The end of October has long been the heart of the spooky season. At Pitt, there will be a few events to mark Halloween and other related holidays:
Heinz Chapel spooktacular
Heinz Chapel will once again become the Phantom’s secret candlelit lair from 8 to 9 p.m. Oct. 31. The chapel will be filled with spine-tingling organ music and favorite songs of villainy to celebrate the spooky season.
Heinz Chapel organist, Jon Tyillian, along with guest singers Sarah Nadler and Logan Newman, will perform selections from “Phantom of the Opera” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” as well as the famous Toccata and Fugue by Bach.
Costumes are welcome and encouraged. Free for Pitt students, $6 for Pitt faculty and staff, $12 for general admission. Reserve your spot here.
Poe reading
Come to Heinz Chapel from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on Halloween to hear “Echoes of the Macabre: The Haunting Tales of Edgar Allan Poe,” including “Premature Burial,” “The Pit and the Pendulum,” “Telltale Heart” and “Warlock's Ride.” Free and open to the public.
Ofrenda/Altar Display
From Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, celebrate the lives of departed loved ones — family, friends, or pets — by adding photos, mementos, artificial flowers or small ofrendas (offerings) to the community altar at the Global Hub on the first floor of Posvar Hall.
You’re also invited to paint a Monarch butterfly with their name to honor their memory. The Ofrenda/Altar will be created by Lisa DiGioia Nutini, owner of Mexico Lindo Mercado y Galeria de Artesanias, and Luz Amanda Hank of Pitt’s Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS).
On Oct. 30, learn more about the CLAS Day of the Dead and Saints Day Celebrations (¡Día De Los Muertos y Día De Los Santos Festivities!) from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Global Hub.
2-3 p.m.: Learn about the Day of the Dead Celebration — this year’s is Nov. 1-2 — with Nutini and Manuel Roman-Lacayo, deputy director of the Latin American Studies Association.
3:15-4:15 p.m.: Learn how to make Papel Picado, a traditional Mexican decorative craft made by cutting elaborate designs into sheets of tissue paper.
4:25-6 p.m.: Paint your own Alebrije, Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical creatures, often created by combining parts of different animals
Contact Luz Amanda Hank (lavst12@pitt.edu) for more information. Please register using this link.
This event is organized by the Center for Latin American Studies, and co-sponsored by the Global Hub, the Latin American Cultural Center and the Center for Ethnic Studies Research.
Queer Horror & Poetry
Horror cuts to the heart of our hidden fears and desires. For decades, queer horror fans have found dark reflections of our lives and experiences in scary movies, from vampire lesbians to killer dolls and beyond.
At the “Everybody Has a Secret Face: Queer Horror & Poetry” workshop — from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Center for Creativity’s The Understory (B50 Cathedral of Learning) — participants will discuss favorite films and mine horror film imagery to find poetic inspiration, exploring scenes and characters that haunt us to write about what's terrifying, intriguing or maybe even attractive in this genre.
No previous writing experience is required: Beginners welcome. Facilitated by Erik Schuckers, Center for Creativity.
See ‘Silence of the Lambs’
A replica of the cage that held Dr. Hannibal Lecter in “Silence of the Lambs” will once again return for Halloween night to Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum, where key scenes in the movie were filmed.
Vendors will be on hand starting at 5:30 p.m., followed by a screening of the movie at 7 p.m. in the auditorium. A Wrap Party starts at 9 p.m. with a live DJ.
Admission is $35; soldiersandsailorshall.org.
— Susan Jones
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