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From the Theatre Director

This year's LHAT conference is being conducted at a hotel across the street from Atlanta's Fox Theatr ("The Fabulous Fox") which is one of the most storied historic theatres in North America.  Its interior has a starry blue ceiling with "clouds" that actually wisp across, a pipe organ that's bigger than Wealthy Theatre's studio spaces, and amazingly intricate Moorish architecture.  

But ask anyone who lives here what they consider the most invaluable part of The Fox, and they'll tell you the name of the man who rescued the place: Joe Patten.

The theatre fell into disrepair at the end of the 20th Century, not unlike our own Wealthy Theatre.  In a misfortunate turn of events, Southern Bell attempted to purchase the 4,500 facility, in order to raze it and replace it with corporate offices.  I know it's hard to imagine... a telecommunications behemoth trying to destroy a community icon for its own gain.  

There are similarities between the restoration of the Fox, and the rescue of Wealthy Theatre by the Southeast Economic Development (SEED) organization.  Each involved an effort by the people with the support of the city, that brought back a gorgeous jewel of a venue.  

Joe lives in a gorgeous residence that is part of The Fox -- he's the only resident.  The city of Atlanta gave him a lifetime lease.  We got to see the whole spread and it's almost beyond description.  

More updates to follow, about the sessions and workshops... including some emergency breakout sessions about a late effort by Google to purchase UHF frequencies - so called "white spaces" -that would make all of Wealthy Theatre's wireless equipment (microphones, instruments, video, etc.) completely useless.  Along with every other theatre, church and convention center in the United States...

Greetings from Atlanta!  

Community Media Center (CMC) has a presence this year at the League of Historic American Theatres (LHAT) Conference 2008.  The conference is taking place at the Georgia Terrace hotel, which -- like Wealthy Theatre -- had its cornerstone laid in 1911.

The Georgia Terrace hotel is directly across the street from the historic Fox Theatre, which is one of the most amazing venues in the world (capacity 4,500) with a "saved from the wrecking ball" story reminiscent of Wealthy Theatre's.

LHAT is a huge organization with members across the country and beyond.  This conference is a really big deal... with members, state representatives, board members and a lot of vendors and exhibitors on hand.  Really well put together and very fast-paced.  Later this afternoon, there is a breakout session on "Green Theatres," which is very timely for us!

On behalf of CMC and Wealthy Theatre, I was asked to present on several topics, including a session this morning titled "Engaging Your Community."  The room was full and we had an excellent session!

Talking about what goes on at Wealthy Theatre... quickly makes one realize how interesting a given day is, for us.  My discussion went ten minutes over and I felt like we could have been there all morning.  

The president of LHAT was in the front row, next a member of the LHAT Board of Directors. 

I'll be posting pictures of our tour of the Fox Theatre later tonight or tomorrow.  I got to meet a legend in Atlanta, the man who rescued the Fox (and lives there!)  More to follow...

Cheers,

Erin

League of Historic American Theatres (website)

Rapid Growth Media has featured CMC Venue Services prominently in several recent editions.  We'd like to thank Deborah Johnson-Wood for her interest in all things local, and the excellent reporting Rapid Growth has become known for.  

Here are links to the most recent stories appearing on Rapid Growth:

6/12/08 The Walkies.

6/5/08 The Koning Memorial Garden.

5/29/08 Screening Dailies in The Koning Micro-Cinema.

In my 6/3/08 Wealthy Theatre blog I detailed an experience at a local arena, making the point that size does matter.  

That same week, the honorable John Sinkevics wrote a GR Press blog in the same spirit, containing emails and letters from fans, critical of the arena concert experience.  

Mr. Sinkevics has written on this topic several times.  GR Press is often ahead of the curve.  This may signal a renewed interest, by concert-goers, in the quality of the experience.  

