Athens’ giant puppets return to Court Street on Saturday, October 31, when the Honey for the Heart Parade steps off at 5 p.m. as part of the city’s Halloween celebrations, capping another year of collaboration between Passion Works Studio and Ohio University’s Learning Community Programs.
This year’s theme is ‘Pond Party,’ and builders have spent the season creating giant turtles, fish and waterfowl inspired by the flora and fauna of Southeast Ohio. Classes working in the studio build the oversized puppets and colorful costumes that have made the parade one of the most photographed traditions of Athens Halloween weekend.
The Honey for the Heart studio is located at the Central Venue, 29 East Carpenter Street in Athens. Anyone who wants to march in the parade is welcome: participants should arrive at 4 p.m. to enter the studio, pick out a costume and get in place before the 5 p.m. start.
From Central Venue, the parade marches onto Court Street, travels down to Union Street and returns to Central Venue. The route takes the procession through the heart of uptown Athens, where Halloween crowds traditionally pack the brick streets for the city’s famous block party weekend.
Organizers say the project is built around bringing people together: students, community members and visitors all work side by side in the studio, and the finished puppets are designed to beautify the streets of uptown Athens while celebrating the natural world of this corner of Ohio.
The collaboration with Learning Community Programs gives Ohio University students a direct role in a community tradition, meeting classes in the studio and providing the framework for their creative time there. For many students, it is an introduction to Athens beyond the classroom during their first fall in the city.
The parade is one piece of a full Athens Halloween weekend that draws thousands of costumed visitors to uptown each year, and the giant puppets give the celebration a handmade, distinctly Athens character that organizers have built over years of studio sessions, school visits and community build days. No registration is needed to watch, and spectators can line Court Street and Union Street downtown. Marchers should plan to arrive at Central Venue by 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, ready to carry a piece of the pond down Court Street.
Photo: Sporeilly94, CC BY-SA 4.0