Halloween has arrived a week early, with free food, entertainment and a magical bouncer to entertain all comers.
Duke’s annual Devil’s Eve carnival will take place on the Main West Quadrangle tonight, with parents and students alike encouraged to come. The main features of the carnival will be a variety show with performances by several student groups, an abundance of exotic foods and carnival rides and games.
“It’s completely free,” said junior Brenna Benson, Campus Council chair for Devil’s Eve. “We want people to come and enjoy themselves.... We basically want people to have a great time.”
Organizers are hoping the variety show, which starts at 7 p.m., will draw a big crowd with its featured performances. “The idea is to make this a student-run, student produced-event,” Benson said. A capella ensembles Speak of the Devil and Out of the Blue will perform, along with dance groups Sabrosura, Dance Black and On Tap and comedy troupe Inside Joke.
Devil’s Eve will also feature a wide variety of mouth-watering carnival foods brought to Duke by off-campus vendors. Some of the treats revelers can expect will be fried oreos, funnel cakes, ice cream, fried apple rings, Pauly Dogs and of course, beer on points.
In addition to food and performances, carnival rides like a Velcro wall, a bungee trampoline, and a bungee run will be available for all on the Main Quad starting at 8 p.m.
A student caricature artist and a magician, whom many students may know as the bouncer at Charlie’s, a popular off-campus bar, will be roaming the quad providing entertainment free of charge. President Richard Brodhead, who attained fame at Yale University for playing the video game Dance, Dance, Revolution in a student’s room, has promised to repeat the feat at Devil’s Eve, Benson said.
Carnival organizers have high hopes that this year’s event will be better attended than last year’s, which was a bit of a disappointment. To increase attendance, organizers rescheduled the event to a week before Halloween in order not to conflict with other Halloween events, such as the annual Franklin Street party in Chapel Hill. Also, the event is set to take place on Parents’ Weekend, which organizers hope will increase attendance as well. Officials said it is an event for parents and students alike, unlike most campus parties.
The decision to allow off-campus vendors to set-up shop at Devil’s Eve came because Dining Services is already stretched thin and could not provide the resources. With the football and basketball games also taking place this weekend, off-campus vendors are going to be allowed in order to ensure that all the events are properly catered.
This year, Campus Council also decided to concentrate all the events on the Main Quad. Last year, Benson said, many of the rides and games were used sparingly because they were too spread out. The hope is that the whole carnival will seem more concentrated, personal and fun, she added.
Advertising has also been a priority this year. Campus Council has been selling T-shirts at the Marketplace and the Bryan Center walkway, fliered the campus, painted the Campus Council bench in front of House P, painted the bridge spanning Campus Drive and has a banner hanging in Alpine Atrium.
Despite the fliering, many students are not yet aware or excited about the event.
“I think I’ll probably stop by,” sophomore Anne Marie Ozioli said, echoing one common response among students who had heard of the event. Freshmen seemed to be the most knowledgeable about the carnival, although it’s an annual event.
“I’ve heard of it, but I don’t really know what it’s about yet,” freshman Sean McGuire said. As the event approaches, however, word has spread and advertising is picking up, Benson noted.
“We will be shamelessly advertising for this event all day Friday,” she said. For those not convinced by the costumes and sandwich boards, she added, perhaps the set-up will pique some interests.
East Campus Council Representative Brint Markle has high hopes for the event. “More and more people are starting to talk about it and become aware of it,” he said.
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