The 20th Anniversary edition of Highbury Cemetery is in the books, and what a wild ride it has been. Here in Northeast Ohio, we seem to have locked into a new traditional weather pattern for October. That is, the month starts off sunny and warm, quickly turns colder and rainy (Every. Single. Day.), and then I go insane hoping that we get a break from a less-than-desirable forecast for trick-or-treat night.
And for about the fourth year in a row, we somehow get very lucky. The Candy Corn gods look down upon us with favor and give us a window of perfectly dry, completely windless weather in order to get trick-or-treat completed without a hitch.
This year was no different. After a morning of constant rain, trick-or-treat ended up being another success in that we got a nice crowd (a trophy!) and an evening of dry weather with no wind. Very fortunate, indeed.
I was able to put out the full setup, with a few new and a few older pieces throughout the display. I also had time to really focus on my lighting again this year, which makes a huge difference in the photos and video. There is always a list of things that I didn't get to or just didn't get to add this year, but overall I'm really happy with this year's display. It gives a nice, solid base for next year's display.
So without further ado, I'll get to the good stuff...
Ladies and gentlemonsters, boils and ghouls, I proudly present Highbury Cemetery, 2023. Enjoy!
I didn't even mention the Home Depot 12 foot skeleton! I finally gave in and bought one this year, as I was looking for some added height in the cemetery. I couldn't just put him into the display looking like every other 12 foot skeleton in the neighborhood, so I ended up corpsing the head, neck, and chest, and then wrapped him in a makeshift reaper cloak. I placed him on the left side of the display, cutting a dark, creepy figure to bookend the cemetery. He looked great standing above the skeleton in the fog-emitting coffin, but I'll have to adjust the lighting for next year to increase his prominence. He will definitely play a bigger part in next year's display.
When all was said and done, we ended up having 212 trick-or-treaters, parents, neighbors, and curious onlookers through the gates of Highbury Cemetery this year. A little bit lower than last year's total, but I'll still take it considering the uncertainty of the weather.
And before I end it, I can't go without giving a special thanks to everyone who helped put on the show this year. I couldn't do it without your help and your presence in just making the whole night a ton of fun. Special 20th Anniversary Highbury Cemetery thank you t-shirts go out to: Mrs. Highbury, Christian Highbury, Sharon, Karen, Laurie, and Brother Scrapes (who made his second appearance in two years!).
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So there you have it. Halloween, 2023 is done and dusted and the Cemetery is closed for another year. Twenty years of home haunting and still going strong. The success of this year again has me motivated to start on next year's display. A few improvements on existing ideas and a few new ideas to add to the mix...
Only 362 days until Halloween. Are you ready?
