Over Halloween weekend, Andover held a series of celebrations, including the annual Abbotween on Friday. Along with Abbotween, the school had pumpkin-carving activities and the Halloween dance. Abbotween, which includes trick-or-treating, was split up into two sections: the Fall Fest and the haunted house.
Taking place on a Friday after a long week, the event allowed students to de-stress and let loose. Cyrus Law ’27 expressed his excitement about using the occasion to meet with friends and have fun after a busy week.
“I had a pretty busy week, so I was really stressed and had little time to hang out with my friends. So Abbotween was just a nice way to end the week and finally relax. I also didn’t get to go last year, so I was excited to attend this year,” said Law.
Another highlight of the Abbotween event was the student-run haunted house at Alice Whitney House, entering through the basement. With ominous red lighting and various ornaments, students praised the haunted environment it created. Simba Xiong ’28 spoke about his appreciation for the extensive decoration.
“I really enjoy the aesthetics of the haunted house. I think the ancient old basement seemed like a really good place to set the escape room. It was really dusty with a lot of cobwebs. Also, the designers made [the haunted house] realistic by decorating it with even more cobwebs and placing scary candles,” said Xiong.
Despite being held in a basement, the haunted house utilized its space efficiently, creating an immersive experience. With students set up to scare attendees with props, Xiong also commented on the scare factor, enjoying how his friends, who helped out with the jumpscares, became an interactive part of the event.
“They brought us to this dark little [room] where there was this NPC with a huge shovel waiting for us, so I really liked that. I waited 40 minutes in the [haunted house] line, and I thought it would be very small because it was just the basement of a dorm. But, when I came in, everything was decorated really well, and I think the best part was seeing my friend being part of the [cast], so I want to shout out to Vedant [Bejaj ’28] for being an NPC; we were actually scared by him. He actually [jumped scared us], and it was one of the best experiences ever,” said Xiong.
Another highlight of the night was the chance to wear costumes. Although many students also dress up on Halloween day, Abbotween gave attendees the chance to fully immerse in the Halloween experience by dressing up, going trick-or-treating, and attending the haunted house. Law described the costumes that he saw as well as the creativity and effort that went into certain ones.
“I didn’t dress up or anything, but I saw a lot of people that did. There were a lot of people dressed up in things that I don’t really know what to call, but one I did recognize was a Joker costume. But I think the best costume was this really creative mummy one. It was made with lots of ripped up sheets of cloth instead of it being store-bought, so you could tell how much effort went into it,” said Law.
In contrast with the other events occurring on Halloween weekend, Abbotween’s haunted house provided an opportunity for students to create an unforgettable Halloween memory at Andover, filled with screams and laughter from friends. In contrast to the trick-or-treating and the Haunted House, the Fall Fest portion of the event hosted at Stowe House offered a cozy lounge area to relax around a bonfire after a night of thrills.
