Ready to IGNITE the arts in Peoria!

When Kathy Chitwood was asked to help light a fire under local arts groups and bring them all together, she agreed even though she believed it would be a difficult task.

Now, just days before the inaugural IGNITE Peoria event at the Peoria Civic Center, Chitwood said it turned out to be “one of the easiest things I’ve been part of.” The reason, she notes, is because the arts groups are ready for the recognition this event will bring them and are eager to do what they can.

“You know, it’s sort of like an audition when you have 3,000 people show up and everybody gets to be in the production. Every director dreads the kind of audition where not nearly enough show up and you have to go out and find people and frankly, I was worried that’s what this would be. But it wasn’t and it has been fun,” said Chitwood, chairperson of IGNITE Peoria, which will bring together a few thousand artists from many genres in one space and allow the public to see just what Peoria and central Illinois has to offer.

That was basically the purpose of IGNITE, which was proposed nearly a year ago by Jim Wetherington, general manager of the Civic Center, in a meeting with various arts groups. He and his staff hatched the idea while trying to figure out ways to bring people to the Civic Center in August, traditionally the facility’s slowest month.

“This is a perfect opportunity to bring folks downtown and into town and to expose the arts that we have in Peoria,” Wetherington said.

Arts Partners got involved and Chitwood was asked to staff the event and work with the Civic Center and the Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau to make the first one happen. The city got involved by moving some of the Tourism Reserve Fund to the project to pay for the Civic Center’s overhead for the event.

That is the only funding the Civic Center is receiving, Wetherington said. The event is free to the public.

“I figured this first one would use maybe Exhibit Hall A and a couple meeting rooms and that it would grow from there. But we are using all Exhibit Hall space, the theatre lobby and all the meetings rooms. The only space not being used in the theatre house and the arena,” he said.

He hopes the event will quickly grow from one day to a full weekend, he said.

Chitwood believes it will. “Oh, this is just the beginning. There are a lot of arts and a lot of artists out there still to be recognized and we want to bring them in. The city is making an investment in this and it wants this to grow. I’m already thinking about next year,” she said.

This Saturday’s event is being billed as IGNITE’s Big Bang Creation Celebration.

Chitwood and Wetherington agreed that at one point during the planning process it appeared nothing much was going to happen. But Chitwood said the tireless work of the people involved helped it keep growing. “Plus, you have to remember that artists, for the most part, don’t plan too far out. So I’m not surprised a lot of it came together late,” she said.

“Our decision to plan less and include whomever wants to participate in the event was the best decision we made. We said, ‘If you want to do something at IGNITE, we’ll give you the space and you just come in a do it. And they have done it,” she said.

She credited Megan Pedigo of the Civic Center, Kaci Osborne of the Convention Visitors Bureau, Suzette Boulais of Arts Partners and Steve Fairbanks of the City of Peoria for making her job easier.

“They have opened a lot of doors to these groups and they’ve been reaching out. The Civic Center has been great to work with and Jim Wetherington has been behind us 1 million percent,” Chitwood said.

Chitwood said the only thing that has surprised her has been some of the artists that have come forward to be involved. “For me the most incredible thing has been the unusual artists I didn’t even know existed. And it makes you realize that everything is art in its own way and you can connect so many things to art, like science and technology. I didn’t know what to expect and I couldn’t be more pleased,” she said.

There will be performing arts, including theatre, dance, music, all in various forms of their respective genres. There will be visual arts, including painting and sculpture. Then there will be unique arts, where the items used may not be conventional. For example, automobile paints will be displayed in a car show that could bring a large tourist following, Chitwood said. Shoes and different types of fibers are other examples.

There also will be the family art experience. Creation stations will be set up to allow children and their families to create art.

“This whole region embraces the arts so much more now than it used to and it’s getting better. Next we need to get the arts community as a whole to realize Peoria is a great place for an artist to live. Arts change neighborhoods. Arts can change communities,” she said.

The event opens at 9 a.m. and continues throughout the day, with most activities wrapping up by 5 p.m. There is no charge to get in and parking is free, as well.

For a complete listing of the artists and events visits www.ignitepeoria.com or www.artspartners.et/ignite-peoria/.

Local, state tourism up in 2013

The Peoria area, much like the state of Illinois, enjoyed increased tourism during 2013, the third consecutive year the numbers were higher, according to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

Revealing numbers during a statewide tour that included a stop and news conference at the Peoria Riverfront Museum, the DCEO said the eight-county region represented by the Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau received $643.6 million in spending by tourists in 2013.

That was an increase of 1.8 percent over 2012 for the entire region, with Peoria County realizing  an increase of 2.6 percent, according to state figures. The Peoria region consists of Peoria, Tazewell, Woodford, Bureau, Mason, Marshal, Fulton and Stark counties.

From that spending more than $14.8 million in local taxes were generated.

