Magnificent Mile Lights Festival

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
See also, Lights Festival

The Magnificent Mile Lights Festival is an annual event celebrated in Chicago on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. An estimated one million lights on 200 trees[1] brighten the city's Michigan Avenue, also known as the Magnificent Mile. The festival is hosted by The Magnificent Mile Association, formerly the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association, [2] and is the third largest parade in the country, according to the chair of the festival.[3]

History

The festival of lights traces its early beginnings in 1949 when members from The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association put up a 50-foot tall

Disney's Mickey Mouse
has acted as master of ceremonies in recent years.

2020 saw this festival run

behind closed doors due to conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic
.

Tree Lighting Parade

Aside from the numerous lights and decorations that line up the Magnificent Mile, the Lights Festival also features a colorful parade, from Oak Street on the North to Wacker Drive/the Chicago River on the South, en route to the lighting of the city's Christmas tree.[7] The parade showcases 40 floats with huge helium-filled balloons and is led by well-known Christmas characters such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman.[8] Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse from Disney and Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy of the Muppets have also been regular fixtures.[9] Lively music for the festivities is provided by marching bands from different troupes such as the Crystal Lake Strikers Drum-Line, the Loyola Academy High School Band, the Proviso East High School Band, and the Morton West High School Band.[10]

In 2011, the citizens of Chicago celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival. Celebrations included performances by multi-Grammy award winner

Christkindlmarket.[12]

In 2016, The Magnificent Mile Lights Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary.

A fireworks display caps off the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival, which also signals the start of the holiday shopping season on Michigan Avenue.[13]

References

  1. ^ “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival.” Archived 2014-11-13 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  2. ^ Greater North Michigan Avenue Association Archived 2014-02-08 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 14 June 2013
  3. WLS-TV. Archived
    from the original on November 23, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  4. ISBN 978-0-7385-6184-4
    .
  5. ^ Jacobs, Jody. “Lights Parade Action.” Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  6. ^ “2011 Magnificent Mile Lights Festival part 1.” Archived 2013-05-23 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  7. ^ Robinson, Delores. “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival to Impact Traffic on Saturday.” Archived 2013-05-30 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  8. ^ Hoffman, Heywood. “Big crowds attend 2012 lights festival.” Archived 2013-01-22 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  9. ^ Jacobs, Jody. “Lights Parade Action.” Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  10. ^ “2011 Magnificent Mile Lights Festival part 1.” Archived 2013-05-23 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  11. ^ “2011 Magnificent Mile Lights Festival part 1.” Archived 2013-05-23 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  12. ^ Jacobs, Jody. “Lights Parade Action.” Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 August 2013
  13. ^ “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival makes a magical mile.” Retrieved 8 August 2013

External links

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