Happy Halloween, fiends! Start your weekend with the best parade in New England, and keep the festivities going all weekend long.
Portsmouth Halloween Parade 2025
Put on your costume and head downtown for the 30th annual Portsmouth Halloween Parade on Friday night! All are invited to march in the free parade, which sets off from Peirce Island promptly at 7 p.m. Or you can line the sidewalks and watch the ghoulish promenade pass by as it weaves through the streets. Learn more here.
“The Crucible” at Newmarket Millspace
Experience the tragedy of the Salem witch trials in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible.” Directed by Katelin Garland, the award-winning drama is on stage at the Newmarket Millspace from Oct. 31-Nov. 9. Showtimes are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25. Learn more here.
Halloween parties at the Gas Light
Portsmouth Gas Light Co. will be celebrating Halloween all weekend long with back-to-back parties in its Third Floor Nightclub. The Halloween Party on Friday at 8 p.m. will feature a costume contest with cash prizes and other goodies, plus killer beats from DJ Koko P ($35-$45). The Day of the Dead celebration on Saturday at 9 p.m. offers prizes for the Best Catrina or the Best Spirit ($15-$30). Learn more here.
Loads of live music at The Dance Hall
Breakaway Cafe takes over The Dance Hall in Kittery on Friday at 8 p.m. for a Heavy Halloween concert featuring a lineup of bands playing metal cover sets ($10-$15). Ten-piece funk band The Macrotones follows on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ($12-$23). Jazz Casual presents a record-release concert by local duo Sad Bastards / Loose Standards on Sunday at 5 p.m. ($10-$18). Learn more here.
Stone Dead x2 at The Stone Church
Local tribute band Stone Dead returns to Newmarket this weekend for its annual two-night Halloween run at The Stone Church. The all-star ensemble will play music by The Grateful Dead on Friday and Saturday nights at 9 p.m. Tickets are $25-$30 per night, or $45 for a two-night pass. Learn more here.
Doctor Gasp at The Press Room
After the Halloween Parade, march into The Press Room in Portsmouth for an after-party featuring Doctor Gasp and the Eeks. Local legend Dan Blakeslee (the Jekyll to Gasp’s hideous Hyde) will lead his band through a raucous romp of spooky tunes on Friday at 9 p.m. Tickets are $15-$20. Learn more here.
All kinds of art at The Word Barn
Join local foodie Kathy Gunst for a daylong writing workshop titled Finding Voice in Food and Memoir at The Word Barn in Exeter on Saturday from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ($325). That night, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Reed Foehl and special guest Jake McKelvie perform live from 7-9 p.m. ($25). Folk icon Vance Gilbert follows with a concert on Sunday from 7-9 p.m. ($25). Learn more here.
Hardcore triple-bill at WSCA Radio
Some of the heaviest bands Maine and New Hampshire have to offer will share the Button Factory Stage at WSCA Radio in Portsmouth on Saturday night. Faulty Radiator, Red Andromeda Shift, and Dancers Before the Threshold of the Great Words will kick off their triple-bill concert at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10-$15. Learn more here.
Comedy Night at The Rockingham Ballroom
The Rockingham Ballroom in Newmarket will showcase another fresh lineup of talented standup comics at its monthly Comedy Night on Saturday. Following a musical set by singer-songwriter Dick Shaw at 7 p.m., comedians Justin Hoff, Matthew P Brown, and Jolanda Logan (pictured) will take the stage. Tickets are $25. Learn more here.
The Machine at The Music Hall
Internationally touring New York-based tribute act The Machine will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Pink Floyd’s iconic studio album “Wish You Were Here,” released in 1975, with a special live performance at The Music Hall in Portsmouth on Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $38-$55. Learn more here.
See the full calendar for more local events.