Over Here, Oprah!

OprahParty

©2009 Chicago Tribune/Alex Garcia

“HI OPRAH, OVER HERE, IT’S ME! The photographer who wasn’t going to get caught into your celebrity tractor beam..Over HE-ERE!”  Yes, although I was going to post a different photo today, you just can’t ignore someone who closes down Michigan Avenue. For the record, I wasn’t assigned to shoot Oprah’s kickoff show since we had enough people covering the event.  But I joined other curiosity seekers from the newsroom who gravitated over to the Tribune editorial board room to get a view of the hoopla – and it was a decent office view. In case you missed it, the big robotic figures on stage weren’t the bodyguards of the Oprah invasion of Michigan Avenue – they were part of the opening act.  As I left the building that day, past the police command post set-up in our lobby, a security guard shook his head and said mail delivery did not occur today in our building…As he said, bemusedly, “Only Oprah…”

Surreal Horse Play

Cavalia

©2009 Chicago Tribune

Shows like Cavalia, conceptualized by the same person behind Cirque du Soleil, are not easy to capture in photographs let alone a single image. Much of my take, even if they captured a peak moment of energy and motion, felt too, well staged. By going a bit more wide and including the snow falling over the crowd, I was hoping to make the picture about the surreal experience as much as the actual stage action. Click to see more photos..