Giant Snow Globes Debut at Millennium Park
Working in a project joint venture, Ravenswood Special Events and Chicago Scenic helped the Chicago Park District kick off the holiday season. The Park District wanted to create a one-of-a-kind family event that would launch a new holiday tradition in downtown Chicago. They collaborated with Sears to produce the Sears Hands On Holidays event in Chicago’s new Millennium Park. Bounded by Randolph, Columbus, Michigan, and Monroe, the park was the perfect place for Chicagoans to celebrate the season. Chicago Park District’s Drew Becker, Adam Schwerner and Shirl McMayon worked with CSSI Project Manager Ken Zommer and Ravenswood Producer Ralph Concepcion to transform the park into a Chicago style winter village complete with plenty of holiday activities for families.

The gala’s main attractions were two huge globes that allowed visitors to go inside. The larger globe was over six stories tall and housed a 16-foot-tall gingerbread bungalow that CSSI constructed. The roof was created out of painted flats decorated to look like a shingled roof and layered cutouts formed the windows and doors. Guests received a faux gingerbread brick to decorate and place on the structure’s Velcro-cloth exterior, creating a one-of-a-kind gingerbread bungalow. A spectacular holiday light show was held nightly and could be enjoyed from inside or outside the globe.

The smaller clear globe was 16-feet tall and featured a beautiful winter scene complete with Christmas tree and blowing “snow.” Visitors could write personal holiday messages on Mylar ornaments that were hung on the tree in the dome for a day then moved outside and used to deco-rate the surrounding trees in the park. The globe created a special opportunity for taking pictures of real people inside a holiday snow globe. At night the globe beautifully illuminated the park.

Families could also enjoy many other activities outside the globe. Free ice skating was available for the entire family at the McCormick Tribune Ice Rink, and on the weekends the Park District made more snow and provided scarves, hats, charcoal, and carrots for visitors to make snowmen.

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