Hamilton, Ohio – New year. New look.
The Fitton Center for Creative Arts revamped its annual season launch event, creating the 2024-2025 Season Launch Community Block Party set for 3 to 8 p.m. Saturday, August 17.
Partly inspired by last season’s Paint the Town Red event – and the success of activating the pergola area along Monument Avenue with a fabric art installation – season launch moves from its traditional Riverview Terrace location and sets up in the street.
“It’s a true community event,” said Executive Director Ian MacKenzie-Thurley. “It’s bigger than just the Fitton Center. We have more than 20 of our partners and neighbors set up in tents all up and down the block on the east side of the building. We have fellow arts organizations, civic groups, city agencies and area businesses lined up to bring Monument Avenue to life.
“We’re grateful to the city for the cooperation and for closing down Monument Avenue so we could fill it up with all these different organizations to give our guests a new experience. That’s what the arts do. They unite people. That’s part of our mission, to build community excellence through arts and culture.”
Despite changes in the day, time and location of the event, one important thing remains the same. The Season Launch Community Block Party remains a completely free event, open to everyone. No tickets. No reservations. Just show up and have a good time.
“We’ll have a full day of live entertainment on the Monument Main Stage and we’ve got a DJ spinning between the live acts,” MacKenzie-Thurley said. “We’ll have a complete DORA cash bar and food for purchase from our catering partner, Two Women in a Kitchen."
The menu features Bourbon Beef or Chicken served with a choice of Pimento Cheese Orzo, Homemade Mac-n-Cheese or Fluffy Rice ($10), Homemade Grilled Chicken Salad (w/apples, grapes, red onion, celery and pecans) in a pita served with a fruit-salad cup ($8) or a Grilled Vegetable Wrap served with a fruit-salad cup ($8). Kids menu includes breaded chicken tenders with homemade mac-n-cheese ($8). Just want something sweet? Two Women in a Kitchen offers homemade chocolate chip cookies (2/$3) and cheesecake on a stick ($4).
Also outside, the Fitton Center offers itself as a canvas for guests, who can add their own artistic touches by drawing on the building’s distinctive white walls. Guests also can help StreetSpark and Inspiration Studios create a pair of large murals based on the 20 full-scale StreetSpark artworks on walls around the city. Mosaic artist Lori Kay Farr gives live mosaic demonstrations set against the backdrop of the Wings of Hope installation in the pergola.
Inside, guests can explore the opening celebration for the Keepsake exhibition in the first-and second-floor galleries, with a meet-the-artists session from 4 to 6 p.m. There will 3D printmaking in Studio 104 as well as wheel-throwing and hand-building demos in the adult pottery studio. Guests can get their hands dirty making air-dry clay robots in the children’s pottery studio or craft their own unique resin jewelry and keychains in the Creation Station.
The Bake Sale moves out of lobby display cases and expands into the Dance Studio just inside the front doors, highlighting unique items created by Fitton Center artists and instructors for sale.
And, of course, the box office will be open for people to buy tickets for the performances and events comprising the 2024-2025 season. First up? Pickleball BBQ, a Celebrating Self luncheon September 4 featuring the Pickle Lodge setting up a court in the parking lot and sharing America’s fastest-growing sport. Fitton Family Fridays start September 13 when Lexington Children’s Theatre brings Winnie the Pooh to the stage to cap the first-ever Kids Opening Night.
Fans also can look forward to the first show in the Fitton Showstoppers series - Back 2 Mac - a true-to-life tribute to the music of Fleetwood Mac coming October 19. Fitton Cinema brings back the Rocky Horror Picture Show with a live shadow-cast performance by The Denton Affair October 25. And in the new year, the Jazz & Cabaret series kicks off with Good Grief!, a celebration Vince Guaraldi, best known for the music from the beloved Peanuts television specials.
“People have been to past season launches over the years, but they’ve never seen the Fitton Center like this,” MacKenzie-Thurley said. “Between the location change and moving from a Friday night to a Saturday afternoon, we’re offering guests a brand new experience, a new way to engage with the Fitton Center, a new way to share the energy of all the great things happening here in Hamilton.
“We can’t wait!”
The Fitton Center for Creative Arts is located at 101 S. Monument Avenue on the Riverfront in downtown Hamilton, Ohio.
Building Community Excellence through the Arts and Culture
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