Friday afternoon I showed up at a new concert area in Chicago. Jam Productions was trying out a concert on the beach on the north side, and asked me to shoot some pictures of the venue and the crowds. I arrived as the gates were opening as people went running in to spread blankets in an idyllic setting to hear Mumford and Sons. Around 6PM, I went backstage to have some dinner. While eating, the head of Jam came up to me and told me to be ready around 7PM, as the Blackhawks were arriving with the Stanley Cup. At about 7:15, two large black buses pulled up, and the world champions strolled off .Brandon Saad walked backstage carrying the Stanley Cup, and set it up on a table.
At that point, a feeding frenzy erupted- everyone wanted their picture with the cup. I obliged, as many of them were my friends, although I have no idea who some of them were and don’t know how to get them the pictures! Toward the end of the craziness, someone came up to me and said “Give me your camera and get over there. You need a picture with the cup.”
At that time I was ready to go home, when I was told that the Hawks were going up on stage with the cup during the show. So I stuck around, and watched the Hawks revel in their celebrity (They got more applause than Mumford) as they poured beer into the cup and poured it over the heads of the band.
All in all it was amazing to me that a large shiny metal object was the star of the show, even though people had paid a lot of money to see a band!!
