Performing Arts Feature | Chicago Reader: Exal Iraheta grew up listening to tales from Central American mythology. “The stories, kind of like Grimms’ fairy tales did in Europe, didn’t shy away from real danger,” the playwright, screenwriter, and School of the Art Institute alum recalled. “For me, I’ve always thought of horror and scary stories as a way of releasing something, or experiencing life from a different perspective.”
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I am a fan of all things spooky, and I regularly look forward to this time of year where companies have special “spooky-themed” events. In Madison, around this time of year there’s regularly some sort of spooky opera or re-telling of Macbeth down in one of our parks on the bay. Of course this year will have to be different. This summer I took a folklore class and had to investigate one of Wisconsin’s urban legends - and from the amount of videos online to people I talked to - people are obsessed with these myths - especially during this season. It’s really cool to see that the Lab is still working with students in order to bring some spooky entertainment to their Halloween season. Just because we can no longer do stuff in in-person capacities just means that we have to utilize other mediums like podcasts and such. Even though things look different I am still very excited!
I think that the celebration of the spooky season is a great thing and very important right now. As the article pointed out we are living in a world where everyday has some element of fear or something scary. Because of this we could all use something stereotypically “spooky” as a kind of distraction. Like what Bilal Dardai said “going bleak” is not what the world needs right now. Sticking to the spooky themes of the witchy, ghoulish and supernatural is just what at least I want. I also think that the idea of having kids write scary stories is absolutely adorable, and I love the premise of the Agatha’s Eggsitential Conundrum. Seeing what kids qualify as scary or spooky stories really puts some of the rest of the world into perspective. The common occurrences that they put into their stories makes me remember the idea of childlike ignorance that is so precious in the world right now.
This article really made me think about how many aesthetics are associated with October. It includes pumpkin spice lattes, silly monsters, goths, gore, and horror. And even if you don't like those things, there's always candy. That's why I think Halloween events like this work so well, piled upon the nostalgia factor of those who went trick or treating as a kid. I also think it's an interesting phenomenon that Halloween, a holiday so deeply connected to scares, can be so comforting right now. Halloween, as a queer kid, was always the day that I got to disappear and become someone else for a while. As I grew up, Halloween changed for everyone around me into parties and eating store-bought candy, and it ruined the day for me a bit. I want to try and reinvent Halloween for myself, and as my relationship to seemingly everything and everyone is changing so rapidly right now, maybe my relationship with my former favorite holiday will too.
Hmm. The “Our Year of WTF-Even-Is-This-Anymore Conflagration of Terrestrial Hellscapery” is really sitting with me. Very accurate. Anyway, it is spooky season! While I am not a fan of horror (or scary things in general), I find some of these projects pretty cool. While I do think we could all use a bit of the ‘warm and fuzzy with apple cider’ side of autumn right now, I think some good-ole cathartic freaky stuff could be fun too. The first piece mentioned about an online video date really gives me the shivers. I am very aware of the creepy and horrible parts of the internet and the people who lurk within them, so something about that story being so very possible makes it even more terrifying-sounding. It will be interesting to see the presentation styles of these projects given that everyone is learning how to navigate streaming platforms, but aside from that I think they are a fun way to ring in the fall season.
We LOVE Spoopy Season! The aesthetic is amazing. And, also, my birthday lands in it so win-win. But anyway, yeah I had actually been wondering like…what does spoopy season look like when this year has exposed so many hellish truths about the world we live in? Exal Iraheta’s play about online dating is a little too real, especially in regards to the “loneliness we’re all experiencing in quarantine” because it is something a lot of us are experiencing as time passes. Who are you willing to latch on to just to have companionship? Big yikes. Either way, all possibilities for digital spoopy stuff is on the table and I am here for it. There have been some games that have been released recently too. One that I love to play is Phasmophobia, and online co-op game where you hunt ghosts! Truly a good time and fun little escape from our hell world into a hell world with ghosts.
I absolutely love Halloween and the spooky season that goes along with it. I think there are so many fun traditions that go along with Halloween and it seems like a holiday that the majority of people can find some part of it that they enjoy and connect to. In general, I really like scary media that I can consume, from books, to movies, to TV shows. However, this article offered a really interesting statement that I completely agree with: scary does not have to be bleak. Watching scary movies that are about the end of the world is always daunting, but especially now, and sometimes it is fun to have a good scare while not thinking about impending doom. I think this article offered some great media that is scary, but does not feel bleak, hopeless, or daunting. I am really excited that theater artists are still creating great performances around Halloween and excited to look into some of the media mentioned in the article.
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