Mount Holly Mill Race Arts and Preservation Voodoo Costume Party
Year after year information technology grew.
With no warning, the small lark evolved into an unforgettable force, growing bigger, stronger and darker each year, including last year when, nether the ideal temperature, it doubled in size.
Even the growth of the Witches Ball is scary.
Dorsum for its 13th twelvemonth, the free outdoor event possesses the Historic Mill Race Hamlet of Mount Holly on October. 11, summoning gratuitous spirits from all over to bang their heads, make clean kegs, throw down some costumes and heighten hell for one spooky Saturday night.
"It started off as some actually small merchant-run upshot, a Halloween event with ballroom dancing," says Lynn Lemyre, event director. " And then we added a costume contest and that grew exponentially considering people just love to dress up. We go some elaborate costumes. It's not your run-of-the-manufacturing plant costumes."
Unlike many of last year'southward five,000 attendees, the Witches Ball doesn't pretend to be something information technology's not, encouraging attire both scary and suggestive.
"This is for adults. This is not for kids," says Kathy Spear, vendor coordinator. "In that location will be no bobbing for apples, there volition exist no trick or treating. This is adults enjoying themselves. There is a beer garden, rock and roll and a costume competition. Some of the costumes are actually outrageous. We discourage (people) from bringing the toddler unless their toddlers can handle information technology."
The Witches Ball invites those xvi-and-older to enjoy alive music, abdomen dancers, burn performers, psychics and its Bizarre Bazaar.
A record 30 vendors had registered by February to showcase their weird wares, from candy and potions to skull-shaped lather and hellacious hot sauce.
"There is more excitement and response from vendors," Spear says. "It's non simply rewarding financially for them. Information technology's just a blast. It'due south a great party."
The issue as well features vampire books yous tin sink your fangs into.
"Everything is made by the artists," Spear says. "Nothing is from a warehouse or resold."
The Mill Race Village neighborhood peculiarly gets into the spirit.
Spear, owner of Abode Fine Arts and Framing, adorns her store with voodoo dolls, paintings of crows and one sketchy sketch of Edgar Allen Poe "whose eyes move back and forth."
"Everybody volition be busy for the holiday," she says of the Mount Holly party. "Even shops partake and everybody loves it."
The vendors feed off both the spirit and power of the 17 stores comprising the Mill Race Village, which lend electricity and enable the ghoulish wares to be sold.
The logistics behind plumbing fixtures more people, vendors and entertainment into the same finite neighborhood can make one's heads spin.
At least Lemyre doesn't need to market it; this matter has a life of its own.
"Nosotros don't need to promote it," Lemyre says. "It kind of does its ain thing."
Half-dozen months of planning culminates in a calendar week of decorating and building the three stages, start today.
"Friday and Saturday is crunch fourth dimension. Everything comes out of its subconscious places," Lemyre says. "Everything is squirreled away in the hamlet and so 2 or 3 days earlier it'southward like, whoosh."
One of the 3 stages is located at Gypsy Village. The bohemian backstreet stages abdomen dancers and tribal dancing throughout the evening.
Live music will also be staged at one of the Ball's two beer gardens, including Somerdale's Flying Fish Brewery and new Mount Holly brewery Spellbound Brewing.
Similar terminal year, Princeton's School of Stone volition be performing the "Rocky Horror Picture Bear witness" soundtrack from half dozen to eight p.m., doing the time warp once more and so some.
"Nosotros've been doing "Rocky Horror" every year for the terminal 10 years either at our own Halloween party or some hayride in Bailiwick of jersey, and I thought the Witches Ball would be a perfect event," says Dante Cimino, regional music director of the Princeton plan. "Based on the amazing crowd reception nosotros got last yr I asked if nosotros could play a little longer."
One time done resurrecting the cult classic, the costumed children volition rip some classic rock jams until nine p.m. — when the real freaks come out for the costume contest.
A cavalcade of 40 to fifty costumed souls will accept the stage and work the crowd, vying for the overall $500 prize and for superlative honors in such categories as best witch or wizard, all-time historical, scariest and other.
The "other" class tin can consist of genres such every bit fantasy, medieval, renaissance, Victorian, goblin, Gothic, horror, Celtic, pirate and steampunk, the latter which Lemyre describes as a revisionist regalia.
"Imagine if Victorian times and engineering science took a left turn and went in a direction of steam instead the way it went," says Lemyre, citing the style of writer Jules Verne every bit the steampunk archetype. "In that location's some really cool artful to it. It's technical only it's beautiful. It's not uncomplicated. It's not cold, it'south very warm, a lot or wood and brass. "
Storebought costumes are non in the spirit of The Witches Ball, Lemyre and Spear say.
Even those working become into the fun of it.
"I commonly wearable my witch outfit, but I may be the queen of Mountain Holly," Spear says.
What does "the queen of Mount Holly" wait entail?
"She looks like a witch wearing a crown," she says, laughing.
