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LISTEN: Halloween Poetry Slam
Halloween is a holiday for everyone, even poets. If you’ve written an ode to ghouls and gore, now is your chance to share it with the world (or at least a small crowd of like-minded fans of spooky season) by signing up for this themed poetry slam. Not a wordsmith? Non-participating audience members are also welcome. Though if you’re feeling particularly brave and creative, there is the additional option of wearing a costume and delivering poetry in character. Experiment PDX, 1421 SE Stark St., 503-889-0931, eventbrite.com. 7-9 pm Wednesday, Oct. 25. $10 in advance, $15 at the door.
GO: The Fear PDX Haunted House
Billed as “Portland’s largest Halloween event,” The Fear PDX is a haunted house with 11 different attractions, four of them making their debut this year. You can expect traditionally creepy settings, like a mansion inhabited by ghosts, an insane asylum presumably run by the inmates, and an abandoned factory turned torture chamber. Then there’s “Chopped,” a game that involves the friends you came with and a guillotine. Better think carefully about who you decide to bring. The Fear PDX Haunted House, 12219 NE Glisan St., 971-319-0739, fearpdx.com. Various times through Wednesday, Nov. 1. $29.00-$34.99.
GO: Underhill Haunted House
When not performing the Bard’s works with Canon Shakespeare Company, at least some of the actors like to haunt the 40,000-square-foot basement of the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in October. And given their acting pedigree, you’re pretty much guaranteed a great experience if you love to be scared. The fifth year of Underhill Haunted House features three attractions, two of them new, as well as a vendor market. Whether trying to survive on a hostile alien planet in Terror Ship, discovering the horrible secrets buried at The Salvage Yard, or hanging with a good ol’ fashioned gaggle of vampires in Underhill Manor, you’re sure to find the fear that fits. Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 300 N Ramsay Way, underhillpdx.com. 7-10 pm Thursday-Sunday and Monday, Oct. 26-29 and 31. $30 standard, $50 VIP.
DRINK: Halloween Bar Crawl
COVID may have changed a lot of things, but it sure didn’t kill the themed bar crawl, whether it be SantaCon, a tacos-and-margs hop, or this spooky tavern tour, which includes nearly 20 participating businesses in Northwest and Southwest Portland. Most joints are offering drink specials—at High Horse, for example, the cocktails are all Red Bull-focused, while the AC Lounge will sell five-buck mystery Jell-O shots. Of course, you should wear a costume and be sure to put in some effort: There is a $1,000 prize for the best dressed. Starting point Friday: Dante’s, 350 W Burnside St., 866-777-8932, eventbrite.com. Starting point Saturday: Shanghai Tunnel Bar, 211 SW Ankeny St., 503-220-4001. 4 pm Friday-Saturday, Oct. 27-28. $20 group tickets, $25 individual tickets. 21+.
LISTEN: PipeScreams Halloween Spectacular!
Everyone knows that the most terrifying instrument is the pipe organ, the perfect accompaniment to silent horror films and Halloween. If you haven’t heard one in person, now’s your chance to take a seat in front of Trinity Episcopal’s massive and ornate instrument, where musicians will play everything from Bach’s menacing Toccata in D Minor to Henry Mancini’s Pink Panther theme song. Local RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant Clare Apparently hosts, costumes are encouraged, and there is a pre-concert pumpkin carving session with complimentary tools and snacks. Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 147 NW 19th Ave., 503-222-9811, trinity-episcopal.org/music-series. 6-7 pm Saturday, Oct. 28. 4:30 pm optional pumpkin carving in Kempton Hall. $15 suggested donation.
GO: Halloween at Punch Bowl Social
Downtown game palace Punch Bowl Social transforms into a haunted house this weekend. Get dressed in your Halloween best for a shot at one of the prizes (spookiest, funniest, most original), dance to music spun by resident DJ Extravaganza, and order some of the themed punch (the beverage is in the business’s name, after all, so it should be good). Punch Bowl Social Portland, 340 SW Morrison St., Suite 4305, 503-334-0360, punchbowlsocial.com/location/portland. 9 pm-midnight Saturday, Oct. 28. Free admission.
GO: The Halloween Ball
If your days of dressing up as a sexy [insert name here] and getting blitzed on Halloween are behind you and the holiday has become more kid-focused, Northwest Children’s Theater and School has an activity that should keep the little ones entertained in the days leading up to the Oct. 31 sugarfest. The Halloween Ball kicks off with a costume parade in the lobby of The Judy, the company’s new downtown performance venue. After that, there will be storytime, snack time, a singalong and a dance party, because it wouldn’t be a ball without taking a few spins on the floor. Northwest Children’s Theater and School at The Judy, 1000 SW Broadway, T-100, 503-222-2190, nwcts.org/shows/halloween-ball. 10 am and 1 pm Saturday-Sunday, Oct. 28-29. $10 for kids, $15 for adults.
WATCH: Hellraiser
Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, based on his novella The Hellbound Heart, is a gory and outrageously horny entry in the 1980s horror genre. When it came out 36 years ago, little did anyone know that Pinhead would be resurrected nearly a dozen times for an incredibly long string of sequels. Get acquainted with the original, or enjoy it for the umpteenth time, on Halloween night at the Hollywood. Carla Rossi hosts a pre-show drag performance and will hand out signed bottles of Double Mountain Brewery Call Me By Your Pain peach Belgian ale to good trick-or-treaters after the screening. Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., 503-493-1128, hollywoodtheatre.org. 7 pm Tuesday, Oct. 31. Sold out.