Nightmare is on

The Nightmare at Station Scare returns from the dead, having been deep-sixed for two years while the Amphitheater at Station Square was a parking lot.

The Nightmare (formerly known as Fright Nights) will rise again with a haunted mansion and a haunted stage, which stars the ghosts of performers past, plus a cemetery walk through, "Drown the Clown" dunk tank and a collection of local and national vendors.

It opens today and runs 7 to 11 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays through out October ending on Halloween night.

Admission is $15. VIP ticket available for $20 with front of the line privileges, a free hotdog and free soft drink. Go to Ticketmaster outlets, www.tickmaster.com or at the door. It's not recommended for ages 13 and younger.

Must-hear Baroque

Pittsburgh is a small town, so if you are a music lover, live here and have yet to hear Chatham Baroque, you are missing a sizable portion of what the city has to offer musically. The period trio begins its second season with new violinist Andrew Fouts with "Fresh Ayre," a program featuring English and Italian composers of the baroque.

Fouts will be joined by violinist Dana Maiben for the program which opens at 7 p.m. Friday at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts in Shadyside (a special concert that includes "seasonal favorites" catered by Karen Segal). Two traditional concerts take place at 8 p.m. Saturday at Synod Hall, Oakland, and at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Calvary Episcopal Church, Shadyside. The concerts mark the annual commemoration of the life of Emily Norman Davidson, a member of the ensemble until her death in 2003. 412-394-3353 or 412-687-1788. $27-$50.

Oh, and the trio's Peanut Butter & Jam sessions -- great children's concerts -- continue this weekend, as well. The group plays two sets, at 10 a.m. and then at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at Calvary Episcopal Church. $5 per child, $8 per adult.

Purple fountains

The fountains at the Waterfront in Homestead are spouting purple this month to mark Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Merchants are pitching in to the month-long campaign organized by Womansplace of McKeesport, which has served victims of domestic violence for 33 years, and Verizon. the main sponsor.

Buisnesses are collecting used cell phones for the Verizon Wireless HopeLine program, displaying materials, selling or wearing purple ribbons or donating gift cards and coupons.

The highlight event takes place Saturday in the Town Centre section from noon to 4 p.m., with Michele Michaels and the 102.5 WDVE Rock 'n Roll Remote Booth, arts and crafts for children, balloons and tattoos, Dave & Buster's Powercard giveaway worth $300, a basketball challenge, information on teen dating violence, raffles and giveaways from Waterfront restaurants and retailers, and free food samples from Panera, Eat'n Park and Woody's Little Italy Restaurant and Catering.

The Carpatho-Rusyn Society celebrates its 15th anniversary this weekend with its first-ever National Carpatho-Rusyn Festival at the National Carpatho-Rusyn Cultural and Educational Center, 915 Dickson St. in Munhall from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday.

Vendors will offer traditional Rusyn foods and crafts and demonstrate crafts such as icon writing, lacemaking, weaving and pysanky (Easter egg decorating). There will be performers, choirs and ensembles from throughout western Pennsylvania as well as Ohio and Arizona, with two professional performing groups originally from Slovakia.

Admission is $5 with children 17 and under admitted free.

Also, on Friday, the Society will open its first international exhibit of art -- "Dana Kyndrova: Podkarpatska Rus,'" black and white photographs of present-day Transcarpathia, the Rusyn-inhabited region of Ukraine. The opening is Friday 7-9 p.m. Admission is free.

Dormont continues its ongoing Centennial Celebration with the 3rd annual Dormont Street Fair & Music Festival Saturday from 4 to 11 p.m.

Headlining the event will be Dormont's own Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers playing at 9 p.m. Also on the schedule will be Gene the Werewolf (8 p.m.), The I Drive, featuring Johnny Grushecky (7 p.m.), Rube Vere (5:30 p.m.), KO Boosterettes Eagles Twirling Corps (4:15 p.m.) and Dance Pittsburgh "Zumba" (4 p.m.)

The festival will also feature seasonal treats, magic, juggling, painting, crafts and Eat'n Park Smiley Cookies.

PodCamp 'unconference'

Edition four of PodCamp returns to town this weekend. This annual free social media "unconference" is a chance to keep up with the ever-evolving world of social media in all its forms -- blogging and video blogging, web design and development, writing, podcasting and more. It's designed for businesses, non-profits and individuals interested in learning more about social media, and for social media practitioners who want to exchange ideas. Workshops and discussions range from fundamental basics to more advanced applications.

PodCamp 4 is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Downtown. There's a dinner and after-party following Saturday's sessions.

