Anna Kendrick Gives ArtPrize, John Ball Zoo Shoutout During Jimmy Kimmel Appearance

Outside of concerts and shows, it isn't common to have an A-list celebrity roaming around Grand Rapids, let alone two for different events. Yet. Here we are, having been visited by Walter White, aka Bryan Cranston, and Anna Kendrick. Cranston's visit was known ahead of time, as he was participating in ArtPrize's finale show, but Kendrick's visit to West Michigan was a complete surprise.

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To the point that it wasn't until her appearance last night on Jimmy Kimmel Live! did anyone learn she was here. In that interview, she gave a shoutout not just to John Ball Zoo and its red pandas, but also to ArtPrize. Her visit really gave her a taste of two of GR's signature spots. Here's what she had to say.

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A Wedding, Red Pandas, and Fireworks

Anna Kendrick was in Grand Rapids on September 13th for her brother's wedding, which was hosted at John Ball Zoo. In her interview, she shouted out Grand Rapids before sharing that the wedding was at the zoo, right next to the red panda enclosure. The wedding took place at the Bissell Tree House, and she was shocked to learn the pandas were just wandering around since they are her favorite animal.

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No one can resist these adorable little pandas, and Kendrick was ecstatic to see them. Her story led right into her discussion about another Grand Rapids event, ArtPrize. 

Now, to clarify: the news of Kendrick's time in Grand Rapids aired last night, but she was actually in town nearly a month ago, on September 13th, after Kendrick shared that she couldn't fall asleep because of fireworks downtown. These fireworks were part of the opening ceremony for ArtPrize, the city-wide art competition that just wrapped up over the weekend.

It was a very local conversation: if you don't live here, you can enjoy the misadventures, but if you do, you can relate like crazy to her appreciation of JBZ and loud noises downtown. Both JBZ and ArtPrize have reacted to being namedropped in the interview.