Looptopia was a dusk-to-dawn cultural event that was held in 2007 and 2008 in the city of

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. Billed as "Chicago's White Night", Looptopia was modeled after Nuit Blanche held annually in

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. 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 many

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s and

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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 the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The 2007 event drew an estimated 200,000 attendees, twice the number that organizers expected, which led to logistical problems like lack of sanitation facilities.

Looptopia 2007 events

Many events were held at Looptopia 2007.

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 of

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, th ...

s, DJs, VJs, and

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

ians, and featured

house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

, lighting and video projection effects. In addition to a multimedia show, the entrance to the dance party featured a

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and broccoli installation by Chicago-based installation artist Josh Graff. DJs for the event were Chicago Legends Paul Johnson Adonis Childs Geoff bring the roof down Chicago style

State Street and Daley Plaza

Theatre event engineering company '' Redmoon Theater'' had sight installations all along State Street that culminated in a roving performance with a final show in Daley Plaza that featured the capture of human-sized rat that was locked in a rat wheel that set off pyrotechnics before an audience estimated to number 15,000. Musical ensemble ''

Mucca Pazza Mucca Pazza is an interdisciplinary instrumental music and performance ensemble based in Chicago, USA. Mucca Pazza consists of approximately thirty active members and performs instrumental music; their mode of performance is informed by physical ...

'' 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 the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

. These were followed by Oscar nominated and winning shorts in both animation and live action.

Sci-Fi B-Movie marathon

At the

Chicago Cultural Center The Chicago Cultural Center, opened in 1897, is a Chicago Landmark building operated by Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events that houses the city's official reception venue where the Mayor of Chicago has welcomed preside ...

from 2 AM - 6 AM, classic sci-fi films were screened. Those shown included ''

Earth vs. the Flying Saucers ''Earth vs. the Flying Saucers'' (a.k.a. ''Invasion of the Flying Saucers'' and ''Flying Saucers from Outer Space'') is a 1956 American science fiction film from Columbia Pictures. It was produced by Charles H. Schneer, directed by Fred F. Sears, ...

'', ''

It Came from Outer Space ''It Came from Outer Space'' is a 1953 American science fiction horror film, the first in the 3D process from Universal-International. It was produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold. The film stars Richard Carlson and Barbara ...

'', and '' Invasion of the Body Snatchers''.

Miss Looptopia

Nine contestants competed in this mock drag beauty pageant held at the Hard Rock Hotel. Produced by a local LGBT marketing firm, the show was EmCee'd by Andrew Eninger of the gay comedy troupe GayCo Productions. There were comedy, musical and drag performance by GayCo members, local drag queens and other local performers. The announcement of the winner was carried live on ABC/Channel 7 "190 North" by host Janet Davies. The event reached its 350-person capacity before its start time of 6:00 PM.

Public 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 of guests (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 The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' printed favorable reviews, with the ''Tribune'' reporting "to call the inaugural Looptopia a success would be an understatement."

2007 Looptopia critics

Not all reactions were favorable. Many

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bloggers spoke of the swarms of people overcrowding the event. Looptopia 2007 also fell on an extremely cold night for mid-May in Chicago.

Photo gallery

Image:Looptopia El Advertisement.jpg, An advertisement on the

Chicago "L" The Chicago "L" (short for "elevated") is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), it is the fourth-largest rapid tr ...

Image:Looptopia art institute after midnight.JPG, People outside the Art Institute after it closed Image:MF_Looptopia03SML.jpg, Live electronic music and video projection by MF Chicago Image:MF_Loop06.jpg, The installation by Josh Graff. ''Untitled'', wood and neon garnished with broccoli and dolls File:Looptopia (495501155).jpg, File:Looptopia d.jpg, File:DC0143-0141 looptopia.jpg, File:DC0143-0203 looptopia.jpg, 2008 in Daley Plaza

External links

The Looptopia Website from archive.org

Festivals in Chicago Defunct festivals Arts festivals in the United States

References

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