Krampus Asbury Park brings monster of Yule to the Jersey Shore

Alex Biese | Asbury Park Press

Let’s set the record straight about Krampus: the iconic, infamous Yuletide creature is not evil.

Yes, the beastly creature with origins in European folklore can be a frightful, shaggy sight with horns, a long tongue and a mission to punish the naughty.

But Kathy Kelly, proprietor of Asbury Park’s Paranormal Books and Curiosities, said Krampus is no mere rampaging terror.

“Krampus is not a horror figure,” said Kelly. “They made a horror movie about him (2015’s ‘Krampus’), but Krampus is not a horror figure. He’s not evil, he’s not a psychopath. Krampus is an agent of balance and he represents the reality of repercussions for one’s actions.”

To put it in Garden State terms, Krampus is no Jersey Devil.

“The Jersey Devil has autonomy, Krampus really doesn’t,” said Kelly. “He doesn’t get good children. If we want to keep him within the comfortable folklore that we’re familiar with, he has a list (and) he follows the list. He has a job. He’s going to that house. And you hear people say he’s the Christmas Devil — no, you’re removing something really important from the whole thing, which is (the fact that) in our world, behavior has repercussions and punishment exists in our world.”

Paranormal Books and Curiosities is set to present the fifth annual Krampus Asbury Park gathering Friday, Dec. 6, through Sunday, Dec. 8.

The shop, an Asbury Park fixture since 2008, first launched Krampus Asbury Park in 2015 in an effort to draw folks to the downtown shopping district of the seaside resort town in the winter while spreading excitement across a number of participating local businesses.

Celebration hallmarks like the The Running of the Krampusse and the Reading of the Naughty List return, joined by new activities including a gingerbread house contest, with submissions displayed in local business storefront windows. There's also Operation Escape the Sleigh, a family-friendly scavenger hunt with riddles and puzzles to be found both indoors and outdoors on Saturday.

The Krampus Film Festival has grown, too. Twenty six films were submitted from around the world this year, with entries coming from as far away as Iceland, France, Australia and Canada. The 15 accepted short films will screen across two blocks happening Friday evening at the ShowRoom Cinema and Sunday afternoon at the Paranormal Museum.

“I’m never looking to blow it up. I’m never looking for it to become some huge thing," said Kelly. "I'm really looking for it to organically grow slowly. There’s something really charming about the fact that it feels really D.I.Y. I don’t want to go too glossy with it.”

Our connection with Krampus, Frau Perchta and other wintertime terrors exists on a primordial level, Kelly explained.

"The days are shorter, it’s darker, your world is smaller and the world outside is scarier," she said. "So you had a reason to be afraid of the forest, and I think there’s a part of us that misses that. We miss that permission to be in our homes and huddled around the fire and close to our loved ones, and we miss that kind of intimacy and authenticity that you felt when you were a kid.”

Krampus Asbury Park 2019 schedule of events

Friday, Dec. 6

6:30 p.m.: Pictures with Krampus and Yeti

7:30 p.m.: Krampus Film Festival at the Showroom Cinema, 707 Cookman Ave., Asbury Park, $10

Saturday, Dec. 7

All day: Operation Escape the Sleigh Scavenger Hunt, advance registration for specific time required, $5 per child or $20 per family

Noon: Krampusmaarkt vendor market, 618 Mattison Ave.

1 p.m.: Poster contest judging

1:30 p.m.: Pictures with Captain Nicholas Claus, Santa’s Pirate Brother

2 p.m.: Monsters of Yule Walking Tour

3 p.m.: Gingerbread house contest judging

3:30 p.m.: Reading of the Naughty List

4 p.m.: Homemade mask contest

4:10 p.m.: Krampus caroling

4:30 p.m.: Line up of the Krampusse

4:45 p.m.: Krampus March to Kennedy Park, Cookman Avenue

5 p.m.: Lauf Krampus Lauf! The Running of the Krampusse to compete for the title of Krampus Asbury Park

Sunday, Dec. 8

9:30 a.m.: Breakfast with Krampus, $40 per person, $130 for four-pack

1 p.m.: Krampus Film Festival Microshorts, $10

Events take place at Paranomal Books and Curiosities and the Paranormal Museum, 621 Cookman Ave., Asbury Park, and are free unless otherwise noted. For more information, visit krampusap.com.