Bewitching Halloween photos of Central Texas sisters go viral
Some Central Texas sisters with plenty of sass have gone viral for the spell they’ve put on Halloween this year.
Landri Grabenstein, 6, and her twin sisters Alli and Maddi, 8, all students at Spring Valley Elementary in the Midway ISD, dressed as the iconic Sanderson sisters from the 1993 hit movie “Hocus Pocus” and the pictures taken of them on the 25th anniversary of the release of the movie by a local photographer Friday have gone viral.
The 1993 comedy-horror-fantasy film involves a curious youngster whose family has just moved to Salem, Mass., who manages to awaken three witches killed 300 years earlier.
“The girls love the movie so much and I wanted to wait until they were old enough to know and understand the Sanderson sisters.”
Landri went as Mary played by Kathy Najimy while Alli dressed as Sarah played in the film by Sarah Jessica Parker and Maddie as Winifred played by Bette Midler.
The girl’s mother, Heather Grabenstein, and her sisters spent more than two hours getting the three girls’ hair and makeup just right.
“That’s all their natural hair, but we had to stuff socks in Maddie’s,” she said.
But what made the pictures pure magic is the expressions of the girls as they stepped out of the role of elementary school students and into the character of the witches.
“We’ve watched the movie every year for five years,” the girls’ mom said.
“They’re so young but they took the roles and they ran with them. They have the characters down which is so funny.”
The pictures were taken by local photographer Heather Rust in downtown Waco on Friday and within hours she knew they were going to be a hit with more than just friends and family.
“I first posted the pictures at 12:30 on Saturday morning and in 14 hours we had 60,000 views,” Rust said.
“I figured it would go viral but nothing like they have.”
By Tuesday the views had reached well over 125,000, with ABC’S “Good Morning America” featuring the girls online.
“They’re just super sassy so I knew they’d be perfect,” Rust added.
But there is one person Rust is hoping will be part of the hundreds of thousands viewing the pictures.
“I want them to be on Ellen,” she said.
“They’re so cute and sassy. I l just love it.”
