Archives for July 2012

Aquila Theatre presents their 2012-2013 National Tour of Edmond Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac!
Beautifully funny, poignant and often heart wrenching, Cyrano de Bergerac is one of the most famous romantic adventures in world literature. Cyrano is an excellent swordsman from Gascony, a region of France famous for producing stubborn, courageous, and grandiose soldiers. He is besotted with the beautiful  and alluring Roxanne, and yet, because of his famously huge nose, the forlorn Cyrano feels that he can never truly win her heart and keeps his love a personal and painful secret. In this classic story of unrequited love, Cyrano befriends the handsome Christian de Neuvillette who helps him woo Roxanne by composing elegant love letters and teaching him the arts of eloquence, courtship and poetry. Living his love vicariously through Christian, while desperately yearning for the truth, Cyrano’s passionate adventure unfolds, taking us on a compelling journey through the romantic streets of Paris, the dramatic battlefield of Arras, and the placid cloisters of the convent where this exquisite tale reaches its heart warming and emotional conclusion.
Cyrano de Bergerac was first staged to great acclaim at the Theater de la Porte St. Martin in 1897. This superb play immediately thrust the dramatist Edmond Rostand to prominence and led Cyrano to become one of the most famous French plays of the late 19th century. The story, based on a true historical figure, still attracts audiences today, more than ever, both on the stage and in film. Noteable film productions of this tale include Jose Ferrer’s Oscar-winning performance in 1950, Gerard Depardieu’s in 1990, and Steve Martin’s modern American version, Roxanne, in 1987.
The Aquila Theatre will bring its considerable skill and experience in producing innovative and exciting renditions of classical theatre to this superb Eurpoean play. The New York Times has described Aquila’s productions as “Gleefully engaging…almost unbearable fun…directed with inspiration and a beautiful use of physical humor” while The New Yorker has raved “Beautifully spoken, dramatically revealing and crystalline in effect.” With Aquila’s trademark attention to movement and the visual arts, Cyrano de Bergerac promises to be a wonderful evening of live theatre of the highest caliber.
Click here to purchase tickets. $27.50 Adults. Children 18 and under $15. This performance is recommended for middle school aged kids and above. Main Stage. Reserved seating. 7:30 p.m.
Dogwood Box Office hours are Tuesday – Friday 10 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. and two hours prior to an event. For more information please call the Box Office at 231.924.8885.
Tickets may also be purchased at NCCA-Artsplace. Hours are Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thursdays 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.. For more information please call the Artsplace at 231.924.4022.

A long time ago, at the dawn of the Atomic Age, a succession of no-good punks and ill-mannered teenagers took the best of American roots music – hard partying honky tonk country, searing gutbucket blues and lonesome hillbilly twang – and distilled it into a potent moonshine known as rockabilly. This combustible formula, passed down through the generations, forms the heart of the revved-up stylings of Delilah DeWylde and the Lost Boys.
Mixing their own self-penned songs with vintage country/honky tonk hits, rockabilly favorites, and surf gems by such artists as Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Cash, Wanda Jackson, Buck Owens, Gene Vincent, and Dick Dale, Delilah and the Lost Boys come out on stage looking and sounding like a step back in time. Dressed to the nines in the tradition of pre-color television, the band thrilled audiences across the Midwest with its spirited performances.
Delilah DeWylde and the Lost Boys got its start in 2005. Just like rockabilly originators Johnny Cash, Bill Haley and Carl Perkins, this Michigan trio cut its teeth on steel-guitar driven country in the style popularized by Hank Williams, Ernest Tubb and Webb Pierce. But the draw of the big beat was irresistible, and over time the band’s approach has become sharper and tighter. Not self-consciously retro, Delilah and the Lost Boys remain committed to hand-crafted American music that stands at the crossroads of creativity and craftsmanship, liberally drawing from honky tonk country, rockabilly and surf music.
Bandleader Delilah DeWylde (upright bass/lead locals) is veteran of the West Michigan music scene and an alumna of rockabilly institution DangerVille. Her outsized stage presence is the centerpiece of the show – one minute singing sweetly, the next standing on her bass and slapping it into submission.
Next to the sound and fury of Miss Delilah stands cool character Lee Harvey on the big ol’ orange Gretsch guitar. His serious demeanor onstage reveals his reverence for the precision and technique of the “original” guitar gods – the likes of Paul Burlison, Billy Byrd, Cliff Gallup, Grady Martin, Dick Dale, Luther Perkins, Scotty Moore and Don Rich.
Drummer D.J. McCoy may not be affilated with the famous feud between Hatfield and McCoy families, bu the pounds his drums like they stole his prized hog nonetheless. Another veteran of the Michigan music scene, D.J. is a drummer’s drummer” who makes his competition drool with both his skills and the vintage kits he plays.
Taking their task seriously, this trio plies its trade the old-fashioned way – live and in person, loggin more than 75 gigs a year throughout the Midwest and beyond. The band also has recorded two LP’s (as they used to call them): 2008’s Honky Tonk Heart and 2010’s The Price You Pay.
Click here to purchase tickets. $12.50. Black Box. 7:30 p.m.
Dogwood Box Office Hours are Tuesday-Friday 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. and two hours prior to an event. For more information please contact Dogwood Box Office at 231.924.8885.
Tickets may also be purchased at NCCA-Artsplace in downtwon Fremont. Hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thursday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.. For more information please contact the Artsplace at 231.924.4022.

