Halloween 2014 alternative events

Being an organizer of a Meetup, especially one that does lots of different events, means I have to be good at planning. I know which events we’re going to go to at least a month in advance. It also means I need to keep an eye out on the events coming up, and decide which ones I want us to go to. But then I only blog about the ones I’ve been to, which I think means a lot of things I know about are going to waste, and that it would be good to tell other people about them too. So I’m going to try (emphasis on try) to do more previews on here, we'll see how long I can keep it up!

So, first up – Halloween. Halloween in London gets bigger and bigger each year, with several Halloween stalwarts putting on more than one night to ensure their fans can go along. For example, Torture Garden this year has a whopping four events – the two ‘normal’ TGs on the 25th and 1^st and then they have their Belle Epoque collab Dark Circus on the 25th and they’re doing a country retreat (how very Eyes Wide Shut) with Killing Kittens on the 1st.

http://www.torturegarden.com/

Suzette Fielding’s A Curious Invitation (basically Last Tuesday Society's heir now that Viktor Wynd is concentrating on his museum) has two events on – Satan’s Rout on the Friday and Day of the Dead on the Saturday. These balls are always masked events, with music, DJS and a swing class if you’re early enough, plus a few extras – that might be food to be eaten off naked people, or a menagerie of creepy crawlies and reptiles. It’s a lot tamer than Torture Garden but does provide a frisson of kink if you’re kink-curious but not ready to go the whole ‘latex and dungeon’ hog.
http://www.acuriousinvitation.com/

Carousel, which is one of the nights I’m taking my Meetup to, is doing a double header on the Friday and Saturday at Crucifix Lane, on the theme of the Rocky Horror Show. They bill themselves (a bit like Rumpus) as an indoor festival – lots of stages, lots of acts, music ranges from electro swing to house and they have performers and immersive theatre going on throughout the night both on stage and off.
http://carouselparty.co.uk/

Backyard Cinema are also back for a run of several nights starting on the Friday. This is not just a movie, this is a ‘theatrical experience’ with zombie training, live actors, cocktails, burritos and an End of the World party after the movie. This is the other thing I’m taking my Meetup group to.
http://www.backyardcinema.co.uk/

There’s also zombiefied shenanigans going down at The Vaults, starting on the Thursday with the Halloween Raveyard, in honour of the necropolis line that ran through here, taking dead bodies out to Surrey. Well, those dead bodies are back! And you’re one of them so dress accordingly. There’s cabaret, a zombie disco dance hall, and Dank Parish giving you your own funeral. Kansas Smitty (who are superb) are also making an appearance.
http://www.the-vaults.org/#!raveyard/c1vvr

For even more raving, FOUND are putting on two nights at the Troxy (an amazing venue) featuring the likes of Maya Jane Coles and George Fitzgerald.
http://www.foundseries.co.uk/

White Mischief is another night that knows how to do Halloween right. They have recently been doing smaller, more intimate events at Bush Hall with dinner and cabaret but for Halloween they're throwing a big bash back at their old home of Scala in King's Cross. Dressing up isn't essential but people DO make an effort. Steampunk is the name of the game rather than goth and latex here. They have some fantastic cabaret and circus acts, plus the Roustabouts DJing.
http://www.whitemischief.info/

If you fancy something quieter for your Halloween (but likely no less creepy) then head over to Are you Sitting Comfortably’s Halloween storytelling night. Expect chilling tales and some free chip butties.
http://www.artsadmin.co.uk/events/3582

And finally, if you want to keep your Halloween poppy and fun, then Videoke are back! The crew are on hand to recreate your favourite music videos, and of course encourage you to dance along, dress up as your favourite performer and generally have a great time. 
http://www.videokelondon.com/

Update
So, it turns out the Last Tuesday Society are still putting on events every now and again, and they have a Halloween one on November 1st. These days they're all about the D.I.S.C.O and part of the proceeds go to the CRISIS charity. Dressing up encouraged but not compulsory because 'you can always come naked and cover yourself in glitter'!
The Last Tuesday Society

