Beginning November 24, 2023, the Gallivan Center ignites with “GLOW,” an awe-inspiring art experience created by In Theory Art Collective. And though you may already be familiar with “GLOW”—parts of the current installation have appeared at the Gallivan and as part of Open Streets previously—this season’s version is larger and even more magical than past iterations, with a broadened theme celebrating Utah’s diverse natural, cultural and social landscapes. “‘GLOW’ now dives deeper into social and environmental themes, but in an inherently positive way that remains full of joy and love,” says Emily Nicolosi, lead artist and director of In Theory Art Collective. Discover GLOW November 24 through February every night at Gallivan Center, dusk till 10pm.

HOW IT BEGAN

The seed that blossomed into “GLOW” is very personal for Nicolosi. In 2019, she experienced a profound loss and “I had to do something,” she said. That something turned out to be koro loko, a twelve-foot-tall dimensional heart, strung with more than 2,000 shimmering dichroic squares, engineered to stand on point. With the help of her then fiancé and now husband, Ian, and several friends, who would become In Theory Art Collective, Nicolosi took koro loko (Esperanto for “heart place”) to Burning Man that fall. There, in front of her plump and glittery heart sculpture, Nicolosi and Ian were married. A year later, when THE BLOCKS issued a call for art pieces to display on Gallivan Plaza for the 2020-21 holiday season, In Theory applied with koro loko. The piece was selected and displayed with Paige Tashner’s Purr Pods, a pair of cat sculptures that, ironically, had also debuted at Burning Man in 2019. Programmers with THE BLOCKS invited In Theory to return koro loko to the Gallivan for the 2021-22 winter season. When they received an invitation to display their work at the Gallivan for a third time in 2022-23, In Theory created two more pieces to display with koro loko—a snowflake-like sculpture titled Miri the Star and an interactive piece they called Love is … that asked viewers to write their definition of love on a plexiglass square to add to the display.

SPEAKING FOR THE EARTH

“For this year’s ‘GLOW,’ we wanted at least one part of the installation to be a collaboration with a Native American artist or group to help amplify Native voices and perspectives,” Nicolosi says. And so In Theory approached Laura Tohe, current Navajo Nation Poet Laureate, with an invitation to write a poem reflecting “GLOW” 2023’s environmental and social consciousness theme. The result is “You belong to the earth,” a beautifully optimistic and comforting poem that In Theory republished in a display of scripty neon text to include in “GLOW.” “The inspiration,” Tohe explained, “was to remind us that we are all a part of this planet we call Nahasdzáán, Mother Earth. She sustains us, human and non-human, animate and inanimate, by providing us with everything we need to exist. We don’t have another place to live. More so during global warming, my hope is that we take more seriously our responsibility to care for the earth and in doing so, we take care of ourselves. I want my children and grandchildren to live in a world that has a healthy heart.” 

THE AWE-INSPIRING SUM OF THE PARTS

The balance of the pieces In Theory Art Collective designed and fabricated to appear along with koro loko and Miri as part of “GLOW” 2023, include:

• Polychroma, a 14-feet-tall, steel-framed arch lit with state-of-the-art LED technology. “This piece acknowledges Utah’s LGBTQ+ community and is a metaphor for the fact that diversity is a beautiful thing,” Nicolosi says;
• Treehive, a revival of an installation In Theory created for Open Streets made up of LED neon hexagons in varying colors and sizes. For “GLOW,” the Polychroma arch will anchor a Treehive corridor into Gallivan Plaza from Main Street, inviting visitors to enter the experience. “This piece is also meant to call attention to the endangered Western bumble bee,” Nicolosi says;
• Columbine Clusters, illuminated interpretations of one of Utah’s most lovely and defining wildflowers, interspersed among the Gallivan Center’s traditional “forest” of lit holiday trees;
• Fauna Illuminata, clear acrylic animal sculptures created on a 3-D printer and lit from within by LED lights, depicting Utah’s endangered species and placed, with the Columbine Clusters, within the Gallivan Center’s holiday “forest;”
• Prismatic Portals, lit steel squares, placed in a progressively off-set, tunnel-like alignment that, according to “GLOW’s” artistic statement, “invite travelers to summon their destination as they move in and through these mind-bending, color-shifting, swirling gateways;”
• and Crystalline Fantasia, three-dimensional, polyhedral stars and diamonds made in the same format as Miri the Star, floating above the Gallivan pergola.

“THE BLOCKS gave us carte blanche to create what we wanted, and the vision became to not just have one or two pieces but to draw people through the space with multiple experiential pieces in a celebratory and inspirational way,” Nicolosi says. “I hope that it becomes a destination that folks will want to visit again and again all winter long.”

