Nobody quite knows what a pandemic Halloween will feel like, but this week offers some early hints.
Tuesday, October 6
Madison-based indie bookstore RJ Julia presents (or co-presents) two overlapping virtual events featuring famous TV chefs. The first, starting at 6:30 p.m., stars Geoffrey Zakarian and his adolescent daughters Anna and Madeline, who are putting on a cooking demo pinging the sisters’ recent youth-oriented cookbook, The Family That Cooks Together. Registration, which may or may not include a copy of the book, costs $19.99.
The second event, kicking off at 7 p.m., features Ina Garten, a.k.a. the “Barefoot Contessa,” in conversation with New York Times food editor Sam Sifton. The occasion is the launch of her latest recipe book, Modern Comfort Food, a signed copy of which is included with each $46.50 ticket.
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Wednesday, October 7
Weekly series Movies in the Plaza, operating out of Pitkin Plaza downtown, is getting into the socially distanced spirit all month, starting with tonight’s 8 o’clock screening of 1995 kid ghost flick Casper. “It’s easy to see why Casper the Friendly Ghost has such an appeal for small children,” Roger Ebert wrote in his contemporaneous review, which praises the movie’s humor and special effects. “They have so much in common with him, since they, too, feel invisible and misunderstood…” Free.
Friday, October 9
“Legend has it that somewhere in the woods at the end of the trolley tracks lurk the things that nightmares are made of. This fall a lonely trolley will carry passengers down the tracks to the gate. The choice is yours… enter if you dare!” That’s the pitch for The Haunted Isle, the Shore Line Trolley Museum’s Halloween attraction this year, operating from 6:30 to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays through October 30. Beware: COVID-19-related rules are in place, including a “face covering” requirement—and it’s safe to assume that a standard Halloween mask won’t suffice. $20; reservations recommended. 17 River Street, East Haven. (203) 467-6927.
Saturday, October 10
At 2 and 6:30 p.m., aerial fitness studio Air Temple Arts (11 Research Dr, Woodbridge) presents Time After Time: A Journey Through Music—a “fantastical” whirlwind, seemingly staged outdoors, through historical and contemporary musical settings that promises “spectacle, circus, comedy and dancing, accompanied by our brand new, in-house band!” Tickets are offered on a sliding scale, from $15 (or $10 for people ages 12 and under) to $20.
Written and photographed by Dan Mims. The image, a file photo, features a scene at Air Temple Arts in 2014, when it was located in New Haven. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations and prices before attending events.
