Mr. Singer & The Sharp Cookies-LIVE Concert Video & Trick or Treat Roscoe Village and Clark Street Spooktacular

ChiIL Out with ChiIL Mama today.   We have loads of fun, Halloween themed footage from Mr. Singer's show at Beat Kitchen yesterday.   We'll be posting new clips all day, so check in like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often.


We'll have photo filled recaps soon from Redmoon Theatre's Halloween Party Friday and Punkin' Prom at Lincoln Hall with Miss Mia, Ratso, and Chic-A-Go-Go Saturday.


In this post we're featuring Saturday's Spooktacular on Clark, and Sunday's Roscoe Village Trick or Treat.   



We got some fun shots at Clark Street's Spooktacular this year.   Check out the slide show above.   Sage shared her mad circus skills from CircEsteem with a street performer we happened upon, "Circus Boy".   And there were some creative costumes.


Unfortunately, Spooktacular wasn't so spectacular this year.   They've finally reached the critical mass point where it was uncomfortably crowded, more than half the merchants were out of candy two hours before the slated end of trick or treat time, and the costume contest was poorly run.   


The past two years, the contest was in a spacious, outdoor area.   This year someone had the boneheaded idea to move it into a storefront where everyone was standing on top of one another and the kids were crabby, hot and unhappy about long waits for the judging.   There were a huge number of entrants and the age categories were far too big with 6-10 year olds all lumped in together.   Even the awesome animal (the Muppet drummer) costume didn't even place in 1st-3rd!    We'll be skipping this one next year and can no longer recommend it in good conscience.


****Note to parents:   If you don't have a homemade costume, PLEASE skip entering costume contests (unless it's stated every entrant gets a consolation prize or there's some very compelling reason).   Sure that princess dress you dropped mega bucks on may be cute, but these contests are meant to reward creativity and originality and all the mediocre store bought costumes are gumming up the works with hundreds of kids with no hope of winning, and making these things drag on far too long!    





Roscoe Village Trick or Treat the Merchants & Mr. Singer's Halloween Show at Beat Kitchen With Hot Glue Gun DIY Dragon, Du-Jay, and Rock Star Ghost, Ember, Sagezilla.




Roscoe Village's trick or treat and costume parade was also well attended and crowded but run much better.    The Lane Tech marching band lent a joyous air to the festivities.   Check out Lane Tech's creative video here and vote as often as once a day through 11/7 to help them earn a grant to buy new instruments.   They've made a hilarious and heartfelt parody to the tune of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody.   Lane Tech's entry in the Glee Give a Note Contest, "New Instrument Rhapsody", is super creative and well worth a look and a daily vote.


There were also quite a few merchants out of candy here, but I have a bit more sympathy for them after talking to our long time friend, Patty, who owns the funky, fun salon, Big Hair.   She said she spends $500 every year on candy for the event.   That's a serious investment!


Remember to check back in early and often for more live footage and holiday fun.   Happy ChiILoween.   Enjoy!