Goblins, ghouls, ghosts galore! Happy (early) Halloween, Denton! Halloween falls on a Tuesday next week, so that means this weekend will be packed to the brim with pre-Halloween parties and shows. Got little ones? The Denton Community Market is hosting a Halloween Market filled with activities for families, and West Oak Coffee Bar is hosting an all-ages Halloween party. If you still haven’t had a chance to get your scare on this month, the Denton Parks and Rec department is hosting a spooky circus-themed haunt on Saturday. On the tamer side, there’s going to be a Nightmare Before Christmas Trivia night at Mulberry Street Cantina on Thursday, as well as a showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show at Killer’s Tacos on Sunday. 

Finish October with a fright, Dentonites- this is your Halloween weekend update. See you all in November! 

Thursday 10/26

The Boombachs at Harvest House
Harvest House
8 p.m.-11 p.m.
FREE
21+

The only thing better than a Harvest House cocktail is a Harvest House cocktail accompanied by amazing local music. Before you start a weekend full of scares, check out the jazzy, eclectic group The Boombachs this Thursday at Harvest House for a free show, opened by Denton’s favorite garage pop band MNKR. Be sure to grab a famously fresh juice-based cocktail at Harvest House to go along with the fresh tunes!

The Nightmare Before Christmas Trivia
Mulberry Street Cantina
8pm-11pm
FREE
21+

“This is Halloween, this is Halloween!” Mulberry Street Cantina is hosting a trivia night for everyone’s favorite Tim Burton Halloween-Christmas crossover flick, The Nightmare Before Christmas! Groups of 2 or more are invited to participate in this 21 and up event. Test your knowledge of all things Nightmare Before Christmas for chances to win house cash prizes, ranging from $40 for 1st place winners to $10 for 3rd place winners. 

Friday 10/27

West Oak Halloween Party
West Oak Coffee Bar
7pm-9:30pm
All Ages

West Oak is hosting a family-friendly Halloween party and you’re invited! There will be food, live music from Opera on Tap, a pumpkin-carving station, and back-door trick or treating. There’s also a costume contest as well as Halloween-themed coffee and drink specials all night long. 

A Tribute-Tastic Show
Dan’s Silverleaf
8:30pm-2am
$10 advance, $12 at the door
21+

It’s a spooky tribute show! Three different acts featuring various Denton musicians will be playing songs from famous rock bands all night. Dedicated Followers of Fashion will be shredding songs from the Kinks, Little Lost Girls will be singing Runaways’ greatest hits, and Whodunnit? will be rocking out to The Who’s tunes. Costumes are encouraged at this show!

Nightmare on Bell Street
Backyard on Bell
9pm-2am
$5 cover

Friday marks Backyard on Bell’s 1 year anniversary, and to celebrate, they’re hosting a truly horrific party! Music from artists like AV The Great, Gas House Smitty, Monoculture, GOLDENJOY, and DJ She Real will be playing all night. Emily O’Connor will be providing unique visuals, Weird Destiny Productions will be showcasing their own original graphics, and there will be a costume contest featuring a $50 bar tab for 1st place prize.

Saturday 10/28

Spooky Market
Denton Community Market
9am-1pm
All Ages

Families big and small are encouraged to go to the Spooky Market this Saturday for some kid-friendly Halloween fun! There will be a kid’s scavenger hunt, coloring stations, bean bag toss games, photo booths, and of course, trick or treating. For those who have fur babies instead of human ones, rejoice! There will be a custom paw-print painting station via Lil’ D Dog Works as well as a pet-centric costume contest with categories ranging from “Scariest Pet Costume” to “Best Costume for ‘Other Pet’ (non-dog)”.

Stop the Stigma, Not the Music: Day of the Dead For Life
Backyard on Bell
4pm-2am
$7 cover

Karaoke! Raffles! Dancing!

Have I got your attention yet, folks? Backyard on Bell is hosting a benefit show for those in need of access to counseling services. Stop the Stigma, Not the Music is hosting Day of the Dead For Life, an authentic celebration of Dia de Los Muertos. Information regarding the sacred holiday as well as traditional observations and an offrenda open to attendees to place photos of deceased loved ones. There’s going to be a live screening of the morbid classic Nosferatu as well as live music from various Denton artists and a horror-themed performance from the Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet. 

Haunted Circus
MLK Jr. Recreation Center
6pm-9pm
$3 entry, $2 re-entry

Clown-phobes beware!

Denton Parks and Recreation is hosting a truly horrific haunted house experience with the theme being “Haunted Circus” at the MLK Jr. Recreation Center. $3 grants you entry into the haunted house, and $2 gets you another round (if you aren’t frightened to death the first time around!) While all ages are -technically- allowed at this event, young ones are encouraged to stay home. The fright level is high for this event as gore and violence will be prevalent themes throughout the haunt. 

Nightmare on Fry Street
Fry Street
9pm-2am
21+

This one’s for the bar-hoppers! 

Bars up and down Fry Street are hosting the annual “Nightmare on Fry Street” Halloween costume block party this Saturday. There’s a huge costume party featuring $5000 spread across several different cash prizes for best costumes, live DJ’s, and drink specials all across Fry Street. Grab your costumes, grab your friends, and grab some shots- let’s get spooky!

Sunday 10/29

Killer’s Tacos Presents: Rocky Horror Picture Show
Killer’s Tacos
8pm-11pm
FREE

Let’s do the Time Warp again! Before Tim Curry shocked and frightened millions of people as Pennywise the clown in the 1990 film IT, he rocked and rolled as everyone’s favorite cross-dressing vixen in the 1975 flick Rocky Horror Picture Show. Come for a screening of the cult classic with friends this Sunday at Killer’s Tacos. This is a free event!
 

Header image by Christopher Rodgers