A Washington Halloween: It’s all politics in Dork City
|
Version 0 of 1. It’s arrived once again. Halloween in Washington. Which means that it’s time to unmask our shadow selves, our inner animals, our not-so-alter-egos. In other words, come on out, you Hanging Chads and Swing States and pants-suited Hillarys. Go ahead, Miami, slut it up. New York, you can take care of the goth and the glamour. Seattle, we’ll leave the spooky to you. This is D.C. — Dork City. And while the rest of the country is letting its freak flag fly, we’ll be proudly waving our banner of wonkiness. Forget Sonny and Cher. We want Sunny and Bo. On leashes. Being trailed by a Secret Service agent. Don’t waste that orange makeup on an Oompa Loompa. We need it for John Boehner in his golfing gear. And Monica? Is that you? Again? Oh, okay, but only because you’ve miraculously reappeared in our news feeds. In Washington — at least within a certain segment of Official Washington — Halloween is not just about donning a fun disguise. It’s about making a statement. And the statement is this: I am smart. See? See how smart I am? “The whole smart thing is the biggest thing,” says Philippa Hughes, an artist and writer who has lived in Washington for 13 years. “Because that’s the biggest compliment you can give in this town,” where the costumes “are usually these nerdy, politically themed costumes.” Hence there were a zillion Sarah Palins in 2008. And more than a few Clint Eastwoods and his empty chair in 2012. Last year we got some Government Furloughs — people wearing fur on their lower half. Hughes remembers a lot of people who dressed up with tea bags to represent the tea party a few years ago. And before that there was at least one guy who wore a square white tile around his head, decorated with a bunch of numbers. He was the Debt Ceiling, obviously. This year Hughes is thinking about going as ISIS. But, you know, Queen Isis of ancient Egypt. Get it? “It’s a lot of pressure,” admits Cathryn Poff, a communications consultant who has lived in Washington for eight years. “Because the costumes are so clever. And it’s a very sharp crowd. They’re on top of everything in the news and everything happening. So a lot of the costumes are plays on current events.” After the presidential debates in 2012, Poff dressed up as a Binder Full of Women, a reference to Mitt Romney’s gaffe. During the financial crisis, she spent Halloween night as a Toxic Asset. Washington event planner Andre Wells throws a huge Halloween bash every year. In recent years, No Child Left Behind showed up at one party. Carlos Danger, the sexting alias chosen by former congressman Anthony Weiner, came to another. “I don’t see sexy,” says Wells. “I see fun, kind of nerdy. If it’s going to be risqué, it’s going to be risqué on content. They push the envelope that way. One year it was Arnold Schwarzenegger and the maid. She was pregnant in her maid costume.” “You can kind of look at the news cycle and predict who is going to show up,” says Pat Kehs, a longtime Washingtonian who works in television production. Two years ago, he dressed up as The One Percent Riding Mitt Romney Into the White House. It was complicated, but worth the punch line. “To me that’s really what it is — just having fun with what’s current and happening and making people guess a little bit,” he says. The Romney/One Percent costume “took a little thought, but people have that ‘Aha!’ moment when they see it.” Controversial issues always work. So do colorful political figures. And obscure is good — just not too obscure. “No one cares if you’re [D.C. Councilman] Jim Graham — with a bow tie. No one cares. That’s just incredibly lazy,” says Brandon Wetherbee, managing editor of Brightest Young Things, an online magazine that tracks D.C. nightlife and happenings. This year, Wetherbee expects to see some D.C. mayoral candidates, which he chalks up to the fact that people are pressed for time and happen to already be wearing a suit. “I don’t like those. That bothers me.” But this is a hard year for of-the-moment costumes. There’s no presidential election, no singular political issue at hand. And the major news stories of the day — Middle East unrest and Ebola — are far from funny. (Not that you won’t see some Sexy Ebola Nurses around. You probably will, unfortunately.) “It’s really too soon to poke fun at those, though we might see some biohazard suits,” says Sophie Pyle, who covers the D.C. social scene online. “It seems like the last couple of years have been a little easier.” Pyle predicts that we’ll see some Injured RGIIIs — again. And maybe some Miley Cyrus As Sexy Michele Bachmanns, also a retread from last year. Wendy Davis in Pink Sneakers could pop up around town. And there’ll more than likely be a few Secret Service Agents With Prostitutes. Perhaps some Fence Jumpers and White House Bullet Holes? In Columbia Heights, the punk rock dance band Tia Nina will be hosting a Feminist Halloween Party. (And would that happen anywhere else? We think not.) They’re expecting some guests dressed as President Hillary and some as activists from the Men’s Rights Movement. They’ve been getting some questions about what one should wear to a feminist Halloween party. “Things that don’t necessarily take society for granted,” says band member Leah Curran Moon, “but can critique it with a wink and a nod.” Mostly she’s telling guests “not to over think it.” But she knows that won’t really be possible. This is Halloween in Washington, after all. So go ahead — on this of all nights — keep it dorky, D.C. |