This Halloween in Lincoln, a spine-tingling musical performance joins the city’s festive traditions. Rooted in Irish immigrant heritage, Lincoln’s Halloween echoes ancient Celtic beliefs in blurring the line between the living and the dead. Now, Candlelight Halloween concerts honor this legacy, weaving haunting film music into the city’s supernatural celebrations.
Candlelight: Halloween Classics
Halloween’s most chilling soundtracks work by seducing listeners into embracing darkness with open arms, transforming fear into fascination through musical mastery. Dmitri Shostakovich’s “String Quartet No. 8” brings genuine classical horror through raw, unsettling textures, Danny Elfman’s “Beetlejuice” theme captures supernatural mischief with its manic orchestral swirls, and Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Danse Macabre” invites audiences to dance with death through its fiddle-playing skeleton’s midnight waltz.
The string quartet format unveils the intricate structure and elegance hidden beneath these compositions’ eerie exteriors. Four musicians create layers of sound that build and release tension with precision, using techniques like pizzicato for sudden shocks and sliding scales for creeping dread. The acoustic intimacy means every musical gesture resonates directly with listeners, while Candlelight’s atmospheric presentation completes this perfect storm of beautiful, terrifying music where familiar melodies become personal encounters with the supernatural.
Candlelight Halloween at The Rococo Theatre
The Rococo Theatre’s lavish decor is transformed by the soft glow of thousands of candles, creating an enchanting yet subtly eerie setting perfect for Halloween. With a 60-minute concert and doors opening 30–45 minutes beforehand, audiences are given time to soak in the immersive candlelit ambiance before the music begins.
As the quartet plays “Funeral March of a Marionette” by Charles Gounod, “In the Hall of the Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg, and “Der Erlkönig” by Franz Schubert, the interplay of shadow and sound conjures a sense of mysterious delight. Plan early to avoid missing one of Lincoln’s most spellbinding Halloween events. Remember, the best spooky experiences always sell out, so secure your tickets in advance to avoid a not-so-spooky Halloween this year!