2024 Year in Review: Entertainment festivals see mixed results
Indianapolis added one homegrown music festival in 2024, while three others were put on hold because of financial challenges in the concert industry.
Arts & Entertainment
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2024 Year in Review: Newfields finds new CEO in Field Museum executive
Le Monte Booker, chief financial officer of Chicago’s Field Museum, was announced in August as successor to Colette Pierce Burnette in the role of Newfields CEO and president.
Indiana bands and solo artists will span the globe in 2025
Rapper Mark Battles and soul band Durand Jones & the Indications are two Indiana acts planning to perform overseas in 2025.
Red Curb Comedy to depart Avon for Mass Ave
Beginning Feb. 1, Red Curb Comedy will be a resident troupe at IF Theatre—the venue in the Mass Ave cultural district previously known as IndyFringe Theatre.
Butler University’s Clowes Hall to expand with 1,200-capacity ballroom
The Allen Whitehill Clowes Ballroom, an 11,000-square-foot venue expected to open in 2027, will be built on the east side of Clowes Hall.
Concert promoters, hotels and lodging sites soon must disclose extra fees up front
Consumers often see advertised prices for hotel rooms, short-term rentals, and tickets to sporting events and concerts only to be surprised later by so-called “junk fees,” including resort fees, cleaning fees, processing fees and other extra charges.
IU Indianapolis professor uses AI tool to create opera
“Lexia: An AI Opera” was created in collaboration with the AI-powered tool Avatar, developed by IU Indianapolis faculty members Scott Deal and Jason Palamara.
Efforts to preserve Indiana music history are catching on
The Indiana Music History Project boasts a 1,000-square-foot gallery of exhibits open five days a week in Broad Ripple.
ISO planning major facelift for Hilbert Circle Theatre
The overhaul would include construction of a new rooftop event space and outdoor terrace overlooking Monument Circle, a revamp of lounge areas, and a new covered walkway and entryway along the Scioto Street alley.
IBJ Podcast: Why size matters when it comes to Indy concert venues
IBJ arts and entertainment reporter Dave Lindquist talks with MOKB Presents partners Josh Baker and Dan Kemer about the venue — their third — they plan to open in the Murphy Arts Building and why musicians and their management care about venues of different sizes.
Concert launches Fishers arena to high marks, although parking policy faces learning curve
For motorists who did not pay before exiting the Fishers Event Center parking lot on Friday night, a $20 invoice will be sent by mail.
Indy CD & Vinyl to take over former Landsharks location
An expansion of Broad Ripple record store will focus on a new performance stage and a place where area residents can gather.
Comcast to spin off cable networks that once starred for entertainment giant
Like other cable companies, Comcast in recent years has shifted its business emphasis away from traditional cable toward streaming and other sources of revenue.
Indoor concert venue planned to succeed Fountain Square’s Hi-Fi Annex
Concert company MOKB Presents announced plans Monday to open a 1,200-capacity venue in early 2026 at the former site of Well Done Marketing in the Murphy Arts Building.
Brian McCutcheon makes the art you see in everyday life
It’s highly improbable that an Indianapolis resident hasn’t seen at least one sculpture fabricated in the shop of the Michigan native, who moved to Indianapolis in 2005.
Alamo Drafthouse to open at intersection of movies and motorsports
Auto racing dominates the decor of the Alamo Drafthouse that will open Monday about 4 miles north of Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
City weighing whether to award $40M in TIF, forgivable loan funds for Simon-led hotel, entertainment project
The $312 million project calls for a 170-room Shinola Hotel, a 4,000-seat live performance venue operated by Live Nation, an enclosed parking garage and a skybridge connecting to Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Ice skating returning to downtown’s Bicentennial Unity Plaza
Bicentennial Unity Plaza, just north of Gainbridge Fieldhouse, is frequently home to an outdoor basketball court, but it has also been used for ice skating, roller skating, volleyball and pickleball.
World Food Championships to make Indy debut this weekend
Billed as the “world’s largest food sport competition,” the event will feature more than 1,200 chefs from more than 30 countries battling in 12 categories at the Indiana State Fairgrounds; 21 Indiana chefs are scheduled to compete.
As holidays approach, stores banking on more sales of supersize TVs
Shipments of 98-inch TVs to the U.S. are picking up pace this year, and models as huge as 110-115 inches are on the market.