You'll find one of these perfect fits at Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure, where the park's new Wizarding World of Harry Potter cries for a Halloween event to feature it.
Universal's not hosting any Halloween event at the Wizarding World in this, the land's first year, since crowds continue to fill the land without any extra inducement and the park's still tweaking its operation.
So we'll leave this as a "What Would You Do?" exercise: For 2011 and beyond, what would you include in a Halloween event at Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter?
Remember that everything in the Wizarding World must be canon according to J.K. Rowling's works, so no cheesy cross-overs with Jurassic Park dinosaurs or Frankenstein's monster battling wizards outside the Hogwarts Castle. But Rowling's given you plenty of material to work with, as the annual "Halloween Feat" appears in the first four books of the Harry Potter series.
How would you work the Halloween Feast into the Wizarding World? That's what I like to hear from you, in the comments.
Since the main Halloween event in the Harry Potter world is a feast, you've got to figure that the The Three Broomsticks should figure into any plans. (Yes, the Harry Potter Halloween Feasts takes place inside Hogwarts' Great Hall, but I think that it is reasonable to assume that the people of Hogsmeade would celebrate a Halloween Feast of their own.)
What menu Halloween-only food items would you add at The Three Broomsticks, or sell from carts in the Wizarding World? (Pumpkin pasties, anyone?)
Personally, I think that a Harry Potter Halloween event should be a daytime affair included with regular park admission rather than another hard-ticket event, and positioned as a more family-friendly option than Universal's Halloween Horror Nights. Floating Jack-o'-lanterns should decorate the Hogwarts castle queue, and bats should fly overheard through the castle dungeons. Special Halloween candy should appear at Honeydukes. And Halloween Feast-themed merchandise should be offered at the Wizarding World's shops.
I'd also like to see the Three Broomsticks shake up the menu a bit. The restaurant could add a special "Halloween Feast" option, or add additional a la carte entrees and desserts to match the Halloween theme. Universal could program a special feast show with assigned seating times, or continue normal operation with the addition of some entertainment (such as the skeleton band from Chamber of Secrets). I could be swayed either way, based on a strong argument.
(FWIW, I don't think that a Haunted Mansion-style overlay of the Forbidden Journey ride would be a viable option for Halloween Feast, unless Universal really thought ahead and filmed that footage with the Harry Potter actors when it filmed the original Forbidden Journey scenes.)
What would you like to see in Halloween Feast at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter? Let's hear you best suggestions in the comments.
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And, obviously, Dementors would be involved.
I'm thinking something along the lines of the Shrieking Shack or the Chamber of Secrets, a scare house that differs from the norm in that it offers eeriness and mystery rather than gore and cheap scares. Additionally, it would be completely interactive, involving various puzzles, similar to the ones encountered in the books.
Say, for example, a room with several doors. However, all but one are fake projections. As you approach each projection, it fades into nothingness, leaving only one door left: the one you came in through. However, the hallways adjacent to the room shifted position while you were in the room and the door you came through now leads somewhere else.
There could be a painting/door that only opens when you answer its riddle, just like the Fat Lady. There could be a hallway with a door at the end that appears normal upon first glance, but gradually gets smaller as you approach, like an Ames Room:
They could get wicked creative. I'm tired and can't think of much at the moment, but give their creative team a pot of coffee and a lot of scrap paper and they'll come up with something.
Another good visual comes from the Quitich World Cup game. The American Quittich stadium is very Halloween!
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