On Saturday afternoon, a large crowd formed in Lincoln Square for an inaugural social gathering.
Among them was Nox, a sweet, shy Pisces who loves cuddles.
There was also Diane, a fierce Tennessee native who loves long naps and cleanliness.
No, they weren’t two singles at a dating event, but two felines on the Lincoln Square Cat Tour.
For two hours, attendees hopped from house to house to view more than 125 residents’ cats on porches, or in windows and yards . They wore cat ears and cat patterns on their clothes. They carried cat-themed posters and cardboard cut-outs. One participant rolled her own cat in a stroller. Some used the official Google Map to go rogue, while others joined one of four guided routes with relevant names: Chonk, Zoomies, Primordial Pouch and Toe Beans. More than 60 people, including some from out of state, showed up for the Chonk course.
From Minneapolis to Toronto, cat tours have become an international phenomenon, but the Lincoln Square soiree on Saturday — branded “Caturday” — was the first of its kind in Chicago. Organizers and attendees said they relished the opportunity to not only build community with their neighbors, but be whimsical and escape the burdens of everyday life.
“Life, especially in the last couple years, has been heavy,” said Christine Blevins, who helped organize the cat tour with her neighbor, Kalin Webber. “This is a free, fun event that’s good for any age to get out there and do. It’s joyful, it’s silly and I think people need it.”
The tour was purposely scheduled to follow Davis Theater’s showing of a curated production of cat videos that has played in venues across the globe. Blevins said the response was overwhelmingly positive when she floated the idea in the Lincoln Square Facebook Group. Cat hosts quickly got creative, submitting the dating profile-like descriptions of their pets for the Google Map, which also highlighted local animal rescues: Harmony House for Cats, Touched by an Animal, Cat-Tastrophe and One Tail at a Time.
Lincoln Square businesses also got in the spirit, offering a 10% discount for customers who used the “meow” code word. There was even a busker, Remy Cohn, who kicked off the Chonk tour with a couple of ditties, including the classic “Smelly Cat” song from the “Friends” TV show.
The quirky and quaint neighborhood, which Webber compares to the fictional town in “Gilmore Girls,” was a fitting setting.
“Lincoln Square feels like the Stars Hollow of Chicago,” Webber said.
Karen Sotelo, 28, drove from Wheeling to experience the charm.
“I’ve seen [the tour] in other cities, so I was really excited to see it come to Chicago,” said Sotelo, who carried a cardboard cut-out image of her sister’s cat, Decibel.
Sotelo said she appreciated the opportunity to meet people and learn about the animal resuces.
“It’s not just us hanging out and seeing cats,” she said. “The fact that it’s also contributing to a greater cause is nice.”
The CatVideoFest attendees also gave back, with10% of ticket sales donated to the Red Door Animal Shelter in West Ridge. The multi-generational crowd also enjoyed having a collective, experience instead of just scrolling through cat videos on their phones, said Peter Kuli, program director at Davis Theater.
“Being able to share that with other people, I think, has also been a big draw of it,” he said. “That also relates to coming out of the pandemic and wanting to find third spaces.”
They also like dressing up. Dik Salerno, 56, of Andersonville, wore a cat mask, while his friend, Amber Holst-Wilson, wore a skirt with a cat pattern and carried a cat-shaped purse.
“I like printed clothes with dinosaurs — like toddler chic,” said Holst-Wilson, 46, of Lincoln Square. “I have a lot of cat apparel and accessories.”
Holst-Wilson said she looks forward to CatVideoFeast every year.
“At a time when we need to lean into community more and uplift each other, it’s just a joyful event.”
