/ The Illinois Shakespeare Festival returns to the Ewing Cultural Center in Bloomington after a COVID hiatus. Bloomington-Normal’s tourism chief says she hopes to attract a lot of road trippers this summer, as vaccinated Americans venture back out again after spending last year cooped up. “It looks much better. It actually looks better than the next 6 months, the rest of the year,” said Crystal Howard, president and CEO of the Bloomington-Normal Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. There are over 50 events happening in Bloomington-Normal this summer, including many outdoor ones. One notable returning event (after a 2020 cancellation) is the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.