By Nicholas Merl and John Barthlow
The oddities and curiosities in question. (Nicholas Merl/Radio 1190)
On the weekend of Oct. 5-6, central Denver was swarmed by black-clad legions all on pilgrimage to the Colorado Convention Center. The sudden invasion of witches, vampires and the occasional regular human being was sparked by the Oddities and Curiosities Expo, which came to Denver from Saturday to Sunday as part of its 2025 tour.
The expo, which touts itself as “largest internationally travelling oddities/subculture event in the world” on its website, brought together vendors and artists specializing in everything bizarre and macabre. With Halloween just around the corner, Oddities offered even the thrifty a chance to indulge in a bit of good-natured consumerism.
Between snakes suspended in jars of formaldehyde, tables heavy with skull-shaped rings and the intermittent bursts of circus music from the venue’s main stage, the convention evoked a burlesque freak show atmosphere. Visitors seemed swallowed in morbid fascination that transcended any one person’s willingness to exsanguinate their wallet upon the altar of a particularly enthralling bauble.
“There’s a little something for everyone here,” Krystal Younglove, an international performance artist who appeared at Oddities this year, said. “This is a space where all are welcome to be radically expressive.“
Younglove’s routine, which included her sticking her hand into a mousetrap, was met with wild enthusiasm from many of the convention’s smaller attendees and their parents. This was, of course, after parents plus children had already walked across the hall, past gory miniature corpses and (supposedly fake) shrunken heads.
Fifty feet from the stage, L.A.-based artist Disasterina’s stand stood as a shimmering display of skeletal demons and skull-faced puppets. The artist’s maddeningly inventive puppet designs feature as part of a world she designed and created, called “The Realm of the Shadow Puffs.”
“I’ve been an artist all my life, and what has appealed to me most is people who have created their own universes,” Disasterina said. “I’m greatly influenced by early 20th century surrealistic artists like Yves Tanguy, Magritte, Dali, Man Ray and the Italian futurists.”
While selling her art was a key motivator in coming to Oddities & Curiosities, Disasterina also saw it as an important place for preserving the strange in American public life. “People like it for one. Look at how many people are here. In every one of these shows is the weird overflowing, I mean people love coming here,” she said.
Other artists and performers offered their own takes on “the weird.” Louisiana-based husband and wife performer duo Arty Dodger and Bayou Betsy put on a vaudeville-esque performance with Dodger juggling heavy meat cleavers while Betsy walked across sharp lego bricks.
“This is our third oddities and curiosities to perform at,” Dodger said. The pair viewed Oddities and Curiosities as a retreat from their everyday life. “We get to be ourselves here. Whereas I usually have to wear scrubs, cover tattoos, all that sort of stuff. But when I’m here I get to be who I am,” Betsy said. Her husband concurred.
“Everyone looks normal but deep inside they’re really weird,” Dodger said. “So the people who actually say ‘you know what, screw it, I’m gonna let the weird and unusual out and I don’t care what people think,’ that to me is strong willed.”
Aside from the performers, guests in various costumes were also enthusiastic about the weirdness. “It’s something that only comes around once a year, you gotta meet a lot of really unique people. I try to be one of those unique people,” Spider, a young guest dressed in an elaborate scarecrow outfit, said. “Oddities is a great opportunity to just go around and be weird.”
After all was said and done, Oddities and Curiosities was just as odd and curious as the countless people who came to visit this year. Yet one motivation united all those in attendance, according to Bayou Betsy: “Stay curious. Stay weird.”