halloween in taiwan, while not unheard of, is not automatic. kids might celebrate at their after-school cram school, or learn some holiday-specific vocabulary at regular school. adults might wonder how ghosts can be cause for celebration, when taiwanese "ghost day" is a time to steer clear of the ghosts who are released from hell for a breath of fresh air. halloween in taiwan is an english teacher's fantasy holiday: it comes with built-in incentives of fantasy, mock terror, and free candy. so mr. chung and i went for it-- a 3-part, 3-week-long halloween series.
part three and a half: thunderous applause for "the dark and spooky forest" has barely died down when gaoshu's great ghastly costume contest kicks off. grades 1-6 participate, and the criteria are fairly simple: be creative and use recycled or re-purposed materials. there will be 1 winner per grade, 1 grand prize, and a façade of audience participation. there are some truly mind-boggling costumes: hand-knotted wigs made from twine, elaborate collage capes, pipe cleaner internal organs, innumerable metamorphosed trash bags, and my very super top favorite, the newspaper-wrapped mummy boy. and with all of this creativity, the audience always cheers loudest for the kid in the mask. overruled. happy halloween!
photos: meinong jack-o-lantern & mr chung original mask; dark & spooky set; mummy boy; alan bobs with ease; 6th grader's 6th minute bobbing; scenes from the dark & spooky forest ("children did not like to go to the dark and spooky forest"/ "ahh! a mummy!"/ "just then, they saw a witch"/ "it's so scary!"); nature fairies; 2nd grade contestants; grand prize nominees (winners on L and R-- a tie)
Wow! What an awesome celebration! And, terrific writing as always. Way to go for it Eileen Laoshi! The nature fairies are beautiful. And those winners do indeed have awesome costumes. Overruleen!
ReplyDelete