Spooky season

Halloween in Houston: boat bashes, Dia de los Muertos, family fun, and spirited 21+ parties

Halloween weekend is upon Houston, and that means there's plenty of fun to scare up all over the city. Here are some of favorite spook-tacular findings.

Food and drink

Yelloween with Veuve Clicquot
a'Bouzy hosts its annual Halloween Sunday Funday on Sunday, October 29 with a host of Veuve Clicquot specials, including Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut NV for $62 a bottle and Veuve Clicquot Vintage Brut Rosé for $152 a bottle. Costumes encouraged and reservations are recommended.

The Cursed Cauldron Pop-Up
Through October 31, this creepy incarnation takes root at Ninja Ramen, transporting guests to a realm of magic and mystery. Those who dare will find cocktails like Coven’s Calling, a blend of Aviation Gin, dry sherry, elderflower, sage, black pepper, lemon, and Fever Tree Tonic Water, and Freyja’s Cup, which blends Heaven’s Door Bourbon, strawberry, rose, honey, lemon, and Fever Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer. The pop-up is located at 4219 Washington Ave., and offers "char-BOO-terie boards," along with other tricks and treats.

Día de los Muertos Mezcal Dinner at Xochi
The downtown restaurant marks the traditional Mexican celebration of the deceased on Wednesday, November 1, with a four-course seated dinner, created by Chef Hugo and Chef Ruben. Each course is paired with a Amaras cocktail. Expect items such as toasted masa pancake, braised beef cheeks, mole pasilla and blue masa triangular envelope stuffed with hoja santa , paired with a Xochirita, made with Amarás Verde Mezcal, orange liqueur, lime juice, simple syrup, gusano salt, or bacon-wrapped quail, pasilla mixed sauce, chochoyotes paired with Ama Chocolate, a combination of Amarás Azul, chocolate wash, Pimm’s liqueur, cardamom, lime, agave. The cost is $110 per person. Tickets available online.

Parties and events

Punch Party
Kick off Halloween weekend at Rienzi with this 21+ party starting at 6 pm Friday, October 27. Guests can sip and savor English punch while exploring the museum's collection of 17th- and 18th-century European art, and enjoying the sounds of live music. The cost is $65 per person. Buy tickets on the MFAH website.

Spooky Karaoke
Finn Hall hosts this frighteningly fun evening of karaoke on Friday, October 27 from 9 pm to midnight with host Mathis Jones. Enter the “Spook Eazy” at Swallow’s Nest for bewitching decorations, live music, and specialty cocktails.

7th Annual Night at the Haunted Mansion
On Saturday, October 28at 8 pm, Chapman and Kirby completely transforms into a hauntingly delightful space, perfect for celebrating Halloween in style. Spooky decorations, eerie music, DJs, Halloween-themed cocktails, and a Trick-or-Treat Bar highlight the festivities. Costumes are required, and guests have the opportunity to win exciting prizes. The event is free, but registration online is requested.

Boos on the Bayou
Moody Gardens celebrates Halloween with 21+ only cruise on the Colonel Paddlewheel on Saturday, October 28. There's a costume contest, DJ and dancing, light bites, some spooky treats, and each guest will receive two drink tickets. The cruise sets sail at 9 pm. More information here.

"Thriller" Halloween Bash
The Moran CityCentre hosts this celebration of the iconic Michael Jackson hit, complete with Level One Band, an MJ cover band. The fun starts at Fireside on Saturday, October 28 at 7 pm, and there's a costume contest, with prizes including a stay at the hotel. The first 50 guests get a Tito's Vodka swag bag. Tickets are $25. Reserve online.

FestiFall at Wooster's Garden
On Sunday, October 29, the Midtown gathering spot hosts this party from 4 pm to 10 pm. featuring a costume contest, food trucks, shopping pop ups, raffle prizes, games, a DJ, and live music

URBE Día de los Muertos Fiesta
On the heels of Halloween comes the Day of the Dead, the traditional Mexican celebration that honors the deceased and welcomes their spirits back to earth to visit friends and family. On Thursday, November 2 from 6 pm to 9 pm, the Uptown street food fave closes for dinner service to host this blow out, where guests can sample Chef Hugo’s street food with interactive stations, custom cocktails, music, a face painter, festive decorations, and even prizes for the best dressed. The cost is $75 per person. Purchase online.

