Press

ALBANY – The New York State Museum’s 9h annual “Haunted Museum of Unnatural History” will feature a tribute to characters and ghouls from Hollywood and storybook legends.

The “Haunted Museum” will be open October 23 and 24 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and October 30 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., reopening from 6 to 10 p.m. On Halloween, October 31 visitors are welcome between 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The event will be located in the Student Center on the Museum’s first floor.

The “Monster Mash & Bash” will provide light-hearted fun for younger children, ages 10 and under. Children and their families are invited to come in costume to the Museum’s fourth floor Terrace Gallery on October 23, 24, 30 and 31, from noon to 4 p.m. for face-painting, Halloween crafts and goofy games. A costume parade around the Museum will be held at 1 p.m.

Brave souls who enter the “Haunted Museum” will weave their way through a dark maze and encounter the unknown (and undead) around every corner. Monsters, real and imagined, will appear and disappear when least expected. A heart-pounding soundtrack and light show will amplify the anticipation. Frankenstein’s monster, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and a host of werewolves, zombies and mummies will make an appearance. Visitors will encounter the Tomb of the Undead, Zombie Place, the Wolf’s Den, Blood Castle and Clown Town.

The “Haunted Museum” is too intense for children under 10 and is designed especially for teens, college students and adults who love to be scared. Visitors are asked not to wear costumes for safety reasons.

Proceeds from both events will benefit the Museum’s award-winning after-school programs for Albany city youth. Admission to the “Haunted Museum” is $8. “Monster Mash” admission is $2. Museum Club and Discovery Squad teens work with a Museum educator throughout the fall to design, build and decorate the Haunted Museum. Local high school and college students, artists, musicians, carpenters and actors all contribute their time and talent.

The New York State Museum is a program of the New York State Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education. Founded in 1836, the museum has the longest continuouslyoperating state natural history research and collection survey in the U.S. Located on Madison Avenue in Albany, the Museum is open daily from 9:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. Further information can be obtained by calling (518)

474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.

# # #