Halloween Events

WTF?! Guys & Dolls & Zombies / Daily through Sunday, November 7

Zombies get no respect in museums or galleries. Vampires, sure, because they’re sexy and transgressive. The devil and his minions have been part of Western art since the dawn of Christ. And classical mythology and art are full of beasts and half-human creatures. But nobody loves the undead. Yet this group show gives props to the brain-eaters, with work by Kate Vrijmoet, Shaun Doll, Paul D. McKee, and Daniel John Williams. Here we see zombies riding roller coasters, totemic dolls to protect against zombie attacks, and ordinary suburbanites clutching the tools to be used for their last stand. (Hedge clippers make an excellent weapon—but you probably knew that already.) ArtsWest, 4711 California Ave. S.W., 938-0339. T. BOND

The House on Telegraph Hill / Thursday, October 28

Your husband is dead, your home has been burned, then you’re tossed into a Nazi concentration camp. This spooky 1951 film noir, ably directed by Robert Wise, begins dark and actually gets darker when its Polish heroine (Valentina Cortese) emigrates to America after the war. As it turns out, she’s been delivered from evil . . . into more evil. First, she’s an imposter, having assumed the identity of a friend who died in Belsen. The dead woman’s young son, shipped to America to live with a rich aunt before the Germans invaded, is her ticket to the states. There, she quickly marries the trustee (Richard Basehart) of her (false) family’s fortune, which includes a big creaking Gothic house overlooking San Francisco Harbor. But wait a minute—just how did the rich aunt die, anyway? Just as our heroine starts asking inconvenient questions, her car’s brake lines are cut and someone slips poison into her orange juice! There’s a strong Rebecca vibe as this interloper becomes enveloped in the intrigues of the past, trapped in domestic horror. Everything was fine, the trustee warns her, until “you decided to come back from the grave.” Seattle Art Museum, 1300 First Ave., 654-3100. 7:30 p.m. $7. BRIAN MILLER

Dracula / Friday, October 29

People remember that Orson Welles and company panicked unsuspecting listeners in October 1938 with a radio-vérité treatment of The War of the Worlds. Yet Mercury Theatre on the Air actually debuted in July of that year with a hot-blooded treatment of Dracula that probably stunned a few ears, too. There was no drooling, bug-eating Renfield, but the hypnotic Count (played by guess who) seduced a woozy, willing, audibly horny Mina to a repeated messianic refrain of “flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood.” Tonight, Seattle Radio Theatre recreates Welles’ often maleficent magic live onstage for Halloween with music, sound effects, and a cast including venerable Seattle comedian and Almost Live! alum Pat Cashman. Whether or not they’re going for laughs, chills, nostalgia, or some sweet, trick-and-treaty confection of all of the above remains to be heard . . . er, seen. A few chuckles will be unavoidable. and were probably intended by a snickering, wicked Welles anyway. What else to make of the moment when Mina’s true love Harker, pondering the lusty vampire, remarks, “I don’t understand these things. I only know he is a man with hair in the palm of his hands”? Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 652-4255. 7:30 p.m. $5–$15. STEVE WIECKING

Benefit for the Youth Suicide Prevention Program with Victor Shade / Saturday, October 30

Like many superhero stories before his, the tale of Ra Scion’s Victor Shade begins with a tragedy—and like any good hero, he’s venturing out to prevent that same tragedy from affecting others. Because while the Youth Suicide Prevention Program is an undeniably good cause, it was also very deliberately chosen: Ra Scion lost his father to suicide. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have a good time at the benefit—hosted by 2010 Olympic medalist J.R. Celski, it features appearances from Grynch and Sol. Plus, appearing in costume not only saves you $4 at the door but gives you the chance to win a free costume rental the next night. “The Vision” might already be claimed, but there are plenty of other superheroes to choose from. With Kind of Blind. Vera Project, 305 Harrison St., 956-8372. 7:30 p.m. $10. All ages. NICK FELDMAN

