Romanian Catholic bishops urge believers not to celebrate Halloween.
In recent times, Romanians have begun to celebrate Halloween just as other nationalities do. Every year, clubs are filled with young people costumed and wearing make-up, but this is not the only way Halloween is being celebrated in our country.
For instance, National Theatre “Radu Stanca” Sibiu presents four performances which will banish the moods and bad spirits this weekend, on the occasion of Halloween. The audience is invited into a world of fairy tales showing the “dark half” of the world, in order to highlight its “light half”. You’ll find about man’s power to survive youth’s “bad weather”, loneliness’ “sores”, political “monsters” and “scary” prejudgments, through the power of love and communion, in four exceptional performances scheduled between October 30 and November 2: “Colors of Music”, “Damen waltz”, “Marat / Sade” and “Take, Ianke and Cadâr”.
Another event, this time dedicated to the youngest members of the family, will take place at Antipa Museum in Bucharest. Thus, children aged between 8 and 14 years old are expected on Friday, October 31, starting 17.30, to use their skills, fantasy and inventiveness in Antipa’s workshop for carving pumpkins. Participants will receive as gift a carving kit, the modeled pumpkin and a certificate of participation. The costs are RON 70 per participant.
And the fun is not ending here. In the Capital’s shopping centers, children will be able to meet some of the most frightening characters and will have the chance to participate in specific Halloween activities.
Those who want to spend Halloween night at a Bucharester theater can go to “Midnight Chat with Sylvia Plath” play at Mignon Theatre.
Nonetheless, Eforie Cinematheque has scheduled a “horror marathon“on Friday at 21.00, the price of a ticket being RON 10. As for music lovers, Halloween will not go unnoticed for them either. The band Cargo presents, on Thursday, at the Roman Arenas in Bucharest, the “Witches’ Night” event, a spectacular sound and light show, where the audience is invited to “welcome the spirits” of Halloween. On October 31, starting 21.00 at La Scena, Bucharesters will be greeted by scarecrows, crows, dragons and other fantastic characters. The condition is the audience to come all dressed up for Halloween. Music Club is preparing many surprises for the celebration evening as well. Special Guest Orchestra,a band that addresses people with binge of fun, will be the main fun provider.
US Embassy to Bucharest was also getting ready on Thursday for celebrating Halloween. “Trick or treat! We are quick in offering candy. Are you ready for Halloween?”, reads an embassy Facebook post.
Fulbright Educational Advising Center in Bucharest is also inviting Halloween fans to come at the”Fulbright Haunted House” on Friday, October 31st, from 7pm! Their partner in crime will be the American Studies Program at the University of Bucharest – AmericanStudies Unibuc. You need to get dressed to kill for their spooky Costume Competition. Characters from American and Romanian folklore are welcome, as are vampires, werewolves and all children of the night.
The Center is promising an evening of raging fun and assorted tortures, all meant to spread the holiday cheer: pumpkin carving, bobbing for apples, rhyming Trick-or-Treat contest, ghost stories competition and wrap-the-mummy.
Halloween is celebrated a day later in the mountains, on November 1st, at Bran Castle, through a thriller party where Count Dracula screams and dances of iele (the famous Romanian wicked fairies) will be in the limelight. Starting 7 p.m. until past midnight, guests will get warm inside Bran Castle’s dark, cold walls over a glass of red-blood wine and Count Dracula will reward bold children with candies.
Being against anything related to the American holiday, Catholic bishops in Romania urged believers on Thursday not to celebrate Halloween and to focus on the two major Catholic holidays taking place on November 1 and 2, also showing that the phenomenon of Satanism is not far from Halloween.