Statewide, nearly 105.7 million visitors came to Illinois in 2013, which was an increase of 4.5 percent over 2012. More than $2.6 billion in revenue was generated, the DCEO said.  

“The continued increase in visitors to Illinois year-over-year proves that both leisure and business travelers are increasingly considering Illinois as a premier travel destination, providing a direct economic benefit for communities across the state, like the Peoria Area,” said Jen Hoelzle, director of the Illinois Office of Tourism. “With our marketing and promotional efforts, like the popular MiniAbe campaign, we are inspiring travelers from across the country and around the world to come discover what makes Illinois such a wonderful place to visit.”

Don Welch, CEO and President of the Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau echoed that sentiment. “We are very pleased to see that the numbers of visitors to the Peoria Area continues to grow, as does the amount that visitors spend locally in hotels, restaurants, attractions, shops and other Central Illinois businesses. We have the largest convention center in Illinois outside of Chicago, and the addition of new hotels like the Peoria Marriott Courtyard, new venues like the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex and the opening of new attractions like Running Central, will all help attract even more business and leisure travelers to the Peoria area,” Welch said.

Sue Atherton, vice president of marketing and communications for the Visitors Bureau, said the increase wasn’t as large as the previous year, when the newness of some facilities like the Peoria Riverfront Museum and Caterpillar Visitors Center were a factor. Also, she said, harsh weather last year played a role.

“Our numbers are getting better and now we are seeing even more things come on line that should help lure tourists,” she said. She added that the Peoria Civic Center’s national recognition announced Thursday  ̶  that it is the top convention center in downstate Illinois and ranked number 125 in the country  ̶  will bring numbers higher, as well.

Broken down by county, here are some of the pertinent local numbers:

• Peoria County: Tourists spent $319.96 million in 2013, generating $18.7 million in state taxes and $6.8 in local taxes. That was up 2.6 percent from 2012.
• Tazewell County: Tourists spent $189.4 million, generating $11.4 million in state taxes and $3.5 million in local taxes. That was 1.4 percent higher than 2012.
• Woodford County: Tourists spent $16.9 million, generating $1.1 million and $530,000 in state and local taxes, respectively. That was 0.4 percent lower than 2012.
• Fulton County: $22.2 million in spending, generating $1.5 million in state taxes and $690,000 in local taxes, down 0.7 percent from 2012.
• Bureau County: $51.5 million in spending, generating $4 million in state taxes and $780,000 in local taxes, up 0.7 percent from a year earlier.
• Mason County: $31.1 million in spending, generating $1.9 million and $2 million in state and local taxes, respectively. That was an increase of 2.3 percent from 2012.
• Marshall County: Tourist spending was $10.2 million, generating $540,000 in state and $440,000 in local taxes. That was down 1.1 percent from 2012.
• Stark County: Tourist spending was $2.4 million, generating $170,000 in state taxes and $90,000 in local taxes, down 0.8 percent from 2012.

Movie review: 'Guardians of the Galaxy' summer popcorn fun

“Guardians of the Galaxy”

(5 of 10 stars)

(121 minutes.  Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and some language.)

Marvel’s newest production, and evidently the hit of the summer, “Guardians of the Galaxy,” to the great exhilaration of the testosterone-charged across the country, came roaring into movie theaters this past weekend.  And regardless of its many faults — the script being the most fundamental — this film wonderfully defines the genre of “summer popcorn blockbuster” that Hollywood seeks much too often nowadays. 

Replete with a tired story, a mess of a script, and secondary characters that required a scorecard to follow, I cannot help but admit that this two-hour sci-fi flick created the juxtaposition that, in the end, left audiences screaming for more (and trust me, it is coming).

Taken from a Marvel comic franchise from 1969, the story is based around a human galactic pirate named Peter Quill, who was deftly played by the thoroughly charming Chris Pratt, who seeks to find and sell the Holy Grail — er, some sort of metal orb — before Sauron — er, Ronan the Destroyer — can get it and use it to blow up Alderan — er, who knows the name of the planet (better yet, who cares?)  Someone please sell me a damn scorecard.

Before much can happen, Quill, who wants people to call him Star Lord (yeah, who doesn’t?) is assaulted by Gamora, who is betraying her father Darth Vader — er, Ronan — along with another pair of space outlaws (independent of Gamora) named Rocket and Groot.  More about them in a moment. Gamora is a green humanoid alien who all of you will remember as one of Captain Kirk’s carnal conquests, but since he is nowhere around (I don’t think. Lemme check that scorecard later), we are left watching her take her aggression, via expert martial arts, out on a multitude of guys wearing the figurative red shirt.

Now back to Rocky — er, Rocket — and Groot. They too are trying to steal the One Ring That Binds Them All — er, nondescript metal orb — from Luke — er, Peter Quill — and very quickly all together end up in a space prison for causing civil disobedience on the planet that Ronan the Emperor is trying to destroy.  Follow me so far? 

