- Looptopia
Looptopia is a dusk-to-dawn cultural event first held in May 2007 in the city of
Chicago , planned to be an annual event. Billed as "Chicago's White Night", Looptopia was modeled afterNuit Blanche held annually inParis . It premiered on the evening of May 11 through the morning May 12, 2007 in Chicago's central business district, the Loop. A wide range of entertainment was offered in public spaces, while manyuniversities ,museum s,restaurant s,park s andtourist attractions in the loop remained open throughout the night or offered extended hours. It was the first event of its type held in Chicago or theUnited States .Looptopia 2007 Events
Dance Party
A dance party was held in the Sullivan dock of the former
Carson Pirie Scott store. The dance party was produced by MF Chicago, a local creative collaborative made up ofartist s,DJ s, VJs, andmusic ians, and featuredhouse music , lighting and video projection effects. In addition to a multimedia show, the entrance to the dance party featured a neon andbroccoli installation by Chicago-based installation artist Josh Graff.Daley Plaza
Musical ensemble "
Mucca Pazza " performed at Looptopia on the Daley Plaza stage.Oscar Shorts
In the
Gene Siskel Film Center , short films were screened throughout the night. Up first were short films from the students of the School of theArt Institute of Chicago . These were followed by Oscar nominated and winning shorts in both animation and live action.ci-Fi B-Movie Marathon
At the
Chicago Cultural Center from 2 AM - 6 AM, classic sci-fi films were screened. Those shown included "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers ", "It Came from Outer Space ", and "Invasion of the Body Snatchers ".Miss Looptopia
Nine contenstants competed in this beauty pageant among local
drag queen s held at the Hard Rock Hotel. Tickets were sold out and the event reached its 350 person capacity before its start time of 6:00 PM.Aftermath & reaction
The inaugural Looptopia event exceeded attendance estimates and was generally well received by participants.
Argo Tea reported their "best day ever" in terms of sales. The Chicago Cultural Center (on Washington Street) hosted a record number ofguest s (an estimated 10,000–12,000 people). Pizano's Pizza recorded a 50% increase in business. Local newspapers such as the "Chicago Sun Times " and "Chicago Tribune " printed favorable reviews, with the "Tribune" reporting "to call the inaugural Looptopia a success would be an understatement."Fact|date=July 2008Criticisms of the 2007 Looptopia
Not all reactions were favorable. Many
internet bloggers spoke of the swarms of people overcrowding the event. Looptopia 2007 also fell on an extremely cold night for mid-May in Chicago.* Although it is legally closed every night,
Millennium Park , apublic outdoor park next to the loop, was by police control completely closed off at midnight.* Few
restrooms were made available for the large number of people who attended the late night event. Those that were available were in centralized locations.*
Sound system inadequate—many people could not hear the music performed on stage at theDaley Plaza .* Some museums and other spaces closed their doors at midnight or earlier contrary to the billing and spirit of the evening.
Photo Gallery
ee also
*
Long Night of Museums
*Nuit Blanche External links
* [http://www.looptopia.com/ The Looptopia Website]
* [http://chicago.metblogs.com/archives/2007/04/looptopia.phtml]
* [http://urbanplacesandspaces.blogspot.com/2007/05/looptopia.html]
* [http://cbs2chicago.com/topstories/local_story_130140052.html]
* [http://victorgrigas.blogspot.com/2008/01/looptopia-2008.html]
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