Photos: Creative costumes at the NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011

From girls in short skirts to men in short skirts– New York City’s Village Halloween Parade has it all! A photographer’s dream, the parade is essentially a massive street party that stretches from Chelsea to the West Village in Manhattan.

Every year the parade attracts thousands of revelers dressed in outrageous Halloween costumes– and 2011 was no exception. During a walk from the East Village to the edge of the parade at 6th Avenue and 8th Street, I ran into scary clowns, skeletons, an old man paddling a life-size boat and countless zombies.

Scroll down for my favorite costumes from the 2011 Village Halloween Parade.

Creative costumes at the Village Halloween Parade

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Demonic crew

Insane friend posse…

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_West 8th Street

Edge of the Village Halloween Parade at 8th Street and 6th Avenue.

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Oscar the Grouch

Oscar the Grouch

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Beetlejuice

Beetlejuice

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_6th Ave and 8th Street

The Village Halloween Parade attracts massive crowds. Fortunately, the fringes of the parade are often the most fun places to be!

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Zombie girl

I bumped into this naked mannequin by chance in Astor Place. Looks great next to my zombie makeup, no?

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Man with bag on head

Low maintenance costume

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Grays Papaya 6th Ave

Spectators squeezed into every nook and cranny in front of hot dog joint Gray’s Papaya.

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_French revolution

French revolution meets zombies?

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011

What happens when a skeleton, a robot and a plushie walk into a bar…?

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Pippi Longstocking

Pippi Longstocking

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Pan Am Stewardess

Pan Am stewardess

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Scary clown

Scary clown with an adorable baby

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Neptune

Neptune, god of the sea

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_The Joker and friends

Batman’s nemesis the Joker with friends

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_NASA astronaut

A proud NASA astronaut readies for launch

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Black men

These guys described their costume as “black man”– a twist on the omnipresent Green Man?

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Pepe Le Pew

Pepe LePew soliciting kisses with a clever sign

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011

Random ship captain blasting Italian-language music from his skiff, with baby dolls tied to the masthead. Still figuring this out…

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011

Tron

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Pope

The pope makes an appearance

Costume-spotting in the East Village

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Jellyfish

A homemade jellyfish– complete with flashing lights

NYC Village Halloween Parade 2011_Roy Orbison

The wearer described this costume as “Roy Orbison.” Yeah, I don’t get it either!

What’s your favorite Halloween costume?

About Leslie Koch

I'm a New Yorker with a passion for travel and art. I founded DowntownTraveler.com after returning from a year-long backpacking trip around the world. Find me on Twitter at @leslietravel.