These regional events are designed to invoke the spirit of the Halloween season.
Lexington's annual Thriller Parade along with its Halloween Festival will take place downtown on Oct. 29. File Photo
Fright Nights. Select dates in October. Since 2011, Fright Nights has provided haunt and horror enthusiasts across Kentucky with an extreme haunted house experience that is immersive, shocking and distinctly original from year-to-year. Now in a new indoor location, the attraction will be open Fri.-Sun. through the end of October, as well as Thurs. Oct. 19 and 26 and Tues., Oct. 31 and Sat. Nov. 4. 1209 E. New Circle Road. www.frightnightskentucky.com
Wicked World Scaregrounds. Select dates in October. Featuring three separate haunted attractions, food vendors, a fire pit and “in-line entertainment,” a DJ and more, Wicked World goes above and beyond to entertain those looking for a thrill. Open Thurs.-Sun. through the end of October, as well as Oct. 30, 31 and Nov. 4. 5817 Tates Creek Road. www.wickedworldscaregrounds.com
Kentucky Ballet Theatre: “Dracula.” Oct. 14-15. Kentucky Ballet Theatre kicks off its 26th performance season with a spooky classic designed to help audience members get in the Halloween “spirit.” This haunting ballet is complete with a vampire love triangle, bats, dancing skeletons and breathtaking stage effects. 7:30 p.m. Sat.; 2 p.m. Sun. Lexington Opera House, 401 W. Short St. www.lexingtonoperahouse.com
Halloween Lights Drive-Through. Oct. 13-28. For more than two weeks, attendees are invited to come enjoy the sights, sounds and scares of over one and a half miles of Halloween lights and displays from the comfort of their cars during the Halloween Lights Drive-Through at this historic state park. Registered campsite guests will also be treated to a bevy of additional treats during the park’s Halloween Fest, which features 13 days of fun and frights including putt-putt, camper decoration contests, costume contests, ghost walks, live entertainment, trick or treating and more (Oct. 17-29). Ft. Boonesborough State Park, 4375 Boonesboro Rd. Richmond. parks.ky.gov/things_to_do/calendar
Freaky Fridays Film Series: “Vampyros Lesbos.” Oct. 20. The October selection for this new film series, designed to satisfy cravings for the weird, the surreal, the shocking and the just plain “so-bad-it’s-good,” is “Vampyros Lesbos,” a 1971 erotic horror tale about a vixen vampiress seducing and killing women to appease her insatiable thirst for female blood. 10 p.m. The Kentucky Theatre, 214 East Main St. www.kentuckytheatre.org/freaky-fridays
Scarefest Horror & Paranormal Convention. Oct. 20-22. The nation’s largest horror and paranormal convention, Scarefest celebrates its 15th installment this year with dozens of exhibits, vendors, seminars and meet-and-greets and photo-ops with celebrities from the horror, sci-fi or paranormal genre. This year, special guests include actors from “Day of the Dead,” “Jaws” and “Halloween.” Visit the event website for the full lineup, event times and other details. Central Bank Center, 430 West Vine St. www.thescarefest.com
Jack-O-Lantern Trail. Oct. 25-28. This enchanting Halloween experience will feature hundreds of lit hand-carved pumpkins, campfires, s’mores, live owls and tasty fall food and beverages. Organizers are seeking donations of carved Jack-O-Lanterns, to be dropped off between Oct. 22-25; for more information, visit www.lexingtonky.gov/jack-o-lantern-trail. Trail times: 6:30-10 p.m. McConnell Springs Park, 416 Rebman Road. (Note: The trail will also be open for night hiking on Sunday, Oct. 30, with no admission fee and no planned activities.)
Thriller Parade & Downtown Halloween Festival. Oct. 29. The city of Lexington’s annual Halloween celebration features a Halloween variety show and a parade with floats, costumed characters and many performance groups, culminating with the annual “Thriller” reenactment featuring several hundred zombies dancing, dawdling and dragging themselves down Main Street to the classic Michael Jackson tune. Pedestrians can watch all along the parade route, which is on Main Street starting at Quality Street and ending at Mill Street. The event, which is widely considered to be one of the country’s preeminent “Thriller” parades, will be rescheduled for Oct. 30 in case of rain. 5-9 p.m. Downtown Lexington. www.lexingtonky.gov/thriller
Lexington Community Orchestra Spooky Concert. Oct. 29. The Lexington Community Orchestra (LCO) will present a celebration of spooky classical music during this family-friendly event, which will include recognizable favorites from classic stories like “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” and “Peter and the Wolf,” as well as creepier classics such as “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” “Night on Bald Mountain” and “Danse Macabre.” Attendees are encouraged to wear costumes, and treat bags will be available at the end of the concert for children up to age 18. 3 p.m., Bryan Station High School. Pre-registration is required and available at www.lexingtoncommunityorchestra.org
PumpkinMania. Oct. 29. This favorite seasonal event features a dazzling display of hundreds of illuminated Jack-o-lanterns, carved by Transylvania University students and community members, displayed on the steps of the Old Morrison building on Transylvania’s campus — the very steps that cover the tomb of Constantine Rafineqse, a former professor who died in the early 1800s and is said to haunt the campus to this day. www.transy.edu/calendar/pumpkinmania
The Living Arts & Science Center will host an immersive Day of the Dead celebration on Nov. 1. Photo furnished
Living Arts & Science Center: Day of the Dead Festival. Nov. 1. Living Arts & Science Center’s annual celebration of the traditional Latino holiday Day of the Dead features live music and dance, traditional foods, hands-on crafts, a candlelight parade and an exhibition of community-created offends (altars) in the Old Episcopal Burying Ground. 5-9 p.m. Living Arts & Science Center, 362 N. Martin Luther King Blvd. www.lasclex.org/events