Waukegan’s annual salute to one of its most famous sons returns to celebrate his literary achievements and toast the end of summer.
The 24th annual Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine Arts and Music Festival is from 11 a.m. to 4:51 p.m. Aug. 17 at Bowen Park in Waukegan, presented by the Waukegan Park District. The festival celebrates author Ray Bradbury with art and music.
“It ends at 4:51 again as a tribute to Ray Bradbury’s novel, ‘Fahrenheit 451,’” said Angela Marcum, cultural arts specialist with the Waukegan Park District.
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The fest will be in a new location in Bowen Park, she said, one that will be visible from Sheridan Road.
“It will be in front of Lilac Cottage, where Jane Addams used to stay,” she said. “We’re actually having a really big stage this time. I switched up performers so it’s all different kinds instead of just bands.”
The fest opens with ALATS Dance Company of Waukegan, she said. The company has performed several times at the Jack Benny Center for the Arts.
“They just bring so much energy to any performance so I thought, what a great way to start off the fest,” she said.
The Blues Family Robinson, a blues, rock and country band from Waukegan, will perform; along with Chicago rock band Crooked Moon and indie-folk guitarist Jack Tell, a singer-songwriter from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Waukegan’s own Funology string quartet rounds out the entertainment.
“The group consist of four of our music teachers from the Jack Benny Center,” Marcum said. “They’re a string quartet and they play things like The Beatles, Lady Gaga, Queen and some jazz tunes. We’re having them on the main stage. It’s very cool.”
Meanwhile, an artist from the Dandelion Gallery and Art Studio will do a live work.
“People love walking by and seeing someone paint,” she said. “It feels like a Bob Ross experience.”
There will be a community art project where kids and adults alike can create art.
Art vendors — including painters, sculptors and photographers — will have their work for sale. There will be a couple of food trucks, as well.
“The arts are for everybody. Even our music lineup, we’ve made it more diverse. I’m just really hoping people feel included,” she said.
There’s also a literary component. People will read parts of “Dandelion Wine” and authors will be on hand. Books will be spotlighted, she said.
Ray Bradbury was born in Waukegan on Aug. 22, 1920, and died June 5, 2012. He was an author and screenwriter in fantasy, science fiction, horror and mystery. Some of his most famous works include “Something Wicked This Way Comes” and his short-story collection, “The Martian Chronicles.”
“It’s really exciting. He got his love for writing and reading at the Carnegie Library — which is going to be opening this fall,” she said. “The park district had bought the old library and has been working furiously on renovations and restoring the library and adding on to it. Re-creating the library where Rad Bradbury went as a kid and was in the library for hours. This is an exciting time to celebrate. He is a hometown hero.”
The Waukegan History Museum at the Carnegie will feature the Bradbury room, which will be designed to look the way it was when the author frequented the library as a child. It will contain his personal papers willed to the Waukegan Public Library and an interactive element to the permanent exhibit.
Speaking of dandelion wine, Nightshade and Dark’s Pandemonium Brewing Company will provide many varieties of beverages, including beer, wine and cocktails, she said, although you won’t find wine of the dandelion variety.
The festival celebrates art and literature, and she hopes people come experience everything the event has to offer.
“It’s a celebration of coming together as a community,” Marcum said. “It’s a free fest and we’re saying please come and enjoy.”
Annie Alleman is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.
Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine Arts and Music Festival
When: 11 a.m.-4:51 p.m. Aug. 17
Where: Bowen Park. 1800 N. Sheridan Road, Waukegan
Tickets: free
Information: 847-360-4746; waukeganparks.org/event/24th-annual-ray-bradburys-dandelion-wine-arts-music-festival
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