteenth Bar is sure to make your blood boil. The fun starts at 9 p.m. Entry is $20 or $30 per couple.

Join the array of monsters, ghosts and goblins at Sullivan's Steakhouse for Yelloween. Eat, drink and be scary: Complimentary snacks by Sullivan's, plus specialty cocktails made with Jim Beam's Devil's Cut Bourbon and live music by Radio London. Wear your costume for free admittance.

Saturday, October 27

Get the party started early and be ready to go all night: Jackson’s Watering Hole is featuring a doubleheader with Jackson's Rebirth and Voodoo Halloween Party. Rebirth begins at 11 a.m. with a Bloody Mary Bar, mimosas, a food truck, and lots of college football. Catch your second wind in time for phase two: Voodoo begins at 7 p.m. with a DJ, karaoke, LT and the Zydeco Mob, and a costume contest.

The Bash: A Halloween Happening kicks off at 8 p.m. at The Corinthian. Tickets are $150 and benefit the Cerebral Palsy Fund of Easter Seals. Rock to music from Skyrocket and The Smithereens. CultureMap's own Shelby Hodge will emcee the costume contest with KHOU's Len Cannon. Treats include an open bar and frightening fare. Costume mandatory.

In its third year running, Hotel ZaZa's Dancing in the Dark Halloween Costume Party is from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. Join hostess Lady Bunny for some devilish good fun. The entry fee is $50 at the door.

Brasserie 19's burlesque-themed Halloween party kicks off at 9 p.m. Mingle with the other ghastly goblins on the patio. Enter the costume contest. RSVP: bohoblack@gmail.com.

The witching hour is 10 p.m. at the Haunted Estate Halloween Bash benefiting Autism Speaks. Park your broom at Estate Lounge for specialty cocktails provided by Blue Label Vodka. Suggested donation $10.

With a monstrous prize of $2,500, dress to kill for the costume contest at the Paranormal Activity Halloween Costume Ball at Hudson Lounge. Ghouls can groove to tunes spinning in three rooms for a $20 general admission fee.

Tuesday, October 30

Dance the night away to electronic beats and a live performance by Dada Life at the Third Annual Vampire's Ballat Stereo Live. Tickets start at $20.

Wednesday, October 31

Grab your pooch and head to the Boneyard Boo Bash at Boneyard Drinkery from 6 until 9 p.m. Enter the inaugural "Boneyard Boo Bash" doggie Halloween costume contest and help raise funds for Barrio Dogs Inc. RSVP: 832.661.3348.

Get Your Ghoul Onat Mkt Bar from 7 until 10 p.m. The evening includes best costume prizes, complimentary morbid munchies, drink deals on smokin’ sangria, vampire wine and pumpkin gelato, and music by DJ Melodic. Free admission.

Brenner's on the Bayou's Boo on the Bayou party includes a full dinner buffet, Halloween-themed cocktails, a costume contest and deejay dance music — all in the restaurant's lush outdoor setting. The three top costumes will receive gift certificates for a dinner for two. The fun begins at 6 p.m. Tickets are $50, call 713-868-4444 for reservations (you must be 21 to enter).

Liven up your evening at the bar and patio at La Griglia's Annual Halloween Celebration. The crowd rolls in at 8 p.m. Costume optional, be ready to mingle. No cover charge.

Spice up your Wednesday night with the Dia de Brujas party at Sullivan's Steakhousefrom 8:30 p.m. until 1 a.m. Grab your dancing shoes, spruce up your costume and hit the dance floor to the sounds of Grupo Kache during this Latin themed fiesta. Specialty mixers and elixirs feature Patrón XO Cafe. Wear a costume, get in free.

13|31 Halloween Trick-or-Treat Wine Tasting at 13 Celsius starts at 6 p.m. The tariff is $31 plus tax and gratuity. Taste 13 different wines and nibble on cake truffles from One Bite Kitchen and a special cheese selection from Houston Dairymaids. If you're in the mood for dark chocolate, try the Brown Paper Chocolates. Costumes encouraged, but not required.

Trick or treat at RA SushiBar Restaurant's Boo Bash parties at the Highland Village and CityCentre locations. Enjoy bewitching food and drink specials, a costume contest and a guest DJ. The haunting starts at 7 p.m. Admission is free.

Sink your teeth into Kenny & Ziggy’s: A Bite of Transylvania Dinner. Five courses will be served, each paired with special beers from Shmaltz Brewing Company and Terrapin Beer Company. Live music by Zingari. $65 per person plus tax and gratuity. Reservations required: 713-679-8453.

Friday, November 2

Come dressed in your favorite “Mexican themed” costume for the fiesta at 7 p.m. at Cuchara. Prizes awarded for best costumes, some drinkable. RSVP: info@cuchararestaurant.com.

Saturday, November 3

From 11 a.m. until the doors close, El Gran Malo's Dia de los Muertos party will feature a giant, traditional Dia de los Muertos shrine, Mariachi band, roasted pig, cauldron of Mexican hot chocolate (infused tequilas shots screaming to be added), and a cask of Saint Arnold’s DR-12.

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”