Chicago is about to prove once again that Halloween belongs to the artists. The 12th annual Arts in the Dark parade takes over downtown on Saturday, October 24, 2026, from 6 to 8 p.m., turning Columbus Drive into a glowing river of music, color, and imagination.
The bewitching nighttime procession steps off at Balbo Drive and marches north through Jackson Boulevard, drawing more than 100,000 spectators each year. Entry is completely free and open to all ages — just arrive a little early to claim a good viewing spot along the route.
Presented by local nonprofit LUMA8 and the Mayor’s Office, in partnership with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the parade showcases the full spectrum of the city’s creative scene: dance, theatre, fashion, hip-hop, jazz and mariachi, plus circus arts, puppeteers, larger-than-life puppets and floats, and costumes you have to see to believe.
And the fun doesn’t stop there. The team behind Arts in the Dark keeps the celebration going with the seventh annual Upside Down Halloween Parade on Saturday, October 31, from noon to 2 p.m. in Washington Park along Russell Drive. In this free, all-ages event, families don their costumes and become the parade themselves, marching past dance teams, musicians, acrobats and sports mascots — with a complimentary bag of goodies for the kids at the finish.
Since 2014, Arts in the Dark has celebrated Halloween as an artist’s holiday, uniting up-and-coming artists, youth programs and leading cultural institutions around a simple idea: creativity bridges every background and identity. Happy City News can’t wait to see the city glow.
Photo: Choose Chicago
