Weekend Possibilities | Oktoberfest at Crown Center, Ghost Light and Harvest Days

October arrives this weekend.

Free community events and KC’s largest Oktoberfest, plus a few of the first of spooky celebrations of the season should make this weekend one to remember.

Friday, Oct. 1

5 – 11 p.m. Kansas City’s largest Oktoberfest celebration is coming to Crown Center, 2475 Grand Blvd., this Friday and Saturday. KC Oktoberfest by KC Bier Co. offers a full schedule of events including cultural workshops, lawn games, live music and dance across multiple stages. KC Bier Co. will pour seven of their German-style brews, in addition to a few wine options. General admission tickets are $12. Be sure to check online for VIP and table reservation options. Proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result is required to attend.

6 – 10 p.m. Mattie Rhodes Center’s Día De Los Muertos celebration is a go for Friday night in the Crossroads Arts District, 915 W. 17 St. Returning to in-person events for 2021, the First Fridays installation will feature community altars, an art exhibit, street festival fun, local vendors and more. The celebration is free to attend.

Saturday, Oct. 2

9 a.m. – 8 p.m. It’s the final weekend of Powell Gardens’ Harvest Days, 1609 N.W. U.S. 50. The Kingsville, Missouri, botanical garden is inviting groups to enjoy cozy yurts set up across the grounds, where friends and family can sip on hot cider, a glass of wine, eat smores and chill out as the calendar flips to October. Lawn games, fresh produce and edible plant harvesting, live music and artisan makers will round out the experience. Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for children.

Noon – 8 p.m. Troostapalooza is back. Stop by The Wonder Shops and Flats, 1108 E. 30th St., for music from artists like The Freedom Affair, Black Creatures, DJ Joe and Ice Cole, Deshica Rage and more. The celebration of community along Troost also plans for aerial acrobatics and skateboarding demonstrations, local makers and artists, food trucks, a beer tent and games for all ages. Troostapalooza is free to attend.

4 p.m. If Halloween is your thing, get right into the spirit with Horror at the Drive-In, this weekend from B&B Theatres Twin Drive-In, 291 E. Kentucky Road. The Independence, Missouri, drive-in will screen a double feature of “Night of the Living Dead” and “Return of the Living Dead” back-to-back and set up a creepy swap and shop full of vendors selling the spooky stuff. Tickets are $10 per car and will be available at the gate.

11 a.m. – 6 p.m. The 10th Annual Kansas City Natural Hair & Wellness Expo is happening Saturday afternoon at Hy-Vee Arena, 1800 Gennesee St. Focused on culture and education in the community, the 2021 expo celebrates all things natural hair. There’ll be live demos for styling and products, plus giveaways, entertainment and more. This year’s event will also feature a celebrity basketball fundraiser with former WNBA star Betty Lennox. Tickets to the KC Natural Hair and Wellness Expo are $20.

7 p.m. It’s the opening week of Ghost Light from the Kansas City Repertory Theatre and Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. The “haunted night of songs and stories from KC’s cultural crossroads” will be set up on the Nelson-Atkins Museum lawn, 4525 Oak St., under the stars for 10 shows through the end of the month. Making the creepy deal that much sweeter, local Latinx rockers Enrique Chi and Juan-Carlos Chaurand of Making Movies will join the performances for the full run. Since it gets a little spooky, Ghost Light is recommended for anyone ages eight and up. Tickets are $30.

Sunday, Oct. 3

10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Get a workout in, eat a bunch of chili. That’s the plan for KC Running Club’s Sunday Chili Run. The free run for folks of any fitness level starts with a six-mile run along the Trolley Trail after meeting up at 208 W. 79th St. Runners are encouraged to complete as much of the route as they wish before heading back to the KC Running Club House for a chili cookout and contest. Enter your recipe into the competition and you might just take home a prize.

11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Weston, Missouri, kicks off its 33rd Annual Applefest Celebration with a parade down Main Street on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. But the fun rolls into Sunday. Make the drive to Weston for a full afternoon of fun and games for the entire family, including everything apples, from artisan craft booths to apple dumpling making and feasting. There’s a $10 parking shuttle available at the Weston Historic Orchard and Snow Creek running throughout the weekend. Attending the festival is free.

3 p.m. There is a free KC Youth Symphony Outdoor Pops Concert Sunday afternoon on The Lawn at The Loretto, 1111 W. 39th St. Anyone can attend the symphony’s first in-person concert in more than two years. Youth Symphony performers have plans to play pops classics, including music from John Williams. Just be sure to register online ahead of time and bring your own chair. Masks or face coverings are recommended.