Scaring Up a Little Cash

You've been planning your Halloween costume since Memorial Day, buying bits on eBay, picking up accessories at Target, finding the perfect finishing touch at Backstage on Barracks Row. Sure, you could show it off at a house party or down at your local bar on the 28th, earning plaudits from your friends, but shouldn't you be rewarded for all your hard work? Isn't your costume worth, say, a trip to Iceland or a $500 bar tab?

A number of bars and nightclubs are hosting costume contests on Halloween weekend -- check out our growing list of events here -- but some really stand out for the size of the prize. Here are the top five so far, and we'll be updating this list as we get closer to Halloween.

1. The Haunted Graveyard Jam -- A weekend trip to Iceland is the grand prize at the Hard Rock Cafe, and awards will also be given in categories like "prettiest" and "most original."

2. Georgetown Events Halloween -- The winner of the costume contest at the Galleria takes home a $500 Smith Point bar tab and makes a whole lot of new friends at the preppy Georgetown hangout.

3. Fright Night -- The Front Page's Halloween party is so big that it's spilling out of the Ballston bar and into the neighboring National Science Foundation. Forget the cover bands and DJ -- the real attraction here is a $300 grand prize.

4. Halloween Monster Bash -- If you don't win $200 cash for the best overall, two runners-up receive $100 and $50, and the "most original" outfit gets another $50.

5. Buzzlife Halloween Events -- Homeless since Nation closed, the founders of Cubik are taking over the Woolly Mammoth Theatre for two nights of electronic music and dancing. On both Friday (with UK DJs Hybrid) and Saturday (featuring Scott Henry, John Tab and DB), the Buzzlife crew is giving out $1,000 in cash prizes in various categories. If you don't win the first night, try, try again.

-- Fritz