Not everybody wears costumes. "It's not required but it'due south highly encouraged considering it becomes more of a collaborative outcome," Lemyre says. "They add together to the consequence."
And not every ghoulish vision yous see may be in costume.
Mount Holly is known for being a haunted haven, home to Due south Jersey Ghost Inquiry nonprofit group and a one-half mile from the Burlington County Jail Museum, considered 1 of the virtually haunted places in the globe and the subject of SyFy Channel's "Ghost Hunters."
Spooky ghost sightings and sounds have occurred throughout Mills Race Village, from Robin'southward Nest Restaurant to even Spear's Dwelling house Fine Arts & Framing shop, where an early 20th-century milkman has been known to drop by.
"People in my edifice swear of having seen the milkman," Spear says. "I haven't seen him."
Those who attest to seeing a ghost there include Lemyre, who, forth with her husband, Jim, inhabited the building before it was turned into an arts shop.
"We've had a few ghostly occurrences," she says. "My husband (Jim) will say no, but I will say yes."
The spiritual grounds keep people on their toes.
"You have to exist used to things similar that when you alive in a town that has the history that Mount Holly has," Spear says. "You have to be prepared."
Lemyre, who also organizes the annual Monsters Brawl in Trenton, is nil merely prepared for this frightful fest, expecting a record turnout withal again.
Every bit fun as it was watching the attendance double last year was, she doesn't know if Mount Holly'south modest village can sustain another multiple of makeshift monsters.
She hopes to never observe out.
"We don't want to go information technology quite that big," she says. "We don't heavily annunciate considering we similar having this internal thing."
The scariest matter is across her control. In the event of wicked weather condition, The Witches Brawl has a rain date of Oct. eighteen.
"We've simply had one rain engagement in the 12 years of running the event," Lemyre says, "and that's a challenge because sometimes people can't brand information technology."
Reach Steve Wood at (856) 486-2474 or at stewood@gannett.com.
If you go
The Witches Ball, held at 1 High St., possesses the Historic Mill Race Village of Mount Holly from 6 p.1000. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11. People are encouraged to don costumes at the free outdoor event, which will include live music and belly dancing, beer gardens and a 9 p.m. costume competition. Rain engagement is Oct. 18. For more information, visit thewitchesball.com
Halloween events
Hither are more events sure to spook South Bailiwick of jersey:
Man and homo'south best friend are invited to Howloween, held eleven a.chiliad. to 5 p.m. on Sabbatum, Oct. 4. at Indian Acres Tree Farm, located at 111 Tuckerton Rd. in Medford. Canines that sign upward by 1:30 p.yard. can partake in the 2 p.m. costume dog parade. Dog lovers can lean in for a wet one whatsoever fourth dimension at the dog kissing booth. All proceeds do good animal rescue. For more information, visit indianacrestreefarm.com
The annual Ghost Walk slinks into Mullica Colina showtime on October. 11 as part of the town'southward Second Saturday. Every 10 minutes starting at half dozen:thirty p.yard. at blueplate restaurant, located at 47 S. Principal St., a member of the Harrison Township Historical Society will guide groups past celebrated houses and buildings, as well every bit within 1 older than 100 years. Meanwhile, a paranormal grouping will conduct an investigation in blueplate's basement, viewable on a live video feed outside the eating house. Tickets are $7 per person. For more information, visit harrisonhistorical.com/events.html
Non just a trip the light fantastic party, Duffield'due south Subcontract Market in Sewell hosts its 2nd Almanac Autumn Friday Family Fest on Friday, Oct. 17. Those who register by 6:thirty p.thou. are encouraged to dance nether the moonlight and by its spooky corn maze until 8:xxx p.m. In addition to flashlight maze, attendees tin can make s'mores past the fire pit and crafts such equally a reflective necklace at the farm, located at 280 Chapel Heights Rd. Admission is $8 per child, $four per developed, and $35 for a family of six. For more information or to register, call (856) 589-7090 or visit duffieldsfarm.com
Paws Farm in Mount Laurel hosts Halloween Bash on Friday, October. 24 from 6 p.m. to eight:30 p.1000., featuring costume parade, crafts, games, prizes, a spooky maze and a haunted house. $xv per participant. Accompanying adults are free. Bring a flashlight and goodie handbag. For more information on Paws Subcontract, located at 1105 Hainesport-Mount Laurel Road, call (856) 778-8795 or visit pawsfarm.com
The sixth Almanac Monsters Brawl roars into Artworks Trenton on Sabbatum, Oct. 25 at eight p.k. Held at the visual arts eye at 135 Due south Stockton St., the issue features alive music, a costume competition and a spectrum of art, from scary such equally silent horror films to spoofy similar a dark and scary fairy game. Tickets are as low every bit $10, include food and 1 drink, and tin can be purchased through artworkstrenton.org/monstersball
Source: https://www.courierpostonline.com/story/entertainment/2014/10/02/witches-ball-transforms-mount-holly/16571713/