PHOTOS: 53rd annual Village Halloween Parade

New Yorkers suited up in costumes and marched up Sixth Avenue in Manhattan on Oct. 31 in the annual Village Halloween Parade, which was held for the 53rd year. The annual parade — which requires participants to wear costumes — kicked off at Canal st. and Sixth Ave. and proceeded northeast along Sixth Ave. to 15th Street East. The theme of this year's march was "Body & Soul," which encouraged marchers to "dance your body and find your soul." "The skeletons that lead the Halloween Parade each year walk the razor’s edge between the physical world and the spirit realm," the Village Halloween Parade's website stated, highlighting this year's theme. "They are the All-Souls of Hallow’s Eve. We are all wandering souls. And in order to truly embrace and live within our spirit, we must feel it in our bones, and so need an earthly body. But we live in an increasingly disembodied world. These days, we communicate through screens, create virtual selves, and experience so much of life through a device. But where is the body in all this? And where does the spirit live? We need to get back into our bodies to express our souls! So, this year, we celebrate the timeless connection between body and soul." See some photos from this year's parade below: [caption id="attachment_65559" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65560" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65580" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65561" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65562" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65563" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65564" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65565" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65581" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65566" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65567" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65568" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65569" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65570" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65571" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65572" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65573" align="aligncenter" width="466"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65574" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65575" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65576" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65577" align="aligncenter" width="466"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65579" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Donna Aceto[/caption] [caption id="attachment_65578" align="aligncenter" width="466"] Donna Aceto[/caption]