Currently, however, two things get in the way of such a revolution:

1. Media attention is driven by attendance numbers.
2. Attendance numbers are driven by media attention.

Van Andel Arena has 12,000 more seats than Wealthy Theatre, so they have a natural lock on the numbers.  They have a huge marketing budget and exclusive deals with promoters.  We're confronted with the same circular reality:

1. Arenas get major advance media coverage for events, which translates into thousands of people attending.  
2. Arenas get thousands of people attending, which translates into major advance media coverage for events.

And here's an interesting statistic: media coverage of people's dissatisfaction with their experiences at arenas got more attention than all June events at Wealthy Theatre.  And it's ironic because we're the antidote to what they said poisoned their experience.  Our size, and our focus on the artist, provide the remedy - important and original music, local, relevant and inexpensive.  The quality of the experience.

This is not to single out Van Andel Arena.  It's important for Grand Rapids to have a mega mega, for the Saturday night KISS concert.  Or the monster truck show on Sunday (Sunday Sunday).

But let's get back to the "quality of the experience" thing.  If numbers drive media attention, let's look at some:

• Upper section tickets for $50?  We're a tenth of that and all our seats are on the floor, baby.  
• Floor seats for $250?  Please, that'd get you 20+ tickets at Wealthy Theatre.  
• Beers for $8?  Half that and our selection is better - Michigan breweries rock.  
• Echo/tinny sound in the "nosebleed" sections?  No nosebleeds.  Best acoustics in GR.
• Different prices for different sections?  What's the point - every seat at Wealthy is perfect.
• People talking over the band?  The venue is too intimate, the fans have too much respect.

Sometimes you read an editorial (like Mr. Sinkevics' blog) and you feel gratitude - thankful the writer could nail it, and express your experience perfectly.  

Certainly not the first time the GR Press has provided this kind of insight.  At the end of 2006, Mr. Sinkevics wrote a "best of" column, naming our Alejandro Escovedo concert (at Wealthy Theatre) "Best Concert of 2006."  He summed it up in a sentence, famously, as "the best rock concert nobody saw."  

Two years later (June 6, 2008) Wealthy Theatre featured "Four Finger Five" in their only headlining gig before the Rothbury Festival.  I have more bias and less credibility than Mr. Sinkevics, but I'm telling you, this was the best concert of 2008, so far.  It rocked.  Whether at the foot of the stage, or at the back of the house, every seat was a million bucks.  

Nevertheless, Four Finger Five played to a crowd a thousandth the size of Van Halen or Tom Petty.  A small number even in a small venue like ours.  

But in contrast to the complaints expressed by those who attended recent arena concerts, the Four Finger Five fans stayed after to clean the theatre.  They stayed after.  To clean the theatre.

It's not the first time this has happened.  Happens after almost every gospel event.

When I thanked a group picking up trash in the main house, one of them said, "We're just so grateful you had this show tonight, it was so great."  

It's about the experience.  

Cheers,

Erin

Last Van Andel Arena ticket I bought: a Tool concert, scheduled for September 11, 2001.  

Seven years later, I got tickets to another show at Van Andel Arena: Tom Petty, May 30.  

No evil-doers struck, no catastrophe occurred.  Well, I did bump into Corey Ruffin while walking to the show.

The Tom Petty concert was excellent, I’m sure.  Couldn’t say from where I sat.  Seats weren't bad; it's just a lot of real estate.  Seemed like people up front were having fun.

All due respect to arenas, amphitheaters, coliseums, stadiums and other small cities – I think I’m done with venues of that size.  I love live music too much.  

I work at Wealthy Theatre, a service of Community Media Center (CMC).  Relatively speaking, it’s a small venue.  Intimate.  Compared to Van Andel Arena, our gross revenues are “intimate,” as well.  But it’s about the experience.  Nobody can touch us for quality of service, acoustics and ambience.  

Wealthy Theatre is the type of venue where people have their fondest concert memories.  Tickets are affordable.  One can see the performers, which sounds silly but think about it!  In a police lineup, I could not identify Tom Petty as having been the performer.  It may have been Terence Trent D'Arby, from where I sat.  Dance little sister!

At Wealthy Theatre, every attendee has an excellent seat, