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Moscow Ballet's "The Nutcracker"
The Friday night performance of the holiday classic ballet "The Nutcracker" at Robinson Center Music Hall, November 28.
Salute to America had all the usual fare Wednesday from show tunes to fireworks, hot dogs to camels, and many concerts, but as day turned to dusk, a mystery hung over the grounds surrounding the state Capitol.
Ongoing renovations to the Capitol forced organizers to move the stage in front of the Capitol to near the intersection of Broadway and High Street. Due to the change, attendees wondered what direction the festival's famous fireworks would be shot off. In the end, the show did not disappoint, capping off a three-day stretch where thousands of visitors packed downtown.
Norman Cook, of Jefferson City, sat not far from the monuments plaza on the Capitol's north side around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday evening with about a dozen family members. Cook said the renovations and intense heat throughout the day turned away about half of the normal 30 family members who typically show up.
As Cook's family prepared for the fireworks, he and others around the Capitol still thought organizers may shoot the fireworks off closer to Broadway to please the crowd on that side of the building.
"We didn't know if they were going to shoot them off that way," he said, pointing toward Broadway.
Sherry Ehler and Shawna Crane, of Columbia, sat with Terry Hill, of California, in the shade around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday on the east side of the Capitol about five hours before the event's signature fireworks show was set to begin. The group travels to Jefferson City for Salute to America and the fireworks show each year, and are normally able to sit closer to the edge of a bluff that overlooks the Missouri River where the fireworks are shot off on the north side of the Capitol.
Normally, the grounds around the Capitol are packed by that time in the afternoon with people waiting for the fireworks. Renovations to the Capitol and the adjacent monuments plaza dampened excitement for the fireworks a bit.
"We're not sure that this is going to be good; we're just guessing," Crane said. "We may be in the totally wrong spot."
In the end, the show was a hit, featuring plenty of stars, stripes and even jelly fish.
Salute to America kicked off Saturday with the Inside the Walls concert at the historic Missouri State Penitentiary featuring Big & Rich and special guest Cowboy Troy. Festivities continues Tuesday evening with the Lincoln University Salute to America Parade down High Street and wrapped up with performances by Led Zepplin tribute band Zoso and Pink Floyd tribute band Interstellar Overdrive.
Wednesday morning festivities kicked off with the Red Wheel Bike Shop Red, Bike & Blue family bike ride through Jefferson City. Later, attendees could hear readings by actors playing the roles of Thomas Jefferson, Francis Scott Key and Benjamin Franklin in the Carnahan Memorial Garden.
The festival culminated with a concert Wednesday evening by Prince tribute band Dr. Zhivegas on the new stage at the intersection of Broadway and West Main Street. Organizers also added a fireworks display near that stage in addition to the event's usual fireworks.
In all, organizers set up seven stages with free concerts and music Wednesday. Last year, Salute to America drew 50,000 people to Jefferson City during Independence Day festivities. Event coordinator Jill Snodgrass did not yet have an attendance estimate as of Wednesday evening.
Vendors selling everything from ice cold towels to wind chimes lined High Street on Wednesday. A handful of candidates for local and state offices sat in booths and chatted with passersby.
J Pfenny's annual hot dog eating competition on the Madison Street stage drew dozens of onlookers. Brandon Clark, a professional eater from St. Louis and a full-time construction worker, spent the whole competition eating while looking calm and relaxed. With a total of 35 hot dogs and buns eaten in 10 minutes, he fell five short of his goal, but still managed to lap the rest of the field.
Clark said he turned pro in January, and goes to Florida, Mississippi and other states for competitions. For his efforts, Clark won $300.
"I try to get some gas money here or there to pay for (professional eating)," he said.
Nearby on Madison Street, Christina Hudson chatted in the shade with a group of friends as they waited for their children to finish playing in a batting cage and sand pit. Hudson said she attends the festival every year and loved that her children could get free books from a Scholastic booth.
Next to the Scholastic booth at the end of High Street sat a petting zoo with young camels, giraffes and other animals. Hudson said though that heat was taking its toll on the family.
Elsewhere on the Capitol lawn Steven Njenga, his wife and their two children rested in the shade after about two hours spent in the heat that hovered in the low 90s.
Jay Niemeyer, Jefferson City Fire Department assistant chief, said the department received three calls of people collapsing due to heat-related illnesses.
Njenga said they planned to stay for the fireworks, but needed to rest up first.
"We've got some ice cream, something to keep us cold," Njenga said. "It's been so much fun."