Eat it up, revelers: Denver’s 2009 Halloween parties are the biggest yet.
How does Halloween go down in Denver? Well, too often it snows, but that may not be the case this year. With any luck, the children of Colorado will be able to trick-or-treat without parkas obscuring their cute costumes. The bags of candy will come home dry and safe, not snowy and half-frozen. That’s the good news for the kids.
For grown-ups, there are always plenty of ways to howl at the moon on Halloween. Every year, the parties seem to get bigger and more widespread. There’s a scary number of activities this weekend.
And if it’s not snowing, all the skimpy-costume wearers will be extra-happy as they trot from party to party. See below for some ideas for a super-spooky Halloween, complete with adult tricks and treats.
City Hall (1144 Broadway) will be the place for partiers who start early and go late on Saturday. Triad Dragons, the fine folks who put together the annual Global Dance Festival, are hosting “Afterlife,” an all-hours rager.
Nearly 20 DJs will take over the giant venue, including DJ Micro, Miss Lisa and Baby Anne. Like vampires, these people go to bed when the sun starts to rise, so expect to be rocking all night. As in, the party starts at 9 p.m. and ends at 6 a.m.
“Afterlife” is an 18-and-older event. Legal drinkers, bring your ID for the bar. Tickets are $30 — visit coclubs.com to purchase in advance.
In the Denver Tech Center, local party mavens Greg Bloom, Kevin Larson and J.J. Walker are hosting the “Haunted Hotel Colorado” party at the Hyatt Regency (7800 E. Tufts Ave.) on Saturday.
The swanky hotel will be overtaken by ghouls and goblins of all stripes, hell-bent on partying their brains out. Live music and DJs will provide the soundtrack to the madness, which includes trick-or-treating, themed rooms, aerial performers and the amusing-sounding “Teddy Bear vs. Godzilla Monster Bash.”
There’s a costume contest, too, with a $1,000 prize for the winner — not too shabby. Put some effort into it for once.
Advance general admission tickets are $25, or $35 at the door. VIP tickets are $50 in advance, $65 at the event. Buy tickets at flav.or.us/groovetickets.
Avoid the hassle of driving by reserving a room at the Hyatt — party guests get a special $85 rate. For more information, visit hauntedhotelcolorado.com.
Another late-night option: Casselman’s Bar and Venue (2620 Walnut St.) is hosting the official afterparty for Saturday’s Bassnectar show across town.
After rocking the Fillmore Auditorium, Bassnectar and crew will head over to Casselman’s for an all-night freakout. The party is open to guests 18 and older — advance tickets are $20 at fla.vor.us/groovetickets.
For a Halloween that’s slightly less debaucherous, the Wynkoop Brewing Co. (1634 18th St.) is debuting its Riverside Pumpkin Ale on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Named after historic Riverside Cemetery, the beer will be served, naturally, out of a giant pumpkin that’s been converted into a beer tap. As the starting-and-ending point for the Denver Gorilla Run, the Wynkoop is likely to be filled with sweaty people in gorilla suits. Wear one and blend in, or just wear whatever. Surrounded by hundreds of beer-drinking gorillas, a little red devil or lurking vampire won’t create too much of a stir.
If there’s any party power left in your system on Monday, Tambien (250 Steele St.) is hosting a Day of the Dead celebration. The Cherry Creek cantina will have an altar, sugar skulls and lots of tasty food for El Dia de los Muertos.
Browse the auction of sugar skulls decorated by local artists, and be prepared to move to Latin hip-hop from DJ Nunez.
After all the Halloween madness has died down, it might be worth it to resurrect yourself and salute El Dia. Do zombies like margaritas?
– Kathleen St. John
