Despite rain, Zombie Fest returns to Milton

After three years away, Milton Theatre’s Zombie Fest officially made its homecoming back to Milton Oct. 16.

Alas, rainy weather forced many of the festival’s events to move indoors and necessitated cancellation of the Zombie Walk. When it became apparent by Oct. 15 that rain was in the forecast, events were split between Milton fire hall and Milton Theatre’s main stage, with planned Quayside Stage performances moved indoors.

Inside the fire hall, the focus was on the kids, as half the hall was dedicated to kid-friendly performances and activities, including games and pumpkin decorating. The Zombie Pirate show given by the scurvy dogs at Pirates Plunder was a hit with the youngsters. Entertainment was provided by DJ Jamie Fox, and young performers from the Milton Theatre Ensemble and Triple Threat. 

In the theater itself, activities were more adult-oriented, with performances by Lower Case Blues, Spokey Speaky, Bastion’s Wake and The Launch. Theater officials had planned to have the Zombie Walk rain or shine, but as the weather worsened over the evening, an announcement was made 30 minutes prior that the walk would not be happening. 

The festival was well attended, despite the rainy weather. Theatre Director Fred Munzert said the festival drew 1,300 advance ticket sales, and both the theater and the fire hall were crawling with people. And zombies, too; don’t forget the zombies. 

This was the first Zombie Fest held in downtown Milton since 2018. The festival was moved to Dewey Beach in 2019 after a dispute with town officials, and it was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.