The Great Milwaukee Summer is shaping up to be one for the books, a glorious four-month period stuffed with festivals, fairs, music series, conventions, and more. There’s only one thing that could possibly make it better—and much, much weirder.
On Friday, June 21, Veterans Park will be the site of something called Baby You, “a public art event where a massive 112-foot long hot air balloon in the shape of a sleeping newborn will be inflated and rise over Milwaukee, accompanied by a new a cappella choral work by composer Michael Schachter.”
What.
This, um, unique 45-minute event is part of the international Make Music Day, which is also apparently a thing. Oh, and YOU can sing to the giant baby balloon, too! According to the Baby You website…
As the sun sets in Milwaukee on Friday, June 21, 2024, hundreds of singers will gather in Veterans Park, on the shore of Lake Michigan, to perform the new composition, while behind them the balloon is inflated, takes shape, and begins its tethered ascent. The combined aural and visual experience invokes the shared humanity of all people. Everyone was a baby once: adorable, vulnerable and full of potential.
YOU are invited to join in this community chorus experience. No auditions are required and it is free to participate.
Sign up HERE. And if you’re a “strong, experienced singer who can read music,” you can be part of the “Core Choir”!
Reading over the Baby You website, we can’t detect any religious, pro-life, or anti-choice messages here. Baby You appears to be exactly what it claims to be: an event—and a “world premiere,” no less—where a bunch of people sing to a giant baby balloon. Also, the whole thing is tied to a Polish magazine, which tracks.
More from the Baby You website…
Baby You—a spectacular sculpture floating in the air—is a symbol for the potential in all of us that’s waiting to be awakened, unlimited, and endless as the sky. It is a reminder of the togetherness of people and the precious nature of life—joyful, full of wonder, and present in the here and now. Baby You aims to impart that each and every one of us is already enough, that we were born this way. Made of tan fabric, the balloon’s colors change with the light, reflecting the many hues of human skin.
And yes, Summerfest will be going on nearby. That means the giant baby ballon will be inflated/serenaded around the time that [checks Summerfest schedule] Mötley Crüe, Seether, and Buckcherry play the AmFam Amphitheater. Beautiful. [h/t Long Mama]
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