The Divination Game: Romantic tomfoolery at the Victorian Halloween party

To those of us who came of age in the 20th and 21st centuries, Halloween was a time of carving jack o’ lanterns, parades and parties at school, horror movies on TV and wandering the streets dressed as ghouls or favorite pop culture characters, searching for candy. Nineteenth century revelers, however, did things differently. Instead of going door-to-door, Victorians would throw lavish parties full of intricate rituals. High-society ladies would pride themselves on their creativity, crafting detailed invitations, unique costumes and glamorous entrances. While there were still costumes, tricks, games and spooky stories, the main focus of the night was matchmaking. Hopeful singles would come together to divine their future spouses through poems, faces in mirrors or by eating the Irish bread Barmbrack, which had baked-in tokens used to predict upcoming events. Join us on October 19 as we explore the Halloween food, fun, flirting and phantasmagorical frolics of the Victorian era. $10