Here is the kicker: Rocket is a raccoon. 

Yes, I will wait while you go and find your glasses and your check your meds list for side effects.

You read that correctly. One of the primary characters in the movie is a walking, talking raccoon with a nasty Napoleon complex. It gets better. His muscle, Groot, is a tree.  Well, not really a tree. He is more like a bunch of twigs intertwined to look humanoid. He’s more of a druid-like Chewbacca on steroids. To round out this magnificent interstellar quint group, at the space prison they meet Drax, a heavily tattooed Incredible Hulk-looking guy who does not understand metaphors yet possesses the impressive vocabulary of a Shakespeare. 

If you can buy into all that, chances are you will love the movie.

Gamora is played by Zoe Saldana of new Star Trek reboot fame. And talk about six degrees:  In the newest Star Trek, Saldana plays Uhura. In “Guardians” she plays a hot green alien who Trekkies will remember back in 1969 or so was seduced by William Shatner. Kevin Bacon has nothing on this flick.  Saldana was rather bland and non-charismatic, but that could have entirely been because of the writing. 

The voices of Rocket and Groot were played by Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel, respectively. Cooper did a remarkable job giving Rocket his personality and he was obviously the most entertaining of the Guardians — thank you, writers. But, really, with a talking raccoon, how could that honestly miss? And Groot… well, let us just say that on a technicality, I still have not willingly seen a Vin Diesel movie, and that record still proudly stands.

Under the heading of Oh-My-Look-How-Far-They-Have-Fallen, the supporting cast is rounded out by exceedingly talented Glenn Close, Benico Del Toro, John C. Reilly, and Lee Pace. Reilly is always worth the price of the ticket, but I think special effects took Close’s performance from “Air Force One” and used it here.

All right, I must admit, the special effects and production values of this movie were stunningly good.  Written and directed by James Gunn, with a writing assist from Nicole Perlman, this was a visual feast for the fanboys of sci-fi.  More writer than director, this is Gunn’s first directing gig under the summer popcorn category and fans will delight to know that he is already signed on for the second installment of “Guardian” in 2017.

However, what really stands out for the film is the remarkable CGI. Aside from breathtaking panoramic shots of future worlds and cities, and all the ensuing battles of tie-fighters versus the x-wing fighters, the fact that a walking and talking raccoon was flat-out flawless was most amazing. And I’m quite certain that the computer animators gave him mange. If it was unintended, I do not want to know. Sheer brilliance.

What gave this film its moxie, and was by far the most entertaining element for me, was the soundtrack.  The trailer for this film gives away that Captain Kirk — er, Peter Quill — loves 1970s pop music and pilots his spaceship while wearing a 1983 Sony Walkman.  “Hooked on a Feeling” by Blue Swede (I wore this record out), “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5, and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye rocketed me back to my 8-year old self.

So, was this film a mixed bag?  Most definitely.  Was it “The Godfather” or “Citizen Kane?” Not even close (hell, it wasn’t even “Independence Day”), but to its credit, it never pretends to be. Was it entertaining in a juvenile, fanboy sort of way?  You bet.

“Guardians of the Galaxy” left me unfulfilled and pining for the days when films like “Star Wars,” “Aliens,” “Die Hard,” and “Jurassic Park” twinkled on the silver screen.  “Guardians” is nowhere close to the caliber of these summer cheese fests, but with time, and a number of sequels, it might get close.

Most importantly, if you are craving a huge vat of popcorn and the mindless summer flick that goes along with it, this is the best that 2014 Hollywood has to offer.

I give this film 5 out of 10 stars.

Civic Center earns national recognition

The Peoria Civic Center has been named the top convention center in downstate Illinois and ranked number 125 in the country by Trade Show Executive magazine, the Civic Center announced.

The magazine ranked the top 250 convention centers in the United States.

“We are honored to be recognized as one of the top convention centers in the country,” said Jim Wetherington, general manager of the Peoria Civic Center.  “It shows what great work the SMG staff and the entire Peoria hospitality community does to make our clients welcome.”

Trade Show Executive magazine said trade shows are becoming about booths and sessions as well as the overall experience. “Today, more than ever, convention centers across the U.S. are doing their part to accommodate show organizers whose visions of their events are becoming more ambiguous,” the magazine said. 

With 110,000 square feet of exhibit space, the Peoria Civic Center was ranked 125th, based on prime exhibit space, in the United States.

“We are fortunate to have such an outstanding facility in the Peoria area,” said Don Welch, CEO/President of the Peoria Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. “A facility with the size and versatility of the Peoria Civic Center compares to those in much larger cities, allowing us to attract and compete for much larger tradeshows.”

The Peoria Civic Center is featured on the list with other SMG managed buildings.  Other venues that made the list in Illinois include McCormick Place and Navy Pier, both located in Chicago.