by Saoirse Anton

I’ve made pumpkin soup, I’m enveloped in a cosy jumper, Dublin Theatre Festival is in full swing, and I’ve unearthed the Halloween decorations. My favourite month of the year is underway! With the evenings getting darker and Halloween on the horizon, October is the perfect time to indulge in some scares and thrills on stage. Read on for my spine-chilling round up of the best spooky delights on our stages, and streets, this month!

Macnas

It wouldn’t be a Halloween theatre recommendations column without a mention of Macnas. An Irish Halloween staple, these masters of street art and spectacle are bringing Halloween parades to several cities around Ireland this month. In Galway on the 25th October, the streets will be alive with the wild energy of Fiáin, before it ventures to Dublin on the 26th October as part of the Bram Stoker Festival (more on that later). And in Kilkenny on Halloween night the story of Petronilla de Meath and Alice Kyteler will be brought to life in Cailleach.

Bram Stoker Festival

I promised more on the Bram Stoker Festival, and there is certainly plenty on offer! A busy four days of shows, talks, screenings, workshops and spectacle, the festival celebrates all things Bram Stoker, and all things spooky. Particular highlights from the programme that caught my eye are Stitch at Smock Alley Theatre, Stoker on the Runway – a talk on the gothic in fashion, an eerie after-hours tour of Marsh’s Library, and Suitcase Stories – Nosferatu by Freda O’Byrne, a family-friendly take on the classic horror film told through puppetry and object theatre.

The Dragon of Shandon

At the other side of the country, Halloween fun is also in plentiful supply with the 20th Anniversary edition of The Dragon of Shandon, Cork’s thrilling grassroots Halloween spectacular. Watch a 36 foot dragon emerge and prowl the streets of Cork guided by a cast of community volunteers. Accompanied by a programme of workshops, this spooky offering from Cork Community Artlink is sure to be a delight for the whole family.

Púca Festival

Yes, there is definitely a theme to this column, and that is Ireland’s wealth of Halloween festivals. Hey, we’re the home of Halloween and we know how to celebrate it properly! Púca Festival in Co. Meath has a jam-packed programme of music, workshops, cabaret, circus, parades and more. I’m particularly excited to see the fire performances from Pyro Collective, and the three circus shows on offer – an adults’ circus, a family-friendly one, and an accessible circus show!

Dracula

Technically it’s running in November, not October, but it’s a Halloween classic and I couldn’t leave it out. Indulge in the haunting story of Dracula at the Gaiety Theatre from the 3rd to the 7th of November in Nick Lane’s adaptation brought to the stage by Blackeyed Theatre and Verdant Productions.

Toil and Trouble Festival

My Halloween will be spent enjoying a birthday treat at Kilkenny’s Toil and Trouble Festival. There is a feast of a programme to delve into, but some highlights include Anakronos’s The Red Book of Ossory contemporary and medieval music performance at St. Canice’s Cathedral, Cures and Curses storytelling performance from Sarah McKenna and Growler Herself, an unforgettable performance described as “part theatre, part portal, with a shamanic vulva at its centre, Growler's Grotto conjures a fictitious 86-year-old vulva from inner-city Dublin activist, abuse survivor, feminist, and unrepentant comic, weaving song, spoken word, and razor-sharp humour into something that's equal parts ritual and riot.”

Derry Halloween

Much like Macnas, I couldn’t finish a Halloween column without including Derry’s legendary Halloween festival. The city comes alive with all things spooky, eerie and thrilling in a weekend of unparalleled activities. I spent Halloween weekend there a few years ago and have been dying to return since! This year is the 40th anniversary, so go check out the programme and dive in to Europe’s largest Halloween festival.

Circus Scares!

I mentioned the circus and cabaret on offer as part of Púca Festival, and it does seem that circus and Halloween are natural bedfellows. An artform that is already full of thrills and tension, a circus show will always have your heart racing and even more so at Halloween! If you want fun for all the family, check out Fossett’s Circus Halloween Spectactular in Limerick. A cornerstone of Irish circus, Fossett’s Circus always delivers a fantastic show. And if you want a grown-ups’ night out, there’s a fun night promised at The Dirty Circus’ Halloween Extravagansa at the Galway Comedy Festival and Devour the Nightmare Circus in Derry. Not for the faint of heart!

Whether you like a cosy ghost story or heart-stopping thrills, you’ll find something to scare and delight you this month, wherever you are in Ireland! Steel your nerves, sort your costume, and delve in to the Halloween delights on offer…just don’t forget to check for monsters under the bed when you get home!