Scariest show in town as Macnas pulls out the stops for ghoul parade

This year’s Macnas Halloween parade surpassed all expectations for the 30,000 spectators who braved gale force winds to witness a ghoulishly terrifying gathering of other world creatures.

The 16-foot giant Crum, powered by a team of ten, was said to be on a journey in search of beings to sacrifice in order to satisfy his enormous blood lust.

But in fact Crum appeared to be among the most benevolent of the characters in Symphony for the Restless, which took over the streets of the city on Sunday evening as darkness fell.

Far more horrifying for the little ones  – and adults of a nervous disposition – were the ghouls with terrible eyes who seemed to almost reach into your soul as they stared through you. Gollum from Lord of the Rings did not have a patch on the hideousness of these nasties.

Buoyed by a local brass jazz ensemble, the 2014 Macnas offering was nothing short of spectacular.

Several families were so impressed they hot-footed it around the town to catch the parade for a second time.

Once again we were treated to a succession of gigantic animals – there was a bum-shaking elephant, a giant winged Pegasus, a Troy-style horse and an evil-looking goat. An enormous sun somewhat lightened the dark sky.

The 300 volunteers who donned fabulous constumes and makeup engaged in some serious interaction with the crowd, pulling some of them out for the odd dance while other spectators were treated to some creepy embraces.

It was the second year that the company has staged a parade to celebrate Samhain – said to be the yearly point in time where the two worlds meet. They asked the public for donations to fund the spectacle following a row with the Galway Arts Festival over funding to stage the parade during the summer of 2013.

This year’s offering was getting a second outing immediately, taking top billing in Dublin for the Bram Stoker Festival on Bank Holiday Monday.

Perhaps the second performance fee (and a grant from Galway City Council) enabled artistic director Noeline Kavanagh to go all out this year. There was no expense spared for this production. It managed to go up a notch on last year. It was quite simply the artistic highlight of the year for street theatre in Galway.