Family fun

Halloween Spooktacular for Kids
On Saturday, October 28, the Houston Symphony invites families to Jones Hall. Guests can dress in their favorite spooky costumes and enjoy as an orchestra full of costumed musicians perform chilling tunes from beloved films including Harry Potter, Wednesday, Coco, Beauty and the Beast, and more. Lobby activities include trick-or-treating and an Instrument Petting Zoo, where kids can try instruments from the orchestra. Two outings are offered, at 10 a.m and 11:30 am. Tickets start at $29 and can be purchased online.

Howl-O-Ween Dog Parade and Costume Contest at Levy Park
Perfect for the whole family, this festival starts with a pup parade around the park at 4 p.m. on October 29, followed by the costume contest. Categories include Spooky Season (anything fall or Halloween related), From the Screen (any character or theme from TV or movies), and Best Ensemble (must include three or more people and/or dogs in coordinating costumes). Pooch owners register here. The event is free.

CityCentre’s 11th Annual Halloween Trick-or-Treat
Kids and adults alike will love strolling around the shopping district for this safe trick-or-treat experience. Trick-or-Treating is Monday, October 30 from 5 pm-7 pm, followed by music and performances by the Real Witch Wives of Houston at 7 and 7:30 pm. Participating merchants will be identified with balloons, including lululemon, The Moran, Seasons 52, Bowl & Barrel, Lily Rain, RA Sushi, Tecovas, and more. Bring a bucket or bag to collect the sweets.

Kids Eat Free at Cyclone Anaya's
Children under 12 who come dressed in costume to any Cycle Anaya's location on Halloween, October 31, will receive a free meal. Adults in costume get a free order of queso.

Emily Vitek

Wooster's Garden hosts FestiFall on Sunday, October 29. Come in costume and enjoy music, raffle prizes, food trucks and more.

Movie Review

Eagerly anticipated Wicked movie brings Broadway to the big screen

Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-Butera in Wicked.

The musical Wicked is indisputably the biggest Broadway smash of the 21st century, having grossed more $1.6 billion in New York alone and achieving the rare feat of running for over 20 years. All of which is to say that the long-awaited movie adaptation of The Wizard of Oz prequel will most likely be a massive success whether it lives up to what longtime fans envisioned or not.

Part one — yes, this 2 hour and 40 minute film is merely the first act of the musical; part two arrives a year from now — introduces Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), the green-skinned witch who goes on to become Dorothy’s nemesis, and G(a)linda (Ariana Grande-Butera), the pink-garbed “good” witch, as they meet at Shiz University in Oz. Glinda is the ultra-popular one with sycophantic hangers-on, while Elphaba is shunned by almost everyone, sometimes including her disabled sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), who’s desperate to make her own space away from Elphaba.

Her mistreatment by others leads Elphaba to get angry, which manifests itself in uncontrollable magic. Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) notices this and takes a personal interest in her, giving her one-on-one instruction in hopes of harnessing her power. In the meantime, Elphaba and Glinda attempt to go from forced roommates to actual friends, although Glinda’s entitled personality is more of an obstacle than anything else they encounter.

Directed by Jon M. Chu and written by original book writer Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox, the film does a great job of distinguishing itself from the stage version while still remaining true to what made it so beloved. As Chu showed in his last film, In the Heights, he has an innate feel for how to tap into the essence of the source material while expanding it into something befitting the scope of a blockbuster movie.

In this case, he finds a way to give even greater emphasis to the bigotry that Elphaba faces simply because of her green skin; the fact that she is being played by a Black woman drives home the point even more. The story remains light and fluffy for the most part, but the ostracization/otherness that Elphaba feels is delivered in a powerful way, as is her empathy for talking animals like Dr. Dillamond (voiced by Peter Dinklage), who are facing their own persecution.

Of course, the highlight of the film is Stephen Schwartz’s music, and while not all of the songs are equal in impact, they still make for a cohesive whole. The number of songs and order they appear in the first act is identical to the stage musical, with the standouts remaining “The Wizard and I,” “Popular,” and “Defying Gravity.” While there is some superfluous action and cutaways added to certain numbers, it’s not enough to distract from what makes the songs effective.

Oddly, the progression of the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda works better on stage when the timeline is accelerated, but Erivo and Grande-Butera make up for this slight lack with their fantastic performances. The emotion each brings to their characters fits them almost perfectly, and there’s simply no denying the strength of each of their voices. Bode, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ethan Slater as Boq, and more make for a solid supporting cast.

The well-known ending of the first act of Wicked is a huge high point that is so good that it almost makes up for the fact that audiences won’t see the second film for a long time. But if part one is any indication, part two should turn out to be another great musical theater adaptation in a decade that has already seen its fair share.

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Wicked opens in theaters on November 22.

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