ELEMENTAL: Spectacles of Earth, Air and Water

Through the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks, DCASE’s 50×50 Neighborhood Arts Project and 11th Ward Alderman Patrick Daley Thompson, Erica Mott Productions presents ELEMENTAL: Spectacles of Earth, Air and Water, a community driven performance event at Bridgeport’s historic quarry Palmisano Park. Presented in and around the pond in the northwest corner of the park, ELEMENTAL will celebrate the history and future of Bridgeport through the lens of three organic elements that shaped industry, immigration, lore and daily living in Chicago’s oldest neighborhood. Erica Mott has engaged community members from across the 11th Ward to participate and contribute to the site-specific ambulatory multi-media performance, which includes live singing, storytelling, music, contemporary dance, lantern lighting and projection mapping across the cliffs of the old quarry.

Meet the ELEMENTAL Team!

This program is presented as a part of the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks with the support of Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Now in its fifth year, the 2017 Night Out in the Parks series will host over 1,000 cultural events and programs at more than 250 neighborhood parks throughout the city, making community parks a safe haven and hubs of activity. Projects will vary from traditional performances and concerts, to movies, peace rallies, community workshops, nature based programs, dance pieces, festivals, and more. The Chicago Park District has partnered with more than 120 arts and community organizations to expand and produce this successful initiative. Arts programming in neighborhoods across the city advances the goals of the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Cultural Plan. 

This program is also presented as part of the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events’ (DCASE) 50×50 Neighborhood Arts Project. Part of DCASE’s Year of Public Art, the 50×50 Neighborhood Arts Project represents a $1 million investment in artist-led community projects in all 50 wards of Chicago, culminating in a citywide Public Art Festival from October 1-31, 2017. The Year of Public Art is guided by the Mayor’s Chicago Cultural Plan, a citywide vision for art and culture that has incorporated public art into projects at many City departments.