Spooky Season Hits Full Stride This Weekend

Your daily guide to what's popping in Chicago

By Raj Singh · Published October 23, 2026.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23

Zoo Brews: Howls and Growls @ Lincoln Park Zoo

Lincoln Park Zoo is free every day of the year — but not after dark this weekend. For Zoo Brews: Howls and Growls, the grounds turn into a two-day, 21-and-up Halloween party where, instead of trick-or-treating for candy, you work your way around the zoo collecting beer and cider samples. There's a costume contest, a DJ, and — because it's still the zoo — spins on the carousel and the Ferris wheel folded into the night.

Doors are at 6:30 PM tonight (Friday) and again Saturday. Tickets run $44 for members and from $55 for everyone else, and it's strictly 21-and-up. The zoo sits at 2001 N Clark St in Lincoln Park; the 151 and 156 buses stop nearby.

Joel Hall Dancers & Center: NextGen @ Douglass Park

The Joel Hall Dancers bring an evening of performance to Douglass Park on the West Side, built around the company's Trainee Program and the emerging Chicago dancers coming up through it. A special guest set from the Douglass Park Performing Company closes things out with 'Respect,' a jazz-funk piece for twelve dancers — and then the floor opens up for a public dance class, so you can stop watching and start moving.

It runs 6 to 7:30 PM tonight, it's free, and all ages are welcome. It's part of the Park District's Night Out in the Parks series, at Douglass Park, 1401 S Sacramento Dr.

Coco (2017) @ Toman Library

As Día de los Muertos approaches, the Toman branch in Little Village is screening Pixar's Coco — the 109-minute, PG story of Miguel, a boy who dreams of being a guitar player despite his family's objections, and the Day of the Dead journey that follows. It's one of a dozen Día de Muertos programs rippling through CPL branches in late October, playing here as part of the library's Latine Heritage series.

The screening runs 2 to 4 PM today at the Toman branch, with English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. The library lists it across the full range of ages, from kids to seniors.

Tartuffe

Molière's Tartuffe is the classic comedy of religious hypocrisy: a five-act farce in which the charlatan Tartuffe fakes his piety into the gullible Orgon's household and sets about seizing the man's home, his fortune and his family.

Tonight's performance is 7:30 to 9:30 PM, tickets $25, on Sheridan Road in Edgewater. The production runs Thursdays through Saturdays until November 1, with 2 PM Sunday matinees on October 25 and November 1 if a weeknight suits you better.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24

Mitote Día de los Muertos in La Ronda Parakata @ Burnham Park

Mitote is a Nahuatl word for gathering, dance and celebration, and that's what lands at Burnham Park on Saturday: an afternoon of ancestral Aztec dance honoring the natural elements through coordinated movement, drumming and music, with art-making alongside it. It's framed as a Día de los Muertos gathering meant to build community and deepen connections to the land.

It's free, all ages, and runs noon to 3 PM Saturday at Burnham Park along the lakefront. It's outdoors, so dress for Saturday's overcast, mid-60s afternoon.

Hawa Cafe Pop-Up at Tokofoto

Tokofoto, a newly opened self-service photo studio, is teaming up with Hawa Cafe for a Saturday pop-up: sip matcha, coffee or tea, then step into a flash studio session — $10 buys three minutes in front of the camera.

It starts at 11 AM Saturday at Tokofoto, 860 N California Ave (Ste 1N).

THIS WEEK

Haunted Halsted Halloween Fest & Parade @ Northalsted

The big one is still a week out, and worth planning around now: the Haunted Halsted Halloween Fest & Parade hits its 30th year on Halloween night. The street fest fills Halsted during the day with food, drinks and live entertainment, and the main event — the parade — steps off at 7 PM, when hundreds of the city's most committed costumes come out. A costume-contest awards ceremony follows.

It's free and runs Saturday, October 31 — the fest from late morning, the parade at 7 PM — along Halsted in Northalsted. Take the Red Line to Addison, or the 8, 36 or 152 bus.