Pittsburgh’s first ever outdoor Zombie Fest will set the stage for the fourth annual Walk of the Dead on October 11. The event will take place at the Monroeville Mall, where director George Romero filmed the original Dawn of the Dead in 1977. The festivities are part of World Zombie Day, a charity event designed to generate donations for food bank charities and raise awareness of world hunger.
Zombie Fest will begin at 2 PM in the upper level parking lot near the mall annex and includes:
- Live bands and entertainment
- Celebrity appearances
- Zombie Olympics
- Brain eating contest
- Ugly pageant
From 2 PM to 6 PM, zombies may register for the Guinness World Record attempt. Pittsburgh set the initial record for World’s Largest Zombie Walk and has successfully defended that record for three consecutive years. Registration is free and open to all ages; zombies are asked to bring non-perishable food donations to benefit the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Last year’s walk brought in more than one ton of food donations.
The Walk of the Dead will begin at 6 PM, when walkers enter the mall and begin reenacting scenes from their favorite zombie films. Professor Emcee Square (aka Mark Menold), host of Pittsburgh’s The It’s Alive Show, will lead the crowd to their destination, where the official photo will be taken to submit to Guinness
Following the walk, all zombies age 21 and over are invited to the Zombie Ball at Houlihan’s inside the mall. The undead party will feature a DJ and drink specials with no cover charge.
Actor Ken Foree, who starred as Peter Washington in the original Dawn film, will be on hand to meet and greet zombies and take part in the walk. Mr. Foree serves as Zombie Ambassador for World Zombie Day, assisting with promotion of the charitable event.
For more information: Pittsburgh’s Zombie Fest
For information on World Zombie Day: World Zombie Day