Halloqueen / Saturday, October 30

Wearing another band as a Halloween costume is generally a PBR-fueled, sloppy, drunken joyride through that band’s catalog. False starts and flubs are par for the course. And when you’re taking on a band whose catalog consists of more than just fast power chords, things can get a little tricky, especially when that band is Queen. Technically and melodically over the top, Queen’s music isn’t the sort you can just plow through. From a showmanship standpoint, you couldn’t pick a harder pair of shoes to step into than Freddie Mercury’s. Seattle’s Halloqueen (featuring ex-members of Shadow, Goodness, and Medicine Hat) manages to fill them surprisingly well, falling more on the side of loving tribute than sloppy schtick, while putting on a proficient (but still goofy) show. With Rawbones (a Ramones tribute band). Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. 9:30 p.m. $10 adv./$15 DOS. GREGORY FRANKLIN

Halloween Party with Wild Orchid Children / Saturday, October 30

Wild Orchid Children recently signed with New York–based Equal Vision Records, which will release The Wild Orchid Children Are Alexander Supertramp this November. Half the album was recorded with beloved local sound engineer Tom Pfaeffle shortly before he was fatally shot in July 2009; Pfaeffle’s engineers finished the rest, which was mixed by Red Room’s Chris Common. It’s a stunning piece of work, shot through with WOC’s wildly imaginative, kaleidoscopic viewpoint and their signature mix of skyscraping hip-hop screeds, rock bombast, and percussion-driven dirges. Look for thwese kids to finally break on a larger scale in 2011. With Past Lives, Triumph of Lethargy, Strong Killings. Black Lodge, 429 Eastlake Ave. 9 p.m. HANNAH LEVIN

Gary Numan / Sunday, October 31

Gary Numan is one of those unfortunate artists whose slow-burning brilliance has only recently become clear to the general populace. His first solo release, 1979’s The Pleasure Principle, is an all-synthesizer rock record that served as a blueprint for many of the past three decades’ synth-pop artists. Numan was the first to chart with such an album, and without him, there might never have been a Depeche Mode or a Human League (at least as we know them today). Tonight, Numan performs this influential record in its entirety; given how quickly the show sold out, it’s clear that he may still achieve the level of name recognition his successors continue to enjoy. With Motor. Neumos, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9467. 8 p.m. Sold out. SARA BRICKNER

Heavy Metal Halloween Musical / Sunday, October 31

Last time I saw the Chevy Chasers, Throne of Bone vocalist Michael Freiburger banged his head so hard, the bone-shaped metal nose ring that pierces his septum flew right out. Bandleader Ryan Leyva (aka “Johnny Nails”) is just the sort of flashy, trashy frontman who inspires jewelry loss, but he’s also a technical player and solid rock songwriter who’ll instantly appeal to anyone fond of Them Crooked Vultures’ debut record. The Chasers were also wise to recruit Rob Nass (“the Ice Wizard”), a limber, long-locked guitarist who adds much to the mix both aesthetically and sonically. Sunset Tavern, 5433 Ballard Ave. N.W., 784-4880. 9:30 p.m. $6. HANNAH LEVIN

Queen Bitch: A Tribute to David Bowie / Sunday, October 31

Except for Lady Gaga, has any other musician given us as many Halloween costume options as David Bowie? Get a bright-red rooster cut, paint lightning on your face, and you’re Ziggy Stardust. Slick your hair back, wear a white shirt and waistcoat, smear some white powder under your nose, and you’re the Thin White Duke. Bleach your hair, wear a pastel suit, and you’re “Let’s Dance” ’80s Bowie. And then there’s Jareth the Goblin King . . . Anyway, pick one and get dressed and you’ll fit right in at the High Dive’s Halloween Party, headlined by Queen Bitch, the Northwest’s glammest, most Hunky Dory cover band. With Talking Dead: A Tribute to Talking Heads. High Dive, 513 N. 36th St., 632-0212. 8 p.m. $7. ERIN K. THOMPSON

Also:

Ghost Town: Halloween in the Wild West (Funhouse, Oct. 28)

Buckaroo Blues Halloween Costume Party (Little Red Hen, Oct. 30)

Bollywood Halloween Bash (Crocodile, Oct. 30)

Evil Dead: The Musical (ArtsWest, Oct. 30)

Halloween Extravaganza with The Illicit Jug Cartel (Conor Byrne, Oct. 30)

Macbeth (Greenstage, through Oct. 30)

This Is Halloween (Can Can, Oct. 30)

The Bad Things (Columbia City Theatre, Oct. 31)

Cannibal, the Musical (Market Theater, through Oct. 31)

Halloween Dance Party with the Tempers (Chop Suey, Oct. 31)

KEXP’s Halloween Kids Dance Party (Tractor Tavern, Oct. 31)