What Mardi Gras is to New Orleans. And the Running of the Bulls is to Pamplona. That’s what the Great Chicago Fire Festival will become to the Windy City.
Created to unite the neighborhoods of Chicago and show the world its strength, the GCFF will express the city’s unique character by celebrating Chicago’s epic resurgence following the fire of 1871.
On October 4, tens of thousands of people from around Chicago—and the world—will surround the river, to take part in a larger-than-life spectacle and party like no other: Sculptures will burn atop huge floats and performances will inspire awe in onlookers. Live music will echo deep into the night sky. There will be food. Drinks. Dancing. Sounds of laughter, love and astonishment. With The Great Chicago Fire Festival, our magnificent city will continue to amaze and flourish, forever gaining strength from the ashes.
So, where did the vision for this whimsical celebration of community come from? For the past 24 years, Redmoon has been on a mission to transform the Chicago experience with free, magnificent events that promote civic well being by way of creativity. Under the leadership of Executive Artistic Director, Jim Lasko, The Great Chicago Fire Festival will be their biggest spectacle yet. In its inaugural year, a partnership with the City of Chicago will help usher in this first-of-its-kind festival as an annual tradition for many years to come.
CLICK HERE - FOR OUR SUMMER CELEBRATIONS EVENT CALENDAR & MAP OF AWE-INSPIRING STORIES
In the months leading up to the festival, we will kick off Redmoon’s Summer Celebrations - a series of public events & arts activities taking place across the 15 official neighborhoods of the Great Chicago Fire Festival, activating thousands of community members. The Summer Celebrations will celebrate Chicago’s epic resurgence following the fire of 1871.
The Summer Celebrations will include neighborhood barbeques based around the celebration of food. They will serve as a neighborhood parties and allow Redmoon to build new relationships with community members and organizations. The barbeque will feature Redmoon’s Cyclone Grill, a motorized grill carousel that has three elevated grilling stations with nine grills and a wireless DJ station and speakers. The barbeque will also include an Open Sculptural Build where participants will decorate a piece of the Fire Sculpture that will burn on the river on October 4th.
Redmoon is also creating a portable photobooth, which will be transported to the 15 neighborhoods. Participants will take a photo in the booth, which will print instantly as a button and a sticker. Each neighborhood’s photos will be strung together to create a beautiful canopy that will be displayed at the neighborhood sites along the river on the day of the festival.
Together with our community partners we will create a series of celebrations that are authentic expressions of the city’s cultural landscape. Each partner is highlighted in the neighborhood overviews. Our additional partners include The Happiness Club, Free Spirit Media, Young Chicago Authors, and St. Therese Chinese Catholic School.
BRONZEVILLE
SOUTH SHORE
pilsen
pilsen
pilsen
Pilsen has a strong cultural heritage and rich working class legacy which creates a remarkable multicultural mosaic. This neighborhood comprises a close-knit Mexican-American community, creative types and students and as a result has bold murals, the National Museum of Mexican Art, vintage shops, bodegas, panaderias and even old-school Italian restaurants.
NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERS
- Changing Worlds
- Chicago Urban Arts Society
little village
avondale
albany park
uptown
old town
humboldt park
woodlawn
roseland
south chicago
englewood
austin
