festival – Page 24 – Salem Main Streets

Haunted BizBaz Returns to Salem

Oct 032014

You never know who you’ll meet during the Biz Baz…

Street fairs are a welcome sight in Salem; walkers and vendors chat, joke, shoot the breeze, bargain, and in most cases seal a deal. This weekend the Chamber of Commerce presents its annual version, the Haunted Biz Baz, October 4 (10am-8pm) & October 5, 2014 (10am-6pm).

Booths will be lined up essentially along the Essex Street Pedestrian Mall walking path, as well as down into Derby Square.

What will you find? What won’t you find? Arts, crafts, jewelry and a great deal more. It’s a bazaar! It’s also a weekend. Weather looks to be co-operating with partly cloudy/partly sunny skies, mid to low 60 degree temperatures. That translates into a fine day trip forecast.

There will, of course, be food vendors along the route. Plus there are all the brick and mortar restaurants that line our main roads and streets. And afterwards, you can always check out the diverse, eclectic and just plain strange offerings of the merchants in Salem’s Downtown District.

Of course, if you need some directions or advice, our Info Booth volunteers are ready and willing to help answer your zaniest questions! Stop by the intersection of Essex St. and Washington St. any time between 10 am and 6 pm on Saturday or 1 pm and 5 pm on Sunday for some friendly assistance.

Info Booth ambassador Paula is ready to help!

It Waits… For You… The Info Booth

Haunted Happenings, Salem Event, Salem Festivals, SMS News, Volunteer Opportunities No Responses »

Sep 292014

Hauntingly standing in and out of the shadows, the Salem Main Streets Haunted Happenings Information Booth waits patiently on the corner of Essex and Washington Streets. It waits for you.

For resident and tourist alike, young and old, American and foreign traveler, it does not discriminate in its need to feed— you information. Now that it has been dropped into place, the booth sits day and night awaiting the launch of our season of service. Volunteers will start staffing Thursday from 4:30 – 6:30 pm to coincide with the Haunted Happenings kick-off Grand Parade.

Stephanie Hagyard, a volunteer since 2008, and coordinator of this year’s SMS info team says “Our shift schedule will be 2 – 6 pm on Fridays (noon – 8 pm on Halloween), 10 am – 6 pm on Saturdays and noon – 5 pm on Sundays (might vary to 11 am on Sundays depending on staffing). The only holiday is Columbus day which will be a 10 am- 4 pm effort.”

She adds, “Most shifts are filled but there are a few dates/shifts that I would like to get a third/fourth person on- and November 1st is a new addition this year that needs people.” If you would like to volunteer, contact Stephanie at shagyard@yahoo.com.

You would become part of a community of ‘community volunteers’ who have provided direction and support to nearly 140,000 visitors since 2008. And this year with Halloween on a Friday, we can expect record numbers to cross Washington Street at Essex Street (which is the location of our booth).

Asked for advance advice to offer 10/31 visitors, Stephanie offered “Park once, wear comfy shoes, walk around, dress in layers, pay attention to your surroundings; if you are at an establishment getting lunch/dinner/coffee use the bathroom even if you don’t think you need to because who knows how long lines will be at other restrooms that are public.”

That’s the kind of straightforward, we believe useful info, you need from the booth volunteers, along with where the “witch this” and “witch that” are located.

The Info Booth beckons you….

Why Do People Come To Salem?

Haunted Happenings, History, Salem Event, Salem Festivals, Workshops No Responses »

Sep 262014

Simple question. Complex answer. Do they come for the witches and magic and monsters and such? Or is it “much, much more” as has been put forth by others (like in these star-studded video shorts)?

One strong possibility (at least from the looks of our blog entries) is the literary aspect. Everybody knows about Salem’s Nathaniel Hawthorne and House of Seven Gables connection. But in the last week or so, we’ve written blogs about Salem’s relationship with:

1- Edgar Allan Poe. It appears that “A Tell-Tale Heart” might have been based on the grisly murder of Capt. Joseph White in 1830 Salem. And in the midst of our Haunted Halloween Happenings next month there will be interactive events fostered by The Scarlet Letter Press & Gallery to honor Mr. Poe.

2- Charles Dickens. Dickens scholars from around the world, as well as local & international performers, historians and artists have been invited to attend Pickwickian Endeavors, a weekend long conference Sept. 26-28 to held at the Salem Athenaeum and other city spots. This conference is scheduled to feature over 20 presenters and performers. All topics Dickens will be up for discussion.

