Vancouver Adventures: Our Picks for October 28 to November 3

This week: release your inner magic this Halloween, become an alien, celebrate Día de los Muertos plus more

 

1. Halloween Monster Match – Saturday, October 28

Dress up in costume, enjoy two on-stage improv matches and then shake your funny bones to the blood-curdling beats on the dance floor at the Halloween Monster Match. For one night only, The Improv Centre gets a spooktacular makeover and you can have your palm read by Madame Improvo; visit Poe Corner, where the ghost of a long-dead poet will spellbind you with improvised poems; and meet the roving Denizens of the Dark. Your ticket includes admission to both shows, dancing, a costume parade and other treats.
The Improv Centre, 1502 Duranleau Street, Granville Island, Vancouver; Doors at 7:30 pm, first match at 8:15; Tickets< $37

 

2. Fish or Treat – Saturday, October 28

Something fishy is going on at the Vancouver Aquarium this Halloween weekend. Brave families can spend the night by the Steller’s Bay underwater gallery after enjoying a Night Stalker’s Tour behind-the-scenes, focusing on interesting species such as ratfish, hagfish, bats and vampire fish. After a late-night snack and some slimy fun in the Wet Lab, it’s time to sleep with the fishes.
The Vancouver Aquarium, 845 Avison Way, Vancouver; 9 p.m. to 9 a.m.; $115 per person (ages 6+), To register call 604-659-3552

 

3. Parade of Lost Souls – Saturday, October 28

Join 10,000 other lost souls in celebrating All Hallows’ Eve at the annual Parade of Lost Souls. Take part in one of the pre-parade workshops to help out with everything from a Thriller flash mob to a leather-mask-making event. The exact location of the parade will be announced at midnight on Friday, October 27.
Commercial Drive, Vancouver; 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Free, donations welcome

 

4. 1st Annual North Delta Pumpkin Party – Saturday, October 28

The Advantage Home Team of RE/MAX® Performance Realty Ltd. presents the 1st Annual North Delta Pumpkin Party to raise funds for Deltassist and help community members in need of support. This festive fundraiser features free pumpkins, Halloween treat bags, a family photo booth, Dee’s Donuts, Big Dog Food Truck and a chance to win Katy Perry tickets and other great prizes.
Sunshine Hills Park, 11195 Bond Boulevard North Delta; >12 p.m. to 3 p.m.; Free to Delta residents (suggested donation of $5 per pumpkin)

 

5. Vancouver Comic & Toy Show – Sunday, October 29

Check out the spookiest comic and toy show of the year, featuring an assortment of vendors and special guests like CBCS Comic Book Certification Service as well as artists/illustrators, including Colin Lorimer, Robin Thompson, Shannon Lentz, Kelly Everaert, Alchemichael, Shane Molina, Ellen Chauvet and Robert Tozer.
Croatian Cultural Centre, 3250 Commercial Drive, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Admission $8 (kids under 13 free)

 

6. Alien Family Weekend – Saturday, October 28 and Sunday, October 29

Head to the HR Macmillan Space Centre this weekend for an extra-special, extra-terrestrial experience. Makeup artists from Blanche Macdonald will be magically transforming guests into aliens from one of three planets in our galaxy.
Vanier Park, 1100 Chestnut Street, Vancouver; 12 p.m.; Tickets $18 (kids under 5 free)

 

7. The Witchery: Halloween Samhain Dinner – Tuesday, October 31

Witchery Dinner 3.0 is a Halloween/Samhain special event for Witches and Wizards to release your inner magic, while enjoying a mystical five-course plant-based meal. Expect an evening of intuitive messages, psychic-guided meditations, ancestor mediumship connection and holistic feasting, hosted by intuitive and psychic Chloe Elgar of Chloe’s Countertop, psychic medium Natalie Miles of The Psychic Upgrade and plant-based chef Emily Davies of Wholesome Slice.
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street, Vancouver; 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Tickets $144 via Eventbrite; Note: No costumes

 

8. Fraser Cemetery Halloween Tour – Tuesday, October 31

Discover New Westminster’s ghoulish history of murder and mayhem, in partnership with New Westminster Museum & Archives. Archie Miller of A Sense of History Research Services will lead the tour, which features the unsolved case of an unmarked grave and a tale of a curse, as well as stories of mystery.
Fraser Cemetery, 100 Richmond Street, New Westminster; 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.; Tickets $12.86, ages 10+

 

9. International Day of the Dead Exhibition – Wednesday, November 1 to Sunday, November 26

Take a trip to Granville Island to see more than 15 artists’ interpretations of death displayed on clay skulls created by a group of indigenous women artisans from the Popoloca culture of Mexico. Several Vancouver-based artists, two Oaxacan and one Mexico City-based artist will share their interpretations of death according to their unique culture, traditions and artistic style. Find the art in window fronts of participating businesses on Granville Island.
Various locations on Granville Island; Free

 

10. Night Shift: Day of the Dead – Thursday, November 2

Dress up in costume and head to the Museum of Anthropology, which will be transformed into a vast, underworld labyrinth for an interactive evening of music, theatre, live painting, and altar-making for this year’s Day of the Dead festivities (Día De Los Muertos). Bring a photo of a deceased loved one to add to the collective altar.<
Museum of Anthropology, 6393 NW Marine Drive, UBC, Vancouver; 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Admission $10, Free for UBC students and staff, MOA members, and Indigenous peoples