It’s October 31st at The Forum in Los Angeles, one of the state’s most famous concert venues, and as fans gather outside in their array of Halloween costumes, the excitement for the start of Harryween begins to heighten.
Harryween, which originated in 2021, is the Halloween event created by singer Harry Styles, in which he puts a twist on his typical concert set by turning it into a fancy dress party with an altered setlist depending on his chosen theme.
Last year, Styles turned this extravaganza into a two-day event, dressing up as Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz on night one on October, 30 where he covered none other than ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’, and a Pierrot-inspired clown on October, 31 where he covered ‘Toxic’ by Britney Spears.
The anticipation for this year’s Harryween was therefore incredibly high, with the event falling in the middle of Styles’ 15-date residency that was already taking place at The Forum.
Fans were able to showcase their incredible Halloween costumes, which ranged from more traditional choices such as clowns, fairies and princesses to many deciding to recreate some of Harry’s previously worn outfits, including from his X Factor audition to his ‘Fine Line’ and ‘Harry’s House’ album covers.
Furthermore, carnival-themed activities such as a ferris wheel and tarot card readings were also set up outside of the arena for fans to enjoy. Wristbands which read ‘Did you dress up for Halloween?’, a lyric taken from Styles’ song ‘Little Freak’, were also given out to those with general admission tickets.
As the lights dimmed, the anticipation within the crowd grew as they wondered which theme Harry and his band had chosen this year. However, as the song ‘You’re the One That I Want’ by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John started to fill the arena, their decision became very clear.
Harry graced the stage in an edgy tank top, skinny jeans, black leather jacket with ‘Harryween’ written across the back in glittery red writing and a jet-black hairstyle which imitated that of Grease rebel Danny Zuko.
The members of Styles’ band were also dressed as other members of the Grease cast, with his guitarists wearing Pink Lady inspired jackets and drummer Sarah Jones appearing as the night’s Sandy.
Styles’ general set was similar to the one that he had been performing on his ongoing ‘Love on Tour’ residencies, which has included the locations of New York, Toronto, Austin and Los Angeles, although every so often he would play into the Grease getup.
Most notably, this included performing the hand jive during his hit single ‘Adore You’.
The set was an even blend of tracks from his latest chart-topping album ‘Harry’s House’ and second album ‘Fine Line’, with the additional ode to his One Direction roots with his version of ‘What Makes You Beautiful”.
Later in the show, Styles paid tribute to the late Olivia Newton-John, who passed earlier this year, with a captivating cover of her showcase ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’, with a photo slideshow of the actress and singer on the screen.
Harryween ended with Styles performing his history-making single ‘As It Was’, which he dedicated to co-writers Kid Harpoon and Tyler Johnson who appeared side-stage dressed as a twin from “The Shining” and Beetlejuice: “I would not be able to make this music without these two men right here. I will remember the day we wrote this song for the rest of my life.”