Looptopia 2010
By Chris • Updated Feb 26th, 2010 • Category: Chicago Events
As of February 26, 2010, I have not been able to find any documentation concerning Looptopia 2010. There was no Looptopia in 2009 and there does not appear to be any chance of Looptopia in 2010. Stay tuned to Chicago Hot Blog for updates on Looptopia 2010 as they become available.
After attending Looptopia 2007 and Looptopia 2008, I am declaring Looptopia an official bust. Most of my time at Looptopia has been spent standing on my toes in poorly arranged venues trying get a peak at the action.
I arrived at Looptopia 2008 at 9:30pm and was greeted with the information that the organizers had already given out all of the Looptopia wristbands, which were required for attendance to any events that took place after midnight. We then stood around in Daley Plaza until 10pm, where the Midnight Circus was performing – the problem is that there not a raised stager or bleachers, so only the first few rows of people could see anything. We moved to several different areas, trying to catch a glimpse of what the circus was doing, but we could only see the occasional acrobat jumping into the air.
Mid-way through the Midnight Circus performance at Daley Plaza, we headed to Palmer House to see Looptopia’s Broadway in Chicago Cabaret – but when we arrived, it was impossible to get a view of the stage. After fighting through the crowd for 20 minutes, the cabaret started and we left.
It was now 11pm and we headed to Millenium Park – surely the park was open during Looptopia, right? Wrong. Security guards were there to make sure that nobody could enjoy the crown jewel of Chicago’s park system during Looptopia.
After my experience at Looptopia 2008 and the fiasco that was Looptopia 2007, I won’t plan on attending Looptopia again – but I have created a list of 5 Ways to Fix Looptopia that might provide some ideas for creating a better event in the future.
Stay tuned to Chicago Hot Blog for updates on Looptopia 2008 or get new posts emailed to your inbox.
Looptopia
Wikipedia : Looptopia is a annual event taking place in the city of Chicago. It premiered on the evening of May 11 through the morning May 12, 2007 that resembled Nuit Blanche held annually in Paris. The event took place in Chicago’s central business district, the Loop. There are many universities, museums, restaurants, parks and tourist attractions in the loop which made Looptopia more interesting. It was the first event of its type held in Chicago or the United States. The 2nd Looptopia event is scheduled for the evening of May 2nd, 2008.
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wow, sounds to me like if you had a little thing called PATIENCE
you would have had a blast @ the Palmer House event.
David -
I’m not sure what patience had to do with it – we could not see the performance area from wherever we stood. We could have stood there for an hour, we still wouldn’t have been able to see anything. The venue simply wasn’t good for a performance.
Thanks for checking out the site and for taking the time to leave a comment.
-Chris
Hey Chris: Despite the other two comments, I agree with you entirely. I think these gliches come from a group of people more interested in being on a “board” or committee (i.e. getting corporate sponsors, putting it on their resume, etc) than people who know what it is to stay out all night and organize something for people that do. My friends and I arrived around 9:30 too because really, if you got there at 7, could one really want to hang out with THAT crowd all night? If we did get there early, I would’ve been over it by midnight and found something more interesting to do. Well, I guess that’s what happened anyway. And I am assuming that those people who did get the wristbands early were vomiting from whatever they were drinking from brown paper bags in some parking lot before the wristbands were required. I live downtown, so Looptopia’s poor planning wasn’t so much a burden, but imagine if you came from farther away and planned this as your night? L.A. just had “Glow” – another all night party and it was planned much better.
Chris, I agree with you entirely, and will further it by saying that Chicago Loop Alliance should be scolded for the lack of foresight and planning. I do hope for a 2009, but it should be handed over to a private event production company that has a proven track record with chicago’s street festivals, etc.
I agree and disagree. Looptopia 2007 was fantastic for me. That was back when I was in high school and I found out about it last minute. I left from my last class with two good friends around three and hanged out downtown until it started. We heard poets, saw mimes in the buildings, saw art, heard bands playing on the corner and better yet we spent the majority of the night in an alley turned nightclub. We danced all night. I loved it. I went into Looptopia 2008 with high exceptions. Unlike 2007 there was a lot more security therefore that things you wanted to do where really restricted. Once again we got there early around an hour before it started. We went looking all over for those stupid wristbands and kept asking for them and when we were told we could get them they somehow ran out. I actually planed on staying the whole night but was unable to. I actually think what made 2007 so fun for me was the lack of security, wristbands, and other things I weren’t restricted from doing. At the same time it was more dangerous for everyone else but for me back then that was all part of the excitement. I was hoping they would have a 2009. I wouldn’t expect a lot from it but I would still love to be a part of it.
I went to Looptopia in 2008 and had a great time, and I hope something like it is done again. I think part of my enjoyment was the list of events I planned on seeing, and having backups in case things were full or cancelled (both of which happened). I did get there relatively early (before 9) and got a wristband, and I went through a variety of events, from technological demonstrations to live music to the Broadway in Chicago medley (which had bad acoustics, but from the back of the hall, I could see and sit down at the same time).
As for the late night events, a live play and a screening of animation from local colleges allowed me to stay inside most of the night. When that was over, the sun was starting to creep up, so I headed back to Millennium Park where they were handing out free breakfast goodies. The last event I went to before heading home was the game of Hide-and-Seek, also at Millennium Park (as absurd as it sounds, it was quite fun).
Overall, I think, if they addressed the issues posted by the blog writer and commenters, the organizers can make a great event. Things like allowing more people to just come and play or do demonstrations and having more late night events are valid concerns (I almost didn’t stay all night because of being unsure if it would be worth it). Also, the date and weather should be taken into consideration. Looptopia 2008 was rainy up until 9:30 or 10, but the chill was present the entire night, so either make it later in the year, put warming stations up, or have more indoor events.