Our Big Gay Halloween Roundup

Photo courtesy of Flickr/Lai Ryanne

With Halloween just a over a week away, the 2013 festivities are already rolling out with a vengeance. To help you make the most of your spooky revelries, we’ve rounded up some of the year’s best goings-ons — from drag parties to boat parties to two huge gay balls.

Our list is broken into categories, with events listed in chronological order. You’ll also find links to every single shenanigan so you can easily find more information and ticket links when applicable.

So without further aboo (har-har), get to gay-Halloweening!

DRAG QUEENS

Gunnar Montana in Drag Me to Hell. Photo courtesy of Garrett Matthew.

Dumpsta Players regular Messapotamia Lafae is hosting BalletX’s Halloween Costume party at Tabu on Thu., Oct. 24, starting at 8 p.m. The party — benefitting the local dance company — will feature the tunes spun by Sing Your Life karaoke queen — and another Dumpsta regular — DJ Sara Sherr. Be sure to stick around after the party when she hosts a Katy Perry-themed karaoke jam.

Coming off his successful, albeit disturbing, Philly Fringe Show Basement, local dancer and G Philly summer cover boy Gunnar Montana delves back into the dark side with Drag Me to Hell on Mon., Oct. 28, at Underground Arts. For this show, he’s enlisted the help of two of Philly’s wickedest drag queens, Lady Poison and Luna Lavey, plus a lineup of talented dancers for a “feast of glamour, emotion, aerial performances, music, shock and gore.” Prepare to be turned on and freaked out all at the same time.

On Wed., Oct. 30, at William Way, local performance artist Marcel Williams Foster will take a trip to the jungle to portray his icon Jane Goodall in an open rehearsal of a spinoff of his popular Fringe show The Jane Goodall Experience. Called #JaneGoodallDrama, the performance will find Foster delivering a “lecture gone wrong” while serving chocolate concoctions from Eclectik Domestic and handing out prizes to those who show up in the best costumes. Rudy Flesher moderates.

BALLS

Brittany Lynn (center) with revelers at last year’s Peter Sterling Ball. Photo courtesy of Peter Sterling.

Fittingly, there are two big, gay Halloween balls this year: First up, Peter Sterling’s Halloween Ball, which, after three years in the suburbs, is making its way to Center City’s Double Hotel on Fri., Oct. 25. The host promises the “sexiest, most blinged-out” party room in Philadelphia, plus performances by host Brittany Lynn and the Peek-a-Boo-Revue. The most outlandish of costumes are highly encouraged.

The legendary Henri David Halloween Ball returns for its 44th (!) go-round, on Thu., Oct. 31, at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown Hotel. Put your best costume-making skills to work for this one, boys and girls. He’ll be divvying out prizes for everything from the Most Decadent and Most Horrifying to Most Unbelievably Spectacular getups.

FOOD AND DRINK

Heads up Oktoberfest fans: Tonight, Wed., Oct. 24, East Passyunk is hosting its fourth annual Witch Craft Beer Crawl, a  bar crawl down East Passyunk Avenue that includes 14 bars and restaurants, like Garage, Le Virtu, Cantina and more. The clever $6.66 admission includes $3 craft beers and a witch hat. (Cue this.)

Brittany Lynn is hosting a Halloween-themed Drag Brunch at Tabu on Sun., Oct., 27, with Crystal Electra and rising Philly drag star Bev. Expect trivia, sing-alongs, fierce lip-syncing and eggs!

PARTIES!

• For its next Big Gay Boat Party, PhillyGayCalendar is turning the Moshulu into a Ghost Ship (Oct. 26)
• Hey, lesbians! Stimulus is hosting its fifth annual, ultra-sexy Halloween bash, Mischief and Mayhem (Oct. 26)
• GPFFL gets in on the Halloween game with a superheroes and villains-themed party and player auction (Oct. 26)
• E.J.C. and A New You Project present Quiver (Oct. 30)