Written by Walker Evans & Heidi Matthews
Abandon all hope, ye who enter … the Library?
While the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall may not be quite as terrifying as the gates of Hell in Dante’s Inferno, this October, the Carnegie Carnegie will be invaded by ghosts, vampires, soothsayers and all manner of Halloween haunts.
Our month of terror gets off to a witchy start with a fascinating exploration of cartomancy, a divination technique that uses ordinary playing cards and your intuition to predict the future.
If you’re looking for an engaging party trick for Halloween, look no further — cartomancy is the perfect way to play fortune teller for your friends and family. Join us at 1 p.m. on Oct. 5 to learn a unique skill.
Any building as venerable as ours is bound to have a few ghost sightings over the years. The Carnegie Carnegie is no exception. Perhaps our most popular specter is the “man in the hat” who has appeared in the balcony of our Music Hall since the 1930s.
The Library & Music Hall’s reputation for hauntings has even been investigated by the Sci Fi Channel’s Ghost Hunters, as well as by the Pittsburgh Paranormal Society and TribLive news partner WTAE.
But what exactly does it take to be a paranormal investigator? And what do ghost hunters do when they find something? Find out when we host a crash course on ghost hunting from Whispering Souls Paranormal Investigations at 7 p.m. on Oct. 14.
A few days later, on Oct. 17, join us in our luxurious Music Hall for an unforgettable experience: a special screening of the essential 1922 silent horror film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, with live accompaniment of an original musical score by world-renowned pianist Tom Roberts.
The legendary Nosferatu is an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and was almost lost to history when a court ordered all prints of the film to be destroyed. But like all good movie monsters, you can’t keep Nosferatu dead.
This is a rare opportunity to hear the acclaimed Tom Roberts perform the evocative score he composed for this film’s 100th anniversary in 2022.
Get ready to warm up after the chill that Nosferatu sends down your spine. Dust off your dancing shoes for an evening with the Sweaty Already String Band in the studio.
This event features both traditional and modern bluegrass music along with some unexpected covers. Since it’s Halloween season, spooky murder ballads telling true crime stories of days gone by will surely be part of the set.
Tickets for the 7 p.m. concert on Oct. 24, are available at CarnegieCarnegie.org.
It’s not all bloodsucking terror, though. Our traditional Halloween storytime “Pumpkins and Pajamas” will take place in October. Children ages 3-10 and their families are invited to enjoy a special Halloween storytime. Wear your pajamas, bring a stuffed friend and take home your own mini pumpkin. Be sure to check out our website for details.
And don’t forget that the Library is the perfect place to find all of your favorite horror books and movies — or to discover the newest chilling tales to haunt your nightmares.
Plus, you can find books on costume making, party snacks, nonfiction accounts of the paranormal and more.
We’re pretty sure we don’t have any ancient cursed tomes on hand, but you never know.
Walker Evans is the Library Director and Heidi Matthews is the Music Hall Director at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall.