Halloween Recap

Two of many Halloween venues in Topanga came to our attention that were awash in little kids and costumes of a million delights who scoped out the best places to trick or treat.

Theatricum Botanicum transformed itself into the haunted BOO-tanicum with the theatre company’s seventh annual Halloween extravaganza, with its infamous—and very scary Haunted House and zombie thespians. Assorted tricks and treats of the season were woven throughout the wooded grounds with a host of enticements including ghost stories, game booths, live music, comedy improv, festive food and libations.

Bonnell Drive started partying at 4 p.m., with enough daylight for the tiny tykes to enjoy trick and treating in the safety of the street where a small contingent from the Bonnell Park Association stalwartly directed cars to park elsewhere. An assortment of house parties rolled on into the evening starting early with Matt and Kelly Welch who entertained with five-year-old daughter Haley’s friends and anyone else who wandered in. Coco Blignaut and husband Edison Park entertained with Coco’s “Puppet Soup” full of worms, eyeballs, spiders, gummy bears and jelly beans, plus crystals for the lucky trick or treaters. As the sun set, Robin Becker and Jim Chressanthis opened their home to the annual Bonnell Halloween chili and cornbread feast.

Claire Fordham

Fordham worked for the BBC, ITN and Sky News in the UK and wrote a weekly anecdotal column for Britain’s biggest-selling newspaper, The Sun. She currently writes regularly for Huffington Post, The Malibu Times and the Messenger Mountain News. See "A Chat with Claire Fordham" on this website under Podcasts.