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player ready...The city has organized the first of what it hopes will become an annual center city arts festival.
The Elgin Fine Arts Festival, to be held downtown Saturday and Sunday, includes a juried art show, a performance by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, jazz acts, children`s activities, food and a wine garden.
”Downtowns have suffered a lot, and that`s sad because a downtown is where the character of the community lies,” said Deborah Nier, assistant to Elgin`s city manager and the festival`s main organizer.
Elgin, which has been growing rapidly on its periphery where many new housing projects and retail centers are opening, is serious about not leaving downtown behind.
The center city area, which sits alongside the Fox River, has suffered for years as retailers and shoppers were drawn to outlying shopping malls like the Spring Hill Mall in West Dundee.
Two years ago, the city hired a consultant to devise a master plan for rehabilitating downtown, which includes using the river as the base for an entertainment zone in Elgin. The proposed riverboat casino would be one anchor.
The plan also suggests that Elgin create more cultural activities to draw people to the area. And the Fine Arts Festival is a response to that suggestion.
Artists from Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri and Florida will exhibit and sell their work starting at 9 a.m. Saturday. Cash prizes will be awarded to winners of the juried show, which will be held on the Civic Center Plaza.
Among the performers appearing outside under tents on the plaza during the weekend are the Elgin Community College Jazz Band, the Elgin Choral Union, the Chicago Synthesizer Duo, the Chicago Saxophone Quartet, the Chicago Percussion Quartet and the Elgin Community Theater.
For children, Dan LeMonnier`s ”Folksongs and Foolers” will perform, as will the Melikin Puppets. All performances are free, except for the symphony orchestra. Orchestra ticket prices range from $9.50 to $18.50.
Elgin`s symphony plans a Saturday night concert that features some familiar classical pieces, including the ”William Tell” Overture and Mozart`s ”Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.”
All performances are free, except for the orchestra concert.