The Crane Wives are a home grown indie-folk outfit from Grand Rapids that defies musical stereotypes. They formed in late August of 2010, and finished the recording of their self-produced debut album “Safe Ship, Harbored” in April of 2011.
The band utilizes three-part vocal harmonies, eclectic instrumentation, and a passsion for song craft to create organic music that is both accessible and innocative. Each live show features contagious energy as well as original music that ranges from whisper quiet ballads to danceable grooves.
The Crane Wives received several awards including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Special Jury Prize, and Listener’s Choice Award (2011) from WYCE Radio. They have also been listed in the Top 5 Bands to Listen to from Michigan by Paste Magazine and were the Local Spin of the year for 2011 according to the Grand Rapids Press.
Click here to purchase tickets. $12.50. Black Box. 7:30 p.m.
Dogwood Box Office hours are Tuesday – Friday 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. and two hours prior to an event. For more information please call 231.924.8885.
Tickets may also be purchased NCCA – Artsplace in downtown Fremont. Hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thursdays 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.. For more information please call 231.924.4022.

If you loved Gilda Radner, have we got the show for you! It’s Francesca Amari saluting the woman she continues to admire. It’s not a “greatest hits” show, since Radner was not a singer. Rather, it’s a biography of the Saturday Night Live comedienne who created such characters as Lisa Loopner, Emily Litella, Judy Miller, Baba Wawa, and Roseann Roseannadanna. The show highlights moments of Gilda’s fascinating life, including her rise to stardom, her marriage to Gene Wilder and her struggle with cancer. It’s a musical biography of the brilliant comedienne told through stories, Gilda’s own words and great music from the Great American Songbook, the cabaret world, Broadway, and a little country to boot! It includes such gems as “Pure Imagination.” “You Make Me Laugh,” “My Pa,” and “Honey (Touch Me With My Clothes On).”

“Francesa Amari has accomplished something truly remarkable with her “Love Song to Gilda Radner”. Because of her sunny disposition, her clear strong voice and her thoughtful spot-on selections, this heartfelt loving tribute will surprise you, delight you, and leave you laughing and crying all at the same time.” ~ Andrea Marcovicci, “Queen of Cabaret”

Click here to purchase tickets. $12.50. Black Box. 7:30 p.m.

Dogwood Box Office hours are Tuesday – Friday 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. and two hours prior to an event. For more information please call 231.924.8885.

Tickets may also be purchased NCCA – Artsplace in downtown Fremont. Hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thursdays 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.. For more information please call 231.924.4022.

Nashville’s 2011 New Country Star Winner, Matthew Huff, is putting on a benefit concert for Newaygo County’s Team Keegan! Matthew has had songs on the top 40 debut single chart on Music Row and is also involved with CureSearch of Children’s Cancer. Check out Matthew’s sound here: www.matthewhuffmusic.com
Local comedian Jerry Donovan will open the show. Jerry appears in comedy clubs and venues throughout the country and is a contributing producer and creative consultant for the soon to be released comedy “Off Hollywood”. For more on Jerry click here: www.jerrydonovan.com
Team Keegan is a local nonprofit organization that creates handmade wooden treasure chests, fills them with $100 worth of toys, and sends them to the homes of children with cancer around the United States. To check out more on Team Keegan please visit: www.team-keegan.com.
Click here to purchase tickets. $15.50. General Seating. Main Stage. 7:30 p.m.
Dogwood Box Office hours are Tuesday – Friday 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. and two hours prior to an event. For more information please call 231.924.8885.
Tickets may also be purchased NCCA – Artsplace in downtown Fremont. Hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thursdays 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.. For more information please call 231.924.4022.