It's an annual rite of passage around here -- dressing up the little ones for a moonlight stroll amid the lions, tigers, and bears. Cleveland and Akron are both celebrating the season with Boos at the Zoos -- and both are more than mere quests for sweets. The Metroparks' outing, which includes jugglers, storytellers, and puppet shows, runs from Friday through October 26 at the zoo (3900 Wildlife Way). Hours are 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Admission is $5; call 216-661-6500. Boo at the Akron Zoo features an enchanted forest and a pumpkin patch. It runs from Friday through October 31 at 500 Edgewood Avenue in Akron. Hours are 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. Admission is $3 and $6; call 330-375-2550. -- Michael Gallucci
Pants-Soiling Fun
10/17-10/31
Hit the switch, and the electric chair fires up, forcing blood-curdling screams from the man strapped into it. "It scares the crap out of people," explains Marge Brown, co-creator of the Haunted Forest of Carousel. The scares continue with human heads popping out of the dirt. "One yells, There's a madman! He cut off my head! Somebody help me!'" Brown says with delight. "People just wet their pants." Join in the fun, from dusk to midnight Friday and Saturday and dusk to 10 p.m. Sunday, through October 31 at the Carousel Swim & Recreation Club, 1451 Lake Breeze Road in Sheffield Village. Admission is $5 to $9; call 440-934-5700. -- Cris Glaser
Money in the Bank
Free art classes make for sound investments.
10/20-11/24
Junior Picassos aren't just painting at Art House's Studio 53; they're learning how to become young Rockefellers. Over six weeks, the free art classes teach kids age 7 to 13 how to work with ceramics and mosaics, make musical instruments, and design papier-mâché piggy banks. "They say, 'I can't do this,' and I say, 'Yes, you can.'" says Sheryl Hoffman, Art House director. The piggy-bank theme is no coincidence: The class doubles as a pitch for Fifth Third Bank's KidSaver program. "If they develop good savings habits today, they're going to be financially sound and secure as adults," says Fifth Third's E. Sue Milligan. Studio 53 runs 4 to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through November 24 at Art House, 3119 Denison Avenue; call 216-398-8556. -- Cris Glaser