This one sounds interesting. The Dreamery are bringing a 'terrifying horror maze' complete with art installations, live performances and interactive games to the Old Hackney archives. And there's a Day of the Dead theme. This is part of the London Horror Festival and runs from October 28th - November 1st so you can bring a little Halloween into your week.
https://www.picatic.com/lasmaravillas

Lucha Britannia hold pretty regular events but they're also doing a Halloween special on All Hallow's Eve. As they say, it's not a wrestling show, it's a 'Cabaret Sinestre' although there is, in fact, lots of tongue-in-cheek wrestling. Be prepared to jeer the baddies and cheer your favourites, and because it's Halloween, dress up as well! Tickets for this always sell out so if you fancy some real life, up close wrestling with lots of silly characters, bag yours now.
https://www.facebook.com/events/323571977815486/

Even more updates!

If I didn't already have plans then I reckon this is what I'd be doing. Bourne and Hollingsworth (also partialy responsible for the Dark Circus part) are hosting A Grimm Halloween Party on November 1st. You can expect their usual tasty cocktails and of course the whole event is inspired by the fairytales. There are live performances, a gingerbread house, glass coffin and even a 'Rumpelstiltskin lair' hosted by A Curious Invitation, who also feature on this list. And all taking place in the beautiful Grand Hall in St Pancras.
http://www.bourneandhollingsworth.com/grimmhalloweenparty/

There's also a free - yes, free! - event on the 31st hosted by Cubanisto beer. It is the House of Masks final party, It's at a secret location, marked by a neon skull. It features immersive theatrical experiences and interactive puzzles. Sounds intriguing! London is seriously spoiled this year for events. 
http://cubanisto.com/gb/events

I'll add more gigs here if I hear of them! Or tell me, where are you going for Halloween?

White Mischief, 21 April

White Mischief is like a variety show revue for the modern era and those who are alternatively-inclined. Similarly to Rumpus, it indulges in the popular Steampunk genre, and encourages - though doesn’t enforce - revellers to get creative and dress up. Most of the crowd, I would wager, need minimal encouragement. 

I mention Rumpus because I know the two have affiliations with 
each other – ‘creatures’ who had attended the recent Rumpus party were eligible for a discount for tickets to White Mischief. But they’re quite different beasts. The focus of Rumpus is dancing, with some other bits thrown in here and there. With White Mischief, the focus of the night is entertainment. You are there to watch a show, although dancing is high on the agenda. There are actual set times for each of the acts, the first of which kicks off at about 10:30 and then follow each other back to back until 2 am, with the compere coming on between acts to introduce and stoke up the crowd. The acts were varied – a brass band that did a fantastic cover of Radiohead’s National Anthem, a lady doing rope acrobatics, two magicians, and two people whose sanity might be questioned when you consider one was hula hooping with a ring of fire in her undies and another was angle grinding on metal knickers. And then the final act, a rousing band that is hard to pin down to a genre called Tankus the Henge.

But this was just downstairs. The event was held in Scala, which is a great venue – a goodsize that feels intimate but not crowded. Downstairs is the stage with all the main acts. But there was also an upstairs with another bar and an area for dancing and other distractions such as little stalls selling alternative and steampunk trinkets, and a Victotian photo parlour. They were playing ‘vintage jazz’ up here but later in the evening moved on to rock n roll which could be heard both upstairs and in the downstairs bar.  You might also bump into some weird and wonderful ‘things’ wandering amidst the crowd – Exploreres from Oblivia (below) and a lady with a snake - and the fire hula hooper hot stepped it upstairs to have some fun ‘offduty’ wowing the dancers with her hooping while dancing shimmying.

There were more stalls downstairs, selling things but also advertising other events such as the Steampunk happening in Tooley Street next weekend. There was also another mini stage, and after the last act finished on the main stage, the brass band (Perhaps Contraption - below) trooped in and set up on this little stage, treating those who were at the bar to a repeat performance. 

