First Night Evanston Proves to be Fun for All

A variety of art forms were on display on New Year’s Eve, giving residents of Evanston and the surrounding areas an entertaining way to send out the year as part of the annual “First Night Evanston” celebration.

Music, magic, poetry and dancing made it a fun night for all ages celebrating the New Year at six locations in the city.

“This is fabulous, really great,” said Mike Grucza of Chicago while taking in some jazz music at the First Presbyterian Church. Grucza was taking part in First Night Evanston for the first time with his wife, Vicki Lang. “I’m torn between some of the performances happening at the same time.”

Performances from Corky Siegel and Chamber Blues and Regina Carter’s Southern Comfort highlighted events held at the Presbyterian Church, Evanston Public Library, First Congregational Church, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Nichols Concert Hall at The Music Institute of Chicago and First United Methodist Church.

Lang said the night out was a perfect way to “end the year with some good music” while listening to the popular Yves Francois et Rocambu Jazz that had people dancing to the beat in Roy Hall.

“We looked at the lineup and thought this would be a really fun thing to do,” Lang said. “We were actually supposed to meet up friends about an hour ago, but got distracted and came here.”

Highland Park resident Anne Marie Kenik also came out for the music.

“I love the blues, the folk lore - just the whole variety they have here,” Kenik said. “I love the whole vibe, we’ve been to five venues already.”

“It’s a great crowd, good music and no pressure,” she added. “You can come by yourself or with a group and can walk to all the locations.”