Central Park

It was a Dark and Stormy Halloween in Central Park

Parks & Recreation hosted the Great Halloween Event today in Central Park, where a couple of thousand hearty New Yorkers were entertained with live performances, a pumpkin patch, a kid costume contest, and healthy snacks.

"The beloved Great Halloween Event successfully entertained little devils, vampires and cartoon characters this year with its pumpkin patch, kid costume contest, healthy snacks and live musical entertainment," said Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe. "Despite the rain-laden forecast, parents and kids donned their best costumes and headed to Central Park and parks citywide to have a haunting good time in the City's communal backyards."

Although a few festivities were cancelled due to the weather, Central Park was swarming with Halloween fun. Cherry Hill was transformed into a giant pumpkin patch with 8,500 free pumpkins for participants to take home. Tom Kenny, the voice of SpongeBob SquarePants, delighted the audience with songs from his new CD. Award-winning Laughing Pizza Family Band and Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana also entertained the crowd at the Bandshell. Power 105.1 emceed the event, including an impromptu audience participation performance of the Chicken Noodle Soup Dance.

Parks & Recreation hosts Halloween parties at various locations in all five boroughs, which feature activities such as haunted houses, hayrides, storytelling, and costume parades. Citywide locations include Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Van Cortlandt Park and St. Mary’s Recreation Center in the Bronx, Cromwell Recreation Center and South Beach in Staten Island, J. Hood Wright Park and Hamilton Fish Park in Manhattan, and Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens. Some spooktacular events will be rescheduled due to the weather. For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/parks.

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Harlem Meer Center (formerly Lasker Rink)

Harlem Meer Center