Just hours before Ohio University students swarm the streets of Athens for the annual Halloween Block Party, a different group will march down Court Street in its own kind of costumes.
Bolstering giant puppets made from recycled materials, members of the Athens community will participate in the Honey for the Heart parade on Saturday, less than two hours before the first band will take the stage for the block party.
Honey for the Heart, the invention of artist in residence Patty Mitchell, had a trial run last year, but this is the first fully prepared year for the event.
Mitchell has lived in Athens since 1983 and said she loves the town and the Halloween celebration, but she was always looking for something to add to it. Then, she met Daniel Polnau, a 30-year puppeteer, during a residency in Minnesota and found the idea—giant puppets.
For three weeks and almost 12 hours a day, students, faculty, Athens community members and children gathered in Central Venue to create giant paper mache puppet heads, decorated with all recycled and donated materials.
One find that is unique to OU is the recycling of old Marching 110 uniforms that Mitchell said she was able to grab from the OU recycling center. The uniforms, which participants in the parade will wear, are now adorned with eclectic designs featuring random bits of fabric and gems.
Rosemarie Basile, assistant director in the School of Art and Design, said one of her favorite parts about the project is that it brought the diverse communities of Athens together.
“It’s a cornucopia of Athens community members working on this project,” she said. “There’s a woman in her 80s sitting next to a college student who’s sitting next to a 5-year-old. That’s Athens. Right there.”
With more time to prepare and plan, Honey for the Heart was able to receive funding from the Learning Community Programs and Arts for Ohio.
Wendy Merb-Brown, the director of LC Programs, said that when she was approached to get her students involved, she said “absolutely.”
“It’s an opportunity for them to step outside of the class environment and be creative,” she said. “This year, we have 30 of our LC groups participating.”
Providing a chance to be creative is something Mitchell said she’s seen been embraced so enthusiastically.
“We don’t often have this opportunity (to be creative) and when it’s presented, it’s amazing how people embrace it. It’s like they’ve been waiting for it,” Mitchell said.
A larger goal Basile and Mitchell have for the project is for it to put a positive spin on Athens Halloween and have the ability to expand the storytelling of Athens during Halloween.
“It used to be that when you go down Court Street early, there were giant costumes and families with their kids,” Basile said. “In the last decade, that hasn’t happened. It just turns into what Court Street turns into Halloween night. … The community and OU worked together to create this. We made something positive about the Halloween celebration.”
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If you go:
What: Honey for the Heart parade
When: 6 p.m. Saturday; meet at Central Venue at 4:30 p.m. if you are marching in the parade
Where: Court Street
Admission: Free
