Haunted House Party at Shedd Aquarium

About This Event

Shedd Aquarium's Halloween house-music night is the current, DJ-driven descendant of a nearly accidental 95-year-old institution: John G. Shedd, the Marshall Field's executive whose $2 million-plus gift paid for the place, died in 1926, a year before ground even broke, and never saw it open — his widow, Mary Shedd, cut the ribbon when it finally did, on May 30, 1930.

The after-hours tradition is newer but has its own long run. Jazzin' at the Shedd, the Wednesday-night summer series that let adults wander the exhibits drink in hand, hit its 30th anniversary in 2022 before the aquarium folded the concept into a year-round Shedd After Hours lineup of DJ sets and themed nights, of which this Halloween edition — DJ Gent Hunt and DJ Heather on the decks — is one.

It's 21+, costumes are encouraged but full-face masks and prop weapons aren't (security needs to see faces), and the touch tanks stay open all night — a rare chance to pet a sea star with a drink in your other hand.