Chicago’s Redmoon Theatre is preparing for its biggest event yet: the first Great Chicago Fire Festival. The festival is to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, and Redmoon is not doing it alone. With the help of 15 different communities, Redmoon will get to show the world what the people of Chicago are made of.
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The communities that will be participating in this event range from troubled Englewood to Chinatown to Old Town – showing that all of the different demographics and ethnicities of Chicago will be represented during the festival.
- Albany Park
- Austin
- Avondale
- Bronzeville
- Chinatown
- Englewood
- Humboldt Park
- Little Village
- North Lawndale
- Old Town
- Pilsen
- Roseland
- South Chicago
- South Shore
- Uptown
- Woodlawn
Redmoon hosted different community events all with the idea of including the people of Chicago in the festival.
The Mobile Photo Factory was designed by photographer Sandro Miller. According to Hutch Pimentel, assistant to artistic director Jim Lasko, there were over 5,000 pictures taken during the summer.
The goal of The Mobile Photo Factory is for the people of Chicago to show “their true grit,” according to Redmoon’s official website.
The pictures, which will be on display during the fest, show residents of Chicago telling their stories, what they’ve overcome in their lives. Stories from overcoming everyday occurrences, to life changing moments such as overcoming cancer are all of the things that will be featured in the display.
The communities will also be apart of an opening ceremony type thing called the Bazaar, which will consist of vendors that will be along upper Wacker Drive at 3 p.m.
The Great Chicago Fire Festival will take place on the Chicago River between the State Street and Columbus Drive bridges starting at 8 p.m. on Oct. 4.