Creative Alliance’s annual Marquee Ball may be Baltimore’s most involved costume party of the year for adults. From closets, studios, and Amazon Prime delivery boxes all over the city, pink ball gowns, furry tails, and a lot of green face paint were used for this year’s Wizard of Oz theme.
For their part, the team at Creative Alliance also did not disappoint, taking upwards of a week to reimagine the restored Patterson Theater as L. Frank Baum’s Land of Oz, complete with fields of poppies, the Emerald City, Auntie Em’s wrecked house, and of course, a yellow brick road.
Flying monkeys mixed with Glindas as party-goers sipped $5 mystery champagne cocktails, the proceeds of which will go towards children’s art programming at the center. Tin people conversed with tornados as they cycled in and out of the upstairs resident artist studios throughout the evening. There was live music in the theater (if you could get to it through the crowd) and a silent visual art auction of over 100 pieces by some of Baltimore’s own. But really what lingers, after the bars have run dry and the ruby slippers come off, is that Baltimore loves the Creative Alliance and the Creative Alliance reciprocates that love by throwing the city a damn good party. (Suzy Kopf)
Disclosure: BmoreArt was a media partner for this year’s Marquee Ball.
Photo Essay by E. Brady Robinson
Photos by E. Brady Robinson
Editor’s Note: BmoreArt was a media sponsor for this year’s Marquee Ball
The Marquee Ball is Creative Alliance’s annual fundraiser gala that includes a VIP dinner, live and silent auctions, open studios, and wild dance party that honors The Patterson’s past history as movie palace. The movie theme inspires party decor and attire of the partygoers with eye-popping results! Baltimore’s wildest supports the Creative Alliance’s free youth education and community arts programs, praised for their high quality by parents, teachers, and educating institutions alike. Annually, 3,500 Baltimore City elementary and middle school students learn new thinking and practical skills through art making. This year the theme was Wizard of Oz.
