Begin Again
The Cedar starts its 22nd season this coming week with a series of shows typical of our diverse schedule. On Wednesday night we are honored to welcome back the British activist/troubador Billy Bragg, one of those rare artists who has stayed as true to his principles as he has to his craft. The next night we'll have an official "season opener" event on the patio (or indoors if the weather does not cooperate) with one of our favorite local bands, The Brass Kings, who will be joined by singer and veena player Nirmala Rajasekar. The plan is to have this be a free event, but that's dependent on reaching a donation goal of $10,000 in support of our access programs (which include not just free shows like this but also our education programs, community group ticket donations, and neighborhood access events). As of yesterday we only had under $3K to go... you can help us get there by donating at whatever you can spare here.
Friday marks the return of our Cedar Cinema program with an entertaining video collection from the found video website Everything is Terrible! These guys collect clips from old VHS public service videos, old TV shows, even some old movie scenes show up now and again. Then they artfully splice them all together, and the result is hysterical.
On Saturday we're involved with two different shows: at the Cedar we'll be presenting two bands that use traditional American music in unique ways, Crooked Still and Sam Amidon. I blogged about this one earlier this summer. Meanwhile, over at Walker Art Center, we'll be co-presenting another show with Denmark's Efterklang, which will be opened by the Brooklyn duo Buke and Gass. Efterklang gave one of my favorite performances at SXSW this past March. Honestly, I'm going to have to figure out how to be in two places at once this night. Then on Sunday indie pin-up girl Jenny Lewis brings her new project with her partner and boyfriend Johnathan Rice, called Jenny and Johnny, with Love As Laughter opening.
And so a new season begins. It's fair to say that The Cedar is in a stronger place going into this season than we've ever been before. We're well positioned for finish 2010 as our fourth straight year with a budget surplus. We're more on the map with artists and agents which means being offered more quality shows. That's helping to fill our schedule with more strong events, to which we are seeing our audience numbers continue to increase. We are back on track with our funding, largely thanks to Minnesota State Arts Board funding increases as a result of the "Legacy Amendment." All this at a time when affordable live music seems to have risen as a preferred choice of entertainment. It's good to be us right now.
Having some financial stability is allowing us to push our programming towards greater mission fulfillment, without having to worry quite as much about whether every show we book will pay for itself. We've got more global music shows planned, including more West African West Bank concerts, a new series of Indian music concerts we're calling Jewels of India, as well as artists on tap from Brazil, Syria, Mexico, Scotland, Sweden, Venezuala and the Czech Republic, and that's just through November. We're also doing more educational programs, community events, and family shows than ever before.
And it's always fun when something like this happens: three years ago I heard some music by an L.A.-based pop duo called The Weepies. At the time, I asked their booking agent if they were touring, and he told me that, unfortunately, no tour plans were forthcoming. Finally, a few months ago, we set up a date for them in support of their new record, "Be My Thrill." I was a bit concerned that the fee was high, considering they had not played the market for over four years, they get no radio play locally, and not many on my staff had ever heard of them. I took a chance, and with almost two months left before their October 27 date, we're down to the last 60 tickets! So if you want to check these guys out, better order your tickets this week.
In the mean time, come check out The Brass Kings on Thursday night. You won't be disappointed!
