Longway Planetarium offering ‘Ooky Spooky’ fun for Flint families

Flint, MI – Families looking for spooky fun can attend a Flint-made Halloween light show at Longway Planetarium throughout the month of October, part of the planetarium’s annual seasonal offerings.

Set to ten classic Halloween songs like “The Monster Mash” and “This Is Halloween,” the Ooky Spooky Light Show features graphics and lighting effects created in-house at Longway Planetarium by Brian Wolff and Buddy Stark.

Cathy Gentry, a spokesperson for Longway Planetarium, said that the process of creating a full-dome light show can take more than 2,000 working hours.

Offering seasonal programming helps the planetarium to form deeper connections with the community, Gentry said.

“Often when people attend seasonal programming like this, they learn just by being at the planetarium about other programming that may be happening. Even waiting for the show, hearing the sounds of a rocket taking off or the ambient sounds of traveling in space in the queue for the next show can pique the interest of guests to return for the more science based shows we offer,” Gentry said.

Ooky Spooky Light Show is showing through Oct. 31, at 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday with additional showtimes at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

Tickets are $7 for adults or $5 for seniors and children. Genesee County residents enjoy a discount as a result of the Genesee County Arts Education and Cultural Enrichment Millage, bringing the cost of tickets down to $3.50 for adults or $2.50 for seniors and children.

A sensory friendly showing of the light show, with house lights on and the volume turned down, will be offered on Oct. 9 at 11 am. 

Families can also attend the Halloween Hootenany dance at Longway Planetarium on Oct. 16 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., which includes a showing of the Ooky Spooky Light Show. Costumes at the party are welcome but not required. Tickets are $8 for adults or $6 for children aged 2-11.

Kids at least 8 years old may enjoy taking the planetarium’s Eerie Experiments class on Oct. 22 and Oct. 29 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., where they will “make a jittering, flittering bat, mix ingredients to make a fizzing potion, and make instant worms.” Tickets are $12 per person or $40 for four people and include pizza, drinks and admission to the Ooky Spooky Light Show.

Younger audiences can also participate in the Spooky Science class on Oct. 23 and Oct. 30 from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Attendees will “create our own magical fizzing potion, squish our fingers into ghost brains, and much more.” Tickets are $8 per person or $24 for four people.

For five nights the week of Halloween, the planetarium’s blacklight hallway will be converted into a family friendly haunted house. The 10-minute walkthrough experience costs $3 per person and will run Oct. 27 through Oct. 31.