Downtown Alliance Executive Director Dee Brewer echoed Nicolosi’s sentiment. “’GLOW’ is an opportunity to experience the winter side of downtown Salt Lake City,” Brewer says. “It pairs nicely with dining at any of the dozens of nearby restaurants and bars or with ice skating with friends or family at Gallivan Plaza.”

“GLOW” opens on the Gallivan Center Plaza (239 S. Main St) on November 24, 2023 and will remain on display through the end of February 2024. Admission is free and open to the public thanks to a generation sponsorship from the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation.

Let’s crack some eggs and break some news: Curry Up Now and Mortar and Pestle are no more. The national chain that took over Cedars of Lebanon and served Indian fast casual populated the space for just two years. We’ll miss their tikka masala but are VERY excited to have locally-owned Laziz spread its wings into downtown. Kafta Burgers all around! The plan is to open in mid-September… and look for that adorable tiny bar in the back to be updated and renamed Back Door. Hey, don’t overthink it!

Across the street, a new owner is remodeling what was Cancun Cafe and is planning a Mexican restaurant featuring pescados y mariscos. Mexican del mar is a category missing in downtown, so bring on the ceviche, we’re ready!

Further down 200 comes a very intriguing new restaurant from the Bon Patt Group (owners of Chrisopher’s Prime, Fat Jack’s, and Toro Rasa). Homecoming Southern Kitchen & Bar will occupy the old Olive Garden–a very desirable space kitty corner to Hyatt Regency, which will open next month. A neon sign is up and a menu isonline, but judging by the steel framing, they have several months to go before we get to taste a Pulled Pork Melt, slicing into Prime Rib, or sample the Fried Fish Plate with hushpuppies. Oh Momma! 

We love this next story a latte. Grinding it out in the grounds of the Axis Building, Cupla Coffee is moving east of the aforementioned Homecoming! We’ve bean going for a Cupla years, espresso-ly for the lox, egg and cheese croissant, and of course those signature drinks. 

Speaking of Hyatt Regency, the new convention hotel is a gorgeous addition to the skyline. We love the renderings for the soaring, modern Lobby Bar, but even more alluring is the Catalan-influenced restaurant, Mar | Muntanya (sea and mountain). Located on the 6th floor with an outdoor terrace, it is helmed by Chef Tyson Peterson, formerly at the acclaimed Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant inside St. Regis, Deer Valley.  He recently told us to expect the menu to feature elk tenderloin, suckling pig, and the highest quality oysters. To wash it down and truly imbibe the Spanish flavors, Chef is working on a stupendous selection of sangrias as well as a gin-heavy craft cocktail menu (apparently Spaniards love gin, who knew?)

Finally, this writer recently moved into the Westgate Lofts on 200 South and what would you know? Maxwell’s Little Bar (21+) has opened directly below us, next to Vosen’s German Bakery. (We’re doomed). The adorable postage stamp space fits 30 people and offers all those beloved recipes you loved at the Main Street location. They even have a walk-up for slices! See you there soon. 

The Downtown Alliance is adding a layer of holiday magic to the Gallivan Plaza with the inaugural season of GLOW Garden at Gallivan, now installed and ready to be experienced through March 1. 

Emily Nicolosi and In Theory Art Collective have created three outsized sculptures designed with thousands of dichroic pieces that glow at night and reflect the full spectrum of color during the day. One work, Love Is, was designed for the community to interact with the piece.  The sculptures elevate an already festive Gallivan Center experience which is adorned with holiday lights and brimming with ice skaters. 

“We started creating art for Burning Man,” said Nicolosi. “It’s a place that inspired us to try new things like making art and figuring out how to do it together, as a collective. We hope our art creates a magical moment in your day, and inspires you to think about the best parts of being human: our wishes, dreams, and love for each other.”

“Downtown is lit for the holidays,” said Director of The Blocks, Lucas Goodrich. “There are hundreds of events downtown and Emily Nicolosi’s sculptures will add to that vibrancy and make Gallivan Plaza the center for holiday magic.” 

Fall is traditionally the time for a return to the theater, from Abravanel Hall to Rose Wagner, the arts are in full swing. Of course, venues will have the safety of their patrons at the top of their minds, so expect masks, distancing, vaccination cards, and check with presenters for updates. Following is a roundup of the shows, concerts and performances going on in THE BLOCKS now through the end of 2021 and beyond.  

Abravanel Hall

The Utah Symphony’s, busy fall performance schedule at Abravanel includes: Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi Films in Concert, September 9 & 10; Hilary Hahn Plays Brahms, September 16 & 17; Theirry Fischer Conducts Stravinsky & Rachmaninoff, September 24 & 25; Enrique Mazzola Conducts Brahms 4, Verdi & Rota, October 21, 22 & 23; Back to the Future Films in Concert, October 29 & 30; Salute to Youth, November 2; Stephen Hough Plays Brahms’ Piano Concert No. 1, November 5 & 6; and Pink Martini performs with the Symphony, November 12 & 13. Shiyeon Sung m

akes her conductorial debut with the Utah Symphony in a concert featuring Tchaikovsky 4, Arlene Sierra & Prokofiev, November 19 & 20;  the popular Messiah Sing-In returns to Abravanel Hall on November 27 & 28; Inmo Ynag plays Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, December 3 & 4; Celtic Woman performs holiday songs with the Symphony, December 7; Ingrid Fliter Plays Chopin’s Concerto No. 2 with the Symphony, December 10 & 11; Utah Symphony’s Holiday Pops Concert starring Jodi Benson will be held December 17 & 18; the annual Here’s Comes Santa Claus concert is scheduled for December 18; and Home Alone Films in Concert will play December 21 & 22. Non-Utah Symphony performances and events at Abravanel Theatre this fall include Nathan Pacheco with the American Heritage Lyceum Philharmonic Orchestra, November 23. Tickets to all Abravanel Hall events can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.  

Eccles Theatre

In celebration of its 10-year anniversary, Sting & Honey presents Waiting for Godot, September 10-25. Political comedian Bill Maher performs live at the Eccles on September 12. The Armchair Expert podcast will broadcast its Armchaired & Dangerous Live show at the Eccles on September 16. The Los Angeles Azules perform on September 30. The Grammy-award winning band, Little Big Town, will be in concert September 10 and 11. The Last Podcast on the Left performs a live, horror-themed show from the Eccles on September 25. Enjoy an evening of flamenco music and dance with Flamenco Fascinación and Los Angeles Azules on September 30. Contemporary Christian artist, Amy Grant, will deliver a concert on October 9. Comedian Tom Segura makes a stop in SLC on his I’m Coming Everywhere world tour on October 14. Broadway Across America presents Roots & Rhythm on November 5. Texas-based guitarists, Kithara Duo, will be in concert on November 6. Join one of America’s most beloved writers and comedians for An Evening with David Sedaris on November 17. Host and creator of the weekly comedy show, Patriot Act, Hasan Minhaj, visits the Eccles on November 19. The Pilar Pobil Legacy Foundation presents the Tablado Dance Company on November 19 & 20. Culinary extraordinaire Alton Brown performs his live show on November 20. The Cirque Musica Holiday Spectacular plays on November 21. GENTRI: The Gentleman Trio will perform their Finding Christmas show on November 26 & 27. Zions Bank/Broadway at the Eccles present the incomparable Mean Girls, November 30-December 5. Renowned singer/songwriter Gregory Alan Isokov performs on December 7. Mystery Science Theater’s Time Bubble Tour arrives at the Eccles on December 14. Mat and Savanna Shaw wrap up 2021 at the Eccles Theatre with Believe, a show centered around the hope and joy of the holidays, on December 18.  

Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre 

The Capitol Theatre is home to two of Utah’s most beloved performing arts organizations: Ballet West and Utah Opera. Ballet West’s 58th season kicks off on October 22-30 with Ben Stevenon’s Dracula and then continues with The Little Mermaid, November 5 & 6 (with a an all-Spanish-spoken show on 11/6); The Nutcracker, December 4-26; a double bill of Carmina Burana and Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces, April 1-9; Romeo & Juliet, February 11-19; and  Choreographic Fest V, May 11-15. The Utah Opera opens its 2021-22 season with Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, a funny and colorful production set in the 1980s, on October 9-17. Subsequent productions include Jonathan Dove and April De Angelis’ Flight, January 15-23; Puccini’s Tosca, March 12-20; and Gilbert & Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance, May 7-15.   

Other scheduled Capitol Theatre performances include: Arturo Sandoval Quintet on September 10, multi-Grammy Award winning Jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant on September 25 and an Oscar Peterson Tribute on November 19, all presented by the GAM Foundation/Jazz SLC. The comedic and completely Spanish-speaking production, Knockout de Risas, will be held on September 18. The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts will bring more than 70 dancers of all ages to the Capitol Theatre stage for Vision, an “exploration of the human body as a source of creation, inspiration and revelation” on September 24. The outrageously funny drag queen, Bianca Del Rio, aka the Clown in a Gown, will have audiences eating out of the palm of her hand with her new one-woman show, Unsanitized, on September 26. Tickets to all Capitol Theatre performances can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.    

Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center

Repertory Dance Theatre officially kicks off its 2021-22 season, appropriately dubbed “Homecoming” with North Star, on September 30 -October 2. Subsequent shows include Compass, November 18-20; Emerge, January 7-8; Regalia, March 5; and Six Songs From Ellis, April 21-23, 2022. Live and in-person performances of RDT’s monthly “wiggle-friendly” shows for children and families, aka Ring Around the Rose, return September 11 and continue October 9, November 13, December 11, January 8, February 12, March 12, April 9 and May 14.

Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Total Eclipse runs September 16-18, along with Moving Parts, a family-and sensory-friendly performance on September 18. 1520 Arts presents They Reminisce on September 24. 

The Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation presents Rite of Spring, somewhat ironically on October 8; a performance by its 2018 Bronze Medal Winner, Sergey Belyavsky, on November 12; acclaimed Taiwanese-pianist, Ching-Yung Hu, performs at all-Liszt concert on March 12; and Hsiang Tu performs a variety of pieces for piano inspired by animals. 

Plan-B Theatre presents Sleepy Hollow, a world premiere by Matthew Ivan Bennett, its annual co-production with Radio West, broadcast live on KUER October 29 at 11 a.m. and rebroadcast the same day at 7 p.m. Pygmalion Productions’ fall 2021-22 schedule includes Tragedy Averted, October 8-31; Bella Bella, February 11-26; and Body Awareness, May 6-21.

Other performances slated for The Rose include: Awkward Productions’ Bubbles the Clown – Unmasked and Unfiltered, on October 17. In the spirit of Halloween, Warehouse 5 Drum Theatre brings its Paranormal Percussion, on October 18. Nurse Blake, a comedic tribute to healthcare workers everywhere, on November 10.  

 Tickets to all events held at The Rose can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.      

Well, it’s almost here...Robert Redford’s renowned Sundance Film Festival is just around the corner and movie enthusiasts are itching to get their hands on tickets and experience the annual 2-week event, held January 23 - February 2, 2020. While many cinephiles think that Park City is the spot to be for movie showings and celebrity sightings, downtown Salt Lake provides an unprecedented Sundance experience for locals and out-of-towners alike. The following tips are sure to help you make the most of your downtown Sundance experience.

Get Your Ticket

Copyright 2015 Sundance Institute | Photo by Leah Peasley. Photo Courtesy of Visit Salt Lake

Being a local has its advantages when it comes to getting a jump start on buying festival tickets. Individual ticket sales begin January 14 (for Sundance Institute Members), January 16 (for locals) and January 21 for the public (anyone who isn’t a local or a Sundance Institute Member). Purchase your tickets here. Individual tickets purchased in advance for all screenings at all venues are $25 and kids screenings are $10. Online ticket orders must be picked up at the main box office at Trolley Square (602 S. 700 East). Electronic ticket receipts will not be honored at the theater. See the full festival program for all of the films showing in Salt Lake during 2020 here

Download the App

Copyright 2015 Sundance Institute | Photo by Leah Peasley. Photo Courtesy of Visit Salt Lake

Did the movie you’ve been anxiously awaiting to see sell out before you could get tickets? No problem. The Sundance Film Festival 2020 app provides access to the online eWaitlist. All you need to do is log into the app two hours before a film will begin to receive an eWaitlist number. Each screening with open seats will sell tickets to the eWaitlist based on availability a half-hour before screening time. If you are lucky enough to snag a last-minute ticket, cash is the only form of payment accepted at the door. The free app also puts the program guide, schedules, maps and other information on your smartphone.

Where to Watch

Copyright 2015 Sundance Institute | Photo by Leah Peasley. Photo Courtesy of Visit Salt Lake

The festival has scheduled 149 screenings at six Salt Lake venues: Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center (138 W. 300 South), Broadway Centre Cinemas 3 & 6 (111 E. Broadway), Salt Lake City Main Library Theatre (210 E. 400 South), Grand Theatre (1575 S. State St) and Tower Theatre (876 E. 900 South). Every movie on the Sundance slate will play in Salt Lake at least once. Filmmakers like the Salt Lake screenings because they provide a test audience that isn’t full of industry types, the way the Park City screenings are. No matter what venue you choose, make sure to get there 30 minutes before showtime.

Enjoy the Lounges

Most of the “hospitality lounges” that pop up during Sundance are invitation-only sites where companies can cater to celebrities. That’s not the case in downtown Salt Lake. Visit Salt Lake is opening three Festival Lounges near the Salt Lake screening venues. This year brings the new Queer Lounge at The Daily (222 S. Main St) to its annual line-up of popular Sundance Film Festival Lounges. Located in the heart of downtown, The Queer Lounge adds new live music choices, drag shows, performance poetry and trivia to the mix and joins the popular Festival Lounges at Copper Common (111 E. Broadway), next door to the Broadway Center Cinemas and East Liberty Tap House (850 E. 900 South), near the Tower Theatre. These Lounges are the perfect places to enjoy live music by local musicians, discuss film, art and theater both pre- and post-screenings, nightly. There are no entrance fees and they are open to the public, but seating is limited. Pop-up events and cabaret variety shows at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center are sure to spice up your festival experience.

From documentaries to drag shows, there’s no better place for the ultimate Sundance experience than downtown Salt Lake!