3- Banned Books. Banned Books Week, has been taking place all week at Wicked Good Books, ending Sept. 27th. According to the American Library Association (ALA) “Banned Books Week brings together the entire book community –- librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types –- in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.”

4- Book Swap. What can you do with a book? Read it, of course. And then? Use it as a paperweight. Or use two as bookends. The city of Salem offered a more community-minded suggestion recently with a Free Book & Media Swap

And also worthy of note is November’s upcoming Salem Literary Festival.

Proof enough that you can’t judge the Salem book just by its cover.

“Fantasy” to Become Reality as Theme for Halloween Parade

Haunted Happenings, Salem Event, Salem Festivals No Responses »

Sep 162014

Photo courtesy Social Palates

Preparations are underway for the 19th Annual Salem Chamber of Commerce Haunted Happenings Grand Parade. Step off is Thursday, Oct. 2nd for this gathering of young and old to launch our month-long celebration of Halloween, Salem’s “5th Season.” This year’s event will feature the theme “Fantasy.”

But the parade has expenses, and that is where the Chamber looks to merchants in the community to help defray the costs of extra police, ambulance, security, advertising, staging, etc.

This is accomplished through sponsorships of banners to be carried within the parade. For more info call 978-745-3855 or go to the Chamber of Commerce website. Deadline is this Friday, Sept. 19th.

As for the parade itself, you need be neither magician nor crystal ball gazer to foresee an endless choice of costumes based on many fantasy themed movies and books; expect to see a lot of characters from Frozen, Harry Potter, Narnia, Spiderman as well as Ghostbusters (30 year anniversary and re-release), Avatar and Hunger Games.

This time honored kick off of the Halloween season is full of color, pageantry, music and the enthusiasm of thousands of Salem’s students from kindergarten to college and our local business owners. Their participation is what makes this a highly successful, cherished event for our community, neighbors and visitors.

Mr. Poe Comes to Salem

History, Salem Event 3 Responses »

Sep 082014

While Nathaniel Hawthorne’s writings were well known to be tied to Salem, literary contemporary Edgar Allan Poe also had a connection. It appears that “A Tell-Tale Heart” might have been based on the grisly murder of Capt. Joseph White in 1830 Salem. And in the midst of our Haunted Halloween Happenings next month there will be interactive events fostered by The Scarlet Letter Press & Gallery to honor Mr. Poe.

The first is “Spirits of the Dead” an art show “inspired” by Edgar Allan Poe. The store is seeking Poe-inspired artwork for a Sept. 27 – Nov. 2 gallery show. Deadline for submissions is Sept. 12th.

The gallery at The Scarlet Letter Press will be transformed into a somber state of decay as the worn pages of Edgar Allan Poe’s grim stories are represented in visual artwork. A month-long show featuring artists from around the United States will hang in honor of the late horror master. All artwork is for sale including original paintings, assemblage, jewelry, prints, candles, postcards and much more. The ensemble “1476” has written and produced an original score for the art show which will also be available for sale.

According to the Facebook page “We have accepted a lot of 2D artwork, but would love to see items that are 3D, i.e. jewelry, vintage items, books, clothing, etc.”

The Scarlet Letter Press is also participating in a national month of recognition to support the city of Boston’s installation of its life-sized Poe bronze on Oct. 5th. The Edgar Allan Poe Foundation of Boston had sought to honor Poe in the city where he was born on January 19, 1809.  The installation will be in Poe Square (intersection of Boylston Street and Charles Street South) which was dedicated to the author in 2009.

The store suggests you might absorb some inspiration from the sculpture by Stefanie Rocknak at www.bostonpoe.org.

But to mis-quote the Raven– there is more. There will be an intimate, one-night only experience Oct. 18th from 7:30 – 9:30 pm at Finz restaurant, with the dearly departed Edgar Allan Poe who returns to Salem for an appearance that should not be missed. Amongst macabre music and exquisite morsels and your choice of tantalizing cocktails, Mr. Poe performs dramatic readings of “The Raven” and the earlier mentioned “A Tell-Tale Heart.”

He will also discuss his life and the lasting impact of his work with audience interaction. Each guest receives an exclusive item commemorating the experience. And—- period costumes are welcome!

Another guest speaker, Victoria Price had been planned for Oct. 20th, but details have not been finalized at this point in the schedule.

Tickets will most likely sell quickly, for more information on any of these events, contact The Scarlet Letter Press at 978 -741-1850.

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