The last day of October is finally here, and that means Central Florida’s extravagant spooky season is about to reach its final curtain…but not quite yet!
Seth Kubersky is an Orlando Weekly columnist and co-author of the theme park guidebook series called “Unofficial Guides.”
He said there are plenty of options for people who want to enjoy Halloween’s “last gasp” this year, thanks in part to our area’s growing reputation as the international home for All Hallows. According to Kubersky, Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights gets a lot of credit for catapulting Orlando’s spooky season into a cultural phenom.
“It's kind of created an industry,” he explained. “I like to say that Halloween is now to Orlando, what Mardi Gras is to New Orleans. And Universal shares a lot of credit for that. We have become a destination. People come from all around the country and all around the world, because our Halloween events, particularly Universal’s, are recognized as the best in the theme park industry.”
And his advice for experiencing Halloween Horror Nights? Be prepared. “Plan your trip very carefully. It tends to not be quite as busy at Halloween Horror Nights on Halloween itself and the nights afterwards, but this has been a very busy season. Bring your walking shoes and prepare to come out exhausted, because I will say that when I went, the crowds were more intense than I can remember for the last few years.”
For a kid-friendly way to close out Halloween, Kubersky pointed to Sea World’s Spooktacular. It includes a Sesame Street area with the beloved classic Muppet characters themselves dressed up for Halloween, marching in parades and doing some adorably meta trick-or-treating.
“And if on Halloween night itself, you want to do something that isn't exactly scary, but is definitely a Halloween tradition, the Rich Weirdoes [performance troupe] are going to be at the Plaza Live, putting on the Rocky Horror Picture Show with full audience participation and a live cast,” noted Kubersky.
For the uninitiated, there’s a decades-long tradition of viewing this campy cult film with live actors called a “shadow cast” simultaneously performing in front of the screen. The audience is encouraged to join in the fun by dancing and quoting along with the movie, and throwing objects like rice, toast, and toilet paper at specific points. (Interestingly, both Kubersky and Darden Creston can explain all this without using Google. Ask them why one day.)
A standout spooky offering that runs well after Halloween, said Kubersky, is Renaissance Theater’s “Nosferatu.”
“This is an immersive experience that is part play, part nightclub, part interactive…exploration, and it involves vampires,” explained Kubersky.
“And it is going to be the perfect way to either celebrate or drown your sorrows after the election,” he added with a laugh.
