5,000 jack-o-lanterns draw crowds

It's called the "Tree of Light." The oak tree's branches stretch out to the sky, carrying with them the glow of hundreds of lit jack-o-lanterns. The jack-o-lanterns, hanging by metal wire and rope, are all different; some grin widely, others scowl hauntingly.

Giant human sized pumpkins each with a different look of surprise on its face decorate the bottom of the giant oak. Behind the tree, mist swirls around the majestic sight, while Pink Floyd music plays in the background. Appearing to be a scene from the Halloween cult movie, The Nightmare Before Christmas, the jack-o-lantern-decorated tree is actually part of the second annual Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular put on by the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence, RI.

And, if you are looking for an escape from the normal Boston/Tufts night life and you want to take a step back into your childhood, than this might be just the place for you.

"Our annual Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular features over 5,000 illuminated pumpkins throughout a three-acre woodland trail," Lisa Bousquet, Director of Marketing and Public Relations for Roger Williams Park Zoo, said. "Over 30 professional pumpkin carvers spend six weeks creating the trail, going through over 150,000 pounds of jack-o- lanterns."

The "Tree of Light" is the centerpiece for the event. Besides this scene, there are 25 other themed settings, ranging in style from "Van Gogh-Sunflowers," to "Middle Earth." Each setting has a sound system with different themed music. There are at least 200 pumpkins at each scene.

Describing the intricacy of the carvings, Bousquet referred to the "Great Writers" setting. Here, one can catch such greats as Charles Dickens and James Joyce etched into the pumpkins.

According to Bousquet, to carve the faces onto the pumpkins, the professional pumpkin carvers "use special tools like ones used in ceramics. The carvers use these tools to peel different thicknesses of the rind away, creating a 3-D shading effect when the light shines through."

In this way, Shakespeare's exact likeness can be achieved on the surface of a pumpkin, or the face of a tiger can be carved, with details like those found in National Geographic photographs.

"I don't think I've been to an event like this before," Tufts sophomore Diane Rish said. "It's really unique."

According Bousquet, the Spectacular targets all age groups. When asked what his favorite jack-o-lantern was, Jack, a young boy from Providence said, "I really liked the woodpecker. [My family] love[s] birds."

Even older people were able to enjoy the displays. "The carvings are so gorgeous," Rosemary, an elderly woman from New York, said. "My daughter told me about this event, though I never thought it would be this impressive or creative."

And, after 9 p.m., when the families have gone home, the Spectacular takes on a great dating atmosphere, explained Bousquet.

The "Romance" scene is especially conducive to couples as it features intricate carvings of couples in love, surrounded by "filler" jack-o-lanterns with hearts carved in them.

The event was first held in Oxford, Massachusetts in 1988 (and was held there until moving to Providence in 2001) and was set up by a mailman named John Reckner. "About 300 people attended the one-night viewing of 185 jack-o-lanterns," Bousquet said. The size and scope of the Spectacular has grown dramatically _ last year's drew more than 80,000 visitors from all over New England.

Those people were able to view first hand, the work of the professional pumpkin carvers, all from the town of Oxford, MA. "It takes the carvers four hours up to a day to carve each of the ornate pumpkins," Bousquet said. "It takes approximately a minute for them to carve the 'filler' pumpkins."

The fillers are most similar to typical Halloween jack-o-lanterns. She also noted that each pumpkin is replaced with an exact replica every four days to avoid rotting. Carving the pumpkins becomes the full-time job of the professional carvers during the four to six weeks that the Spectacular is held.

"The skill of the carvers is amazing, and the huge amount of pumpkins used is unbelievable," Rish, the Tufts student said.

The lighting of each of the 5,000 jack-o-lanterns differs depending on the type of pumpkin. The fillers are lit with tea lights, which are inserted through a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin. Bousquet said that lighting a jack-o-lantern through a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin rather than through a hole in the top gives more stability to the jack-o-lantern. In contrast, the intricately carved jack-o-lanterns are lit with light bulbs.

The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular will run through Oct. 31 from 6-10 p.m. It is located in Providence, RI at the Roger Williams Park Zoo, exit 17 off I-95 south. For more information, check out www.rogerwilliamsparkzoo.org.