The day in the story about the BSO and Kichi Library System is incorrect—the correct day and date are Tuesday, Aug. 3.  I apologize for the error and can’t give a good reason why it happened except for the fact that’s the day (Tuesday) that another in-law is coming for ten days to visit and I wanted to block out the day–just, kidding!

The show down at the waterfront "Voices of Our Sister Worldwide" is worth seeing and hearing–pls. show your support for these young women.  There’s another show tonight and tomorrow at 7:30.  Tomorrow there is a 2 p.m. matinee, Sunday, Aug. 1.

The final concert for the Bemidji Area Community Band is tomorrow at 7 p.m. —let’s hope the weather holds and we can be outside because the Baker Park residents will be selling ice cream sundaes as a fund raiser.  

Sorry to get this information to you so late but there is still time to plan being there—

Brigid’s Cross Irish Pub and Restaurant is hosting two different shows this Friday and Saturday, July 23 and 24. Two groups will converge for a cooperative night of music on Friday night at 9 p.m., “Tree Party,” alternative folk/country and “Calamity and the Owl,” original music with a eastern European sound will play for the evening. The kitchen will close at 9 p.m. but the pub stays open until 1 a.m.

On Saturday, at Brigid’s—an engaging entertainer with “a voice of gold,” Eric Carlson will perform beginning at 8 p.m. Carlson’s sets will include a mixture of original and all-time favorites.

Local musician Caleb Erickson will be performing at 1:30 p.m., Sunday, July 25 at the Lake Bemidji State Park Amphitheater as part of the 2010 Lake Bemidji State Park Summer Concert Series. A guitar instrumentalist, Caleb performs a wide variety of styles including classical, jazz, rock, funk, country and blues as well as his own original music. The concert is free but they do ask for a free-will donation to help with costs in bringing these concerts to the state park. A park pass is required to enter the park. This concert is made possible, in part, by a grant from Region 2 Arts Council through funding from the Minnesota State Legislature.

Over 30 area musical groups will perform on the Marilyn Shutter Country Stage from July 28 until August 1. Jam sessions will begin at 8 p.m. each night of the fair. For a schedule of all the musical events, see beltramicountyfair.org. You might want to sign up your child for the Kids Talent Show on Wednesday, July 28 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Elaine Hazard will be celebrating her 80th birthday this Sunday at United Methodist Church. Congratulations Elaine and may you (and we) be blessed with many more years of your thoughtful community service.

There will be a half-price matinee this Sunday for “The Boys Next Door” at the playhouse. More comments on this show on the blog below. Today I received a phone call from someone in Erskine commenting on the preview and the blog entry—it is nice to receive positive feedback! Have a good weekend and take advantage of all that Bemidji has to offer.

I did warn you that Dracula is not for the faint-hearted but if you miss this production at the Paul Bunyan Playhouse you’ll be missing one of the best dramatic productions ever to grace the stage at the Historic Chief Theater. While there, last night, some people in the audience came up to me to say that it wasn’t for the “faint-hearted” and “not their preference in theater” but acknowledged that the cast, the set (could easily grace the Guthrie) and special effects are outstanding. I listened carefully to hear whispers, snoring, or other signs of a bored audience and all I heard was silence. The silence one detects when an audience is absorbed with a production. I grant you that the Victorian language is hard to follow at times but the poetry and grandeur of the piece are integral to the whole. The character of Renfield speaks with a clarity that only a raving lunatic in such psychological and physical pain can deliver—the dialogue is worthy of a finest Shakespearean actor. Don’t let this opportunity pass by for it will prove to be an axial moment when all the points converge upon the center: solid acting, imaginatively conceived set and make-up, musical effects and astonishing lighting effects.  

Although it may sound repetitious to some, here’s another weekend where one needs to choose carefully among the various recreational choices.

Visitors and vendors alike have arrived in Bemidji for some big events. The first of which is the 43rd Annual Art in the Park two-day fine art and craft festival. Over 100 vendors will be on hand to display their work, play instruments, sell refreshments (usually by local non-profit groups like the Boy Scouts or Boys and Girls Club), games, experiments from the Science Center and a host of great family outing activities.

But, don’t tire out the children for the Bemidji Symphony Orchestra/Bemidji Chorale will be held at 7:30 on Saturday night at Bemidji High School. For visitors, just drive west on Fifth Street and the event will be highlighted on the giant sign at the entrance to the school. Tickets will be sold at the door.
The last time the BSO and Bemidji Chorale performed together (Beethoven’s Ninth), the performance was entered into a national competition and it was one of the finalists. One would suspect that this weekend’s joint venture by the two groups may well place them in the running for next year’s qualifiers because Thomas Jefferson, in the person of Clay Jenkinson, will be there to comment on “Testament of Freedom,” the work that will be performed by the two groups. This choral/orchestral work is based on selected writings of Jefferson. Jenkinson, a nationally recognized expert on Jefferson (and some other historic figures) has portrayed Jefferson at many venues and on many occasions over the past 15+ years. Pat Mason, chorale director has been preparing her singers since March and is confident in their ability. The tickets for this July concert are not free as in the past. A nominal cost of $10 per ticket with free admission for students is needed to cover the extra costs involved in producing this event. The doors will open at 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 17 and the seating as usual is open. So parents, get your children there early—this may be a once in a lifetime experience for Jefferson (Jenkinson) will accept questions from the audience after the concert.

The Antique Auto Show is this Sunday on the grounds of Bemidji High School—this annual event will start at 8 a.m. and end mid-afternoon. Although not an arts event per se, it is still worthwhile attending. The entrance fee is nominal and gets you into several hands-on workshops.

The Bemidji Area Community Band concert this weekend will feature BSU professor Steve Konecne as their soloist. Konecne is well known throughout this area and also nationally for his expertise on the alto saxophone. As usual, the concert will be held outdoors, on the lawn in front of the Baker Park Senior Apartments at 7 p.m. on Sunday evening. If stormy, the concert will move to Bangsberg Fine and  Performing Arts Complex on the campus of BSU, 14th St. and Birchmont Dr.

We hope to see you at some of these events–Ernie and I have already decided to go back and see Dracula for a second time.
 

A couple of weeks ago, while touring downtown to get a look at the newly installed beavers, I was particularly struck by one–you know, the one causing so much controversy now.  I took pictures of her–to me it was an obvious "she" based upon the paintings on the sides of the beaver, the roses and feminine aspects of the entire piece.  At no time did I see it as porographic in nature—and am still amazed that some do.  You have to look hard or have a vivid imagination to put that tag on the piece.  I am grateful to people like Cate and Al Belleveau, Mitch Blessing and the other members of the Sculpture Walk Committee for the work they do in soliciting sculptures, selecting the pieces to be shown, etc., etc.  Al Belleveau can never be given enough recognition for all the time and effort he puts forth to the project in making Bemidji a destination city for the arts.  In this case, once again, he is demonstrating how to manage a difficult situation and we are so lucky to have a principled advocate for the arts here in Bemidji.  

Some ten years ago, when we were looking to relocate from the East Coast, our daughter brought us to Bemidji and said, "This is the place for you; it has theater, a university town and an active arts community."  She was right but it was the sculpture that surrounded the bench on which I sat outside the Cabin Coffee House that sold us on Bemidji.  We have told this story many times when asked why we picked Bemidji as our new home—-actually Ernie says that "it was for the weather."

My daughter is visiting this weekend and joined this Facebook group to show her support of Freedom of Expression through the Arts.

That’s all she wrote—