Chicago, IL -
Valentine’s weekend was a fun one in Chicago this year. Whether you were celebrating in a coupleship (or more) or doing the solo route, if you decided to go out Fireball weekend, chances are you had an enjoyable time. After a fun night out at the Aragon Ballroom where CircuitMOM and Company gave a heartfelt final performance, Saturday at the Finkl Steel Mill continued, and improved upon, the history of a fun, energy-packed Saturday night.
People began showing up when the doors opened Saturday night and by a little after midnight it was a packed house. Showing up a little before midnight myself, I was greeted by friendly and helpful volunteers (God bless ‘em!) and patted down by a cute blond cop; go public servants! Let me thank the Chicago Police Department up front for helping out with the event and giving their time to let the masses enjoy a fun night out with friends.
While there was a line for the coat check, it moved quickly and was well-organized. My march to the dance floor was smooth and easy. The Fireball committee showed it worked through the details by providing ample Porto-Johns. While this doesn’t sound like a big deal, try waiting in line for 45 minutes while you hear fun music in the background, and you understand how nice it was on Saturday with thousands of people in a confined space; yet waiting for a stall frequently was less than 5 minutes.
Now the music: to put it simply ROSABEL was on that night. The music was fun and high-energy; heck I heard Britney’s new song! Yet, appealing to the darker side of the crowd, the heavy beat and drums was also skillfully brought in as well. ROSABEL did a great job of playing the energy of the Mill; not leaving the music all at one high energetic pace, nor leaving it to the same pots and pans for 30 minutes, which tends to get fairly boring to those of us not on any party favors. It was great being able to go to a big dance event, and just dance to some fun vocals for once.
On top of the great music, Kevin Aviance put on an entertaining show for the masses; if you stayed until 3:30 or so. He put on a great montage of his earlier hit, along with his new hit. On top of that show, the Fireball committee brought in a couple trapeze artists/gymnasts (pictured above - more photos) who quite frankly were beautiful, both in their physiques and in their performance. Their display of grace, power and strength really was a wonder to behold. And as a member of the Media, why didn’t I get to meet them?!
Probably one of the main blemishes on the evening was the Committee’s selection of the 4 construction workers who danced on stage for a bit. With hundreds of beautiful men in Chicago and elsewhere to choose from to go up on stage and entertain the masses for a bit, the selection of those four puzzled most folks. That puzzlement only increased when those workers were compared to the trapeze artists; to go from one extreme to the other was probably not a well thought-out idea. If you were there, you know what I’m talking about, if not, ask a friend who went! However, that quirk aside, it was a great night.
The music was great, the execution of getting people in and dancing was smooth and generally the crowd was fun and friendly. My hat’s off to the Fireball committee; I hope they continue the tradition of hosting a fun, organized event that also raises money and awareness for our community and a serious disease that shows no signs of abatement. Fun is fun, just do it responsibly and the Fireball committee promoted the event in that manner. Thanks folks, see you next year.
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People began showing up when the doors opened Saturday night and by a little after midnight it was a packed house. Showing up a little before midnight myself, I was greeted by friendly and helpful volunteers (God bless ‘em!) and patted down by a cute blond cop; go public servants! Let me thank the Chicago Police Department up front for helping out with the event and giving their time to let the masses enjoy a fun night out with friends.
While there was a line for the coat check, it moved quickly and was well-organized. My march to the dance floor was smooth and easy. The Fireball committee showed it worked through the details by providing ample Porto-Johns. While this doesn’t sound like a big deal, try waiting in line for 45 minutes while you hear fun music in the background, and you understand how nice it was on Saturday with thousands of people in a confined space; yet waiting for a stall frequently was less than 5 minutes.
Now the music: to put it simply ROSABEL was on that night. The music was fun and high-energy; heck I heard Britney’s new song! Yet, appealing to the darker side of the crowd, the heavy beat and drums was also skillfully brought in as well. ROSABEL did a great job of playing the energy of the Mill; not leaving the music all at one high energetic pace, nor leaving it to the same pots and pans for 30 minutes, which tends to get fairly boring to those of us not on any party favors. It was great being able to go to a big dance event, and just dance to some fun vocals for once.
On top of the great music, Kevin Aviance put on an entertaining show for the masses; if you stayed until 3:30 or so. He put on a great montage of his earlier hit, along with his new hit. On top of that show, the Fireball committee brought in a couple trapeze artists/gymnasts (pictured above - more photos) who quite frankly were beautiful, both in their physiques and in their performance. Their display of grace, power and strength really was a wonder to behold. And as a member of the Media, why didn’t I get to meet them?!
Probably one of the main blemishes on the evening was the Committee’s selection of the 4 construction workers who danced on stage for a bit. With hundreds of beautiful men in Chicago and elsewhere to choose from to go up on stage and entertain the masses for a bit, the selection of those four puzzled most folks. That puzzlement only increased when those workers were compared to the trapeze artists; to go from one extreme to the other was probably not a well thought-out idea. If you were there, you know what I’m talking about, if not, ask a friend who went! However, that quirk aside, it was a great night.
The music was great, the execution of getting people in and dancing was smooth and generally the crowd was fun and friendly. My hat’s off to the Fireball committee; I hope they continue the tradition of hosting a fun, organized event that also raises money and awareness for our community and a serious disease that shows no signs of abatement. Fun is fun, just do it responsibly and the Fireball committee promoted the event in that manner. Thanks folks, see you next year.
Post Your Take on Fireball Weekend
View Fireball Photos