As I said, the night is more about the acts than discoing, and when the final band called it a night, the dancefloor emptied noticably and the whole venue’s population decreased. I stayed around for a bit longer, and would have stayed for longer still, as after the band finished, the DJ came on and I cannot fault the music. They were playing songs that everyone would know, but with a grimy, bassy touch to them, which made me itch to dance. The first song was a mashup of two of everybody’s favourite’s – Black Betty and Everybody Dance Now, then they played a remix of Heads Will Roll by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and a mashup of No Limits and Love Shack. Brilliant!

I had tweeted White Michief to say that after Rumpus I was looking forward to their night. They replied to warn that it wasn’t as crazy as Rumpus. They were right – Rumpus feels anarchic, whereas White Mischief has more structure to the night. But they’re not meant to be the same thing – they don’t compete, they complement, and I liked them both for what they were. The next full White Mischief night isn’t until October now, which is a great shame, though there are other events through the summer. 

Rumpus, 6th April

I barely know where to start to describe a night at Rumpus. Rumpus is like an adult wonderland with something different going on in every room. I felt like an over-sized child wandering from one atmosphere to the next (it didn't help that my costume made me look like I was about to go to a children's birthday party, nor that we all at one point ventured into the Ball Pit. Yes, there is an adult-sized ball pit.) 

Example of a full on costume
(c) Saffina Rana

So, let me start at the beginning. I have an eclectic taste in music so what Rumpus are trying to do really appeals to me. Up to seven rooms, all with different types of music and goings on in them. Not only that, but dressing up is strongly encouraged. Each night they put on has a different theme. And we're not talking just '70s' or 'Blitz'. These nights have their own backstories to explain the dress code. Friday's was 'Tomorrow's Party, Today': It's the future, the People's Party have taken over in a world where the line between humans and animals has blurred to indistinction and everyone must dance and party forever more. But wait, an underground guerilla resistance group is rising up! And so you can decide - animal creature, towing the party line or guerrilla warfare costume. Or of course, anything out of the ordinary whatsoever.

And, if you can't be bothered or don't have the imagination or wherewithal to dress up, that doesn't matter either. They have all sorts of tails on hand to hire (long furry ones, squat dragonstyle ones, I saw some that were lit up like lanterns) and some talented ladies who will paint your face so that you 'fit in' better with the costumed crowd. But even if you don't fancy that, the place is friendly and non-judgmental - wear what you like so long as you're enjoying yourself!

We arrived about 11:30 and went into the main room which is a courtyard where there's a BBQ, the facepainting and tails, and oh yeah, there just happens to be an underground tube train in the middle. Off to the right was a room with a bar in it that at first was playing some rock 'n' roll music, but then a live band came on singing some soulful dixie music, if that's a thing, which made me feel like I was on the bayou. Music in each of the rooms varies over the course of the night though so if you don't like it when you first come in, just come back later and see if it floats your boat then. Over on the other side of the courtyard is another room which, when we entered had two ladies stamping their feet in a generally Irish kind of way. That song finished and before we knew it we were being rounded up to participate in some kind of Irish line dancing, complete with dosey doe-ing and running through people's arms. Brilliant fun. Breathless, we left to explore upstairs.

Naked body painted people
(c) Saffina Rana

The more serious dancing seemed to be happening up here and later in the night this is where we spent most of our time, raving to house and d 'n' b. There was a large room, which is where the ball pit was situated, some cages, and also some naked body painting was occurring, though somehow I managed to miss this (although I did see some of the results afterwards). On we went through to another DJ-based room, and then to a smaller one at the back where a band that I would describe loosely as Gypsy Turbo Punk were shouting into microphones and whipping up a storm for those who like that kind of thing. 

On top of all this, popping up almost at random there seemed to be burlesque type acrobatics - we saw a woman wending and weaving through hanging sashes, and upstairs a lady threading herself and balancing 
through a hoop. 

I'm still slightly taken aback by the variety on offer. Early bird tickets were only £10 and the night lasts from 10 pm until 7 am representing excellent value for money for a night out as well. Also, the drinks were fairly averagely priced. Not cheap but normal bar prices. And there was a BBQ and cupcakes on offer, though I didn't end up sampling either. We were some of the very last to leave, which you can take as a seal of approval. The next one is June 1st - see you there: