Hampshire Halloween 2012- A Huge Success
Friday, October 26th, 2012, was Hampshire Halloween, Hampshire College’s biggest party of the year. Hampshire Halloween, also known as Trip or Treat was once profiled in a 1995 issue of Rolling Stone magazine as a “Must-See Party.” The event was depicted as a night filled with psychedelic drugs, music, dancing, and debauchery.
Image from Google image search (Hampshire Halloween 2012)
This year, the campus closed at 5pm, festivities kicked off at 6pm and the music didn’t stop until 1am. There were two music tents, one behind the library designated for bands and the other in front for DJ’s. The artist lineup was as follows:
6-645: Huckleberry Binge
7-745: Swift Taylor
DJ&HIPHOP TENT// LIBRARY LAWN:
6-645: DJ ConArtist
7-745: Ralph Martinez
8-845: DJ Ness—
9-945: Ducky
10-11: Big Dipper
11-12: DJ Mother Goose
12-1: DJ Dre
At 8pm there was a a firework display that could be heard all the way in down town Amherst. There were hayrides at 8:30 and finally breakfast was served at the dining commons, SAGA, at 12:30am.
The tents were filled with hundreds of people jumping, dancing, and singing along to the music. The Night Truck, a truck that cooks and serves delicious fried food in the wee hours of the night was open and was a hit among the hungry party-goers. The only serious complaints I heard all night were about the lack of drinking water available near the tents and that some of the DJ’s were repeating their songs, two things that will hopefully be fixed next year. However, overall, the night was fun and full of positive energy.
The cost of Hampshire Halloween 2012 totaled $52,135, the equivalent of a student’s tuition.The largest sums of the money were spent on police ($8000) and music ($8000). The event is funded by ticket sales and Hampshire student’s activities fees. The day of Hampshire Halloween, Hampshire students receive one wrist band in their campus mail box that allows them access to the event. Hampshire students are allowed to invite three guests who must pay $20 to get in. Five College students have the chance to purchase tickets from October 16th-24th. 150 tickets are distributed to each college.
I asked a group of UMass, Mount Holyoke, and Hampshire students what their favorite part of Hampshire Halloween was. Their replies were,
“The dancing was great.” and “I liked the leniency of the law enforcement…They were really there to protect you, not get you busted.”