Guest speakers include Walt Ribeiro, whose music site WaltRibeiro.net features interactive music tutorials and his own compositions; Tom Guarriello, marketing veteran, blogger and author of the book "Work Different: Design For The Rest of Us"; and Justin Kownacki, co-founder of PodCamp Pittsburgh and creator of the web sitcom "Something To Be Desired." Other scheduled speakers include a wide range of local bloggers and social media users.

Register online at the PodCamp Web site, http://podcamppittsburgh.com.

Harmonies of marriage

Former state poet laureate Samuel Hazo's poetry is at the center of "The Marriage Dialogues," composed by R. James Whipple for the Renaissance City Winds. Actors Kate Young and Jeff Howell join the musicians for the work that is certainly unusual for a wind ensemble, but unusual is nothing unusual for RCW. This group specializes in playing outside the typical venue, often in private homes around the area. The Winds perform the Pittsburgh premiere of "The Marriage Dialogues" and other works at 8 p.m. Saturday at Pro Bikes in Squirrel Hill and then again at 3 p.m. Sunday at Carlow University's Kresge Theater. $10-$20; 412-981-7111.

Dead walk

Zombies and food is not the most appetizing combination, but we can put those thoughts aside on World Zombie Day, a charity event designed to generate donations for food bank charities and raise awareness of world hunger.

Pittsburgh pitches in with its first-ever outdoor Zombie Fest at zombie headquarters, the Monroeville Mall, for the fourth annual Walk of the Dead on Sunday. It begins at 2 p.m. in the upper level parking lot near the mall annex and includes live music, appearances by the likes of Peter Washington ("Dawn of the Dead"), zombie Olympics, brain eating contest (see!) and an ugly pageant.

From 2 to 6 p.m., zombies can register for the Guinness World Record attempt for World's Largest Zombie Walk in the mall, which will begin at 6 p.m. It's free and open to all ages; zombies are asked to bring non-perishable food donations to benefit the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.

Professor Emcee Square (aka Mark Menold), host of Pittsburgh's The It's Alive Show, will lead the crowd to their destination. Following the walk, all zombies age 21 and over are invited to the Zombie Ball at Houlihan's inside the mall.

For details, go to www.theitsaliveshow.com/zombiefest09.htm.

Three years since "Decemberunderground," which spawned the breakout hit "Miss Murder," darkly fashionable pop-punkers AFI return to the scene with an eighth album, "Crash Love," and a show at Club Zoo Sunday night.

Frontman Davey Havok says he's never been more proud of a record, and the general consensus is that "Crash Love" is a winner, albeit a very polished one.

Opening the show will be the intense British hardcore band Gallows, who recently played a morning slot on the Warped Tour that plenty of people missed.

The show is at 7 p.m. Tickets are $27.50-$29. Call 1-800-745-3000.

Twin pianos

When it comes to piano duos, Richard and John Contiguglia might have a sizable, even genetic advantage. They are identical twins. But its no gimmick -- their artistry has taken them all over the world, from Carnegie Hall to the Concertgebouw. They've performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony, too, among many top orchestras. But their appearance this weekend will be a piano -- make that pianos -- only, a concert on the newly minted Pittsburgh Piano Recital series of the Steinway Society of Western Pa. The brothers perform at 3 p.m. Sunday at CAPA, Downtown. $10-$20. 412-559-8210.

• There's a comic theme to the weekend. Along with David Cross in Munhall, we have rising star Mike Birbiglia and Suzanne Westenhoefer. Birbiglia, from Massachusetts, made a name for himself with an off-Broadway One-Man Show, "Sleepwalk With Me," that found humor in his sleep disorder. He's at Diesel at 8 tonight ($25; 1-800-745-3000). Westenhoefer, from Lancaster, was the first lesbian stand-up comic to have her own HBO special, earning her a CableACE Award nomination. She's at the New Hazlett Theater on the North Side at 8 p.m. Friday ($25; 1-800-745-3000).

• Families can hop aboard the trolleys at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington this weekend for a ride to the Pumpkin Patch. Children may decorate a pumpkin from the patch, take a trip around the Amazing Maze or, on the first weekend, enjoy children's author Ryke Leigh Douglas (11 a.m. and 1 p.m.). Trolley rides leave every half hour from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $9; $8 for seniors (62+); $5 for children (ages 3-15) or get a $30 family admission good for up to 2 adults and 4 children. The event repeats Oct. 16-18 and 23-25. For more information call 724-228-9256 or go to www.pa-trolley.org.

• Pittsburgh Opera will hold a free Brown Bag Concert previewing the upcoming production of "Falstaff" and other Elizabethan art songs Saturday at noon at Pittsburgh Opera Headquarters, 2425 Liberty Ave., Strip.

Critics Andrew Druckenbrod and Scott Mervis talk about music on "The Beat," available exclusively at PG+, a members-only web site of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.