Hundreds of costumed riders will roll out of Delray Beach City Hall at 8 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, for the 15th Annual Witches of Delray Ride, the opening act of a full day of Halloween events in downtown Delray Beach. The same weekend, the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens screens Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood from an archival 16mm print, free. Here is what is happening in Delray Beach from Monday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Oct. 25.

The Witches of Delray Ride Turns 15

The Witches of Delray Ride is a police-escorted bike parade of riders dressed as witches, and Saturday's ride is the 15th edition. Riders gather at Delray Beach City Hall, 100 NW 1st Ave., set off at 8 a.m., loop through downtown and finish at Old School Square by 11 a.m., where awards and entertainment follow. The ride raises money for the Achievement Centers for Children and Families and its programs for local children and families.

Riders register in advance through the Achievement Centers' event page, where entry starts at $100 and sponsorship levels run up to $5,000. Watching from the sidewalk is free.

Trick-or-Treating, a Parade and Kidsfest on Saturday

The Downtown Development Authority has stacked the rest of Saturday, Oct. 24, behind the ride, and all of it is free. Trick-or-treating with participating merchants runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. along Atlantic Avenue. At 1 p.m., the Halloween Parade steps off from Federal Highway and heads west to Old School Square. Families in costume are the parade.

The parade ends at Halloween Kidsfest, which the City of Delray Beach Parks and Recreation Department hosts on the Old School Square campus, 51 N. Swinton Ave., from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Expect food, vendors, arts and crafts and entertainment.

Kurosawa's Throne of Blood on Archival 16mm at Morikami

On Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m., the Morikami Theater shows Throne of Blood, Kurosawa's 1957 retelling of Macbeth set in feudal Japan, with Toshiro Mifune as the warrior Washizu. The print comes from the 16mm film collection of the Miami-Dade Public Library System's Division of Special Collections and Archives. Katharine Labuda, the special collections librarian who manages that 16mm collection, introduces the film.

Admission is free, but seats must be reserved in advance on the Morikami website. Doors open at 6 p.m., seating is first come, first served, and unclaimed reservations are released 15 minutes after showtime. The film runs 105 minutes in Japanese with English subtitles.

Kiki's Delivery Service and Spooky Paper Art for Families

Morikami keeps the Halloween theme going on Saturday, Oct. 24, with Hayao Miyazaki's 1989 Studio Ghibli film Kiki's Delivery Service. The film plays twice: an English-dubbed screening at 11 a.m. and a Japanese-language screening with English subtitles at 2 p.m. Tickets are $5 on top of museum admission.

From noon to 3 p.m. the same day, the museum's Family Fun Day in the Kamiya Room teaches chigiri-e, a Japanese art form that builds pictures from torn colored paper, with a spooky Halloween theme. It is free with paid admission, and no reservation is needed. Museum admission is $18 for adults, $16 for seniors and military, $14 for college students with ID, $12 for children 6 to 17, and free for children 5 and under and for members.

Sounds of The Set on Thursday

On Thursday, Oct. 22, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Sounds of The Set brings live music and local vendors to the West Atlantic Avenue neighborhood known as The Set. The evening runs from Libby Wesley Plaza, 2 SW 5th Ave., to The Hive, 34 SW 5th Ave., with the J Sharp Band performing and small businesses from Blackmer's Market selling along the way. The Set, The Coalition and the Downtown Development Authority present it, and the DDA listing shows no ticket or fee.

  • Thursday, Oct. 22: Sounds of The Set, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Libby Wesley Plaza, 2 SW 5th Ave.
  • Friday, Oct. 23: Throne of Blood on 16mm, 7 p.m., Morikami Theater, 4000 Morikami Park Road, free with advance reservation
  • Saturday, Oct. 24: Witches of Delray Ride, 8 to 11 a.m., from City Hall, 100 NW 1st Ave. (registration from $100)
  • Saturday, Oct. 24: Trick-or-treating 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Atlantic Avenue, parade at 1 p.m., Kidsfest 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Old School Square, all free
  • Saturday, Oct. 24: Kiki's Delivery Service at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. ($5 plus admission) and Spooky Chigiri-e, noon to 3 p.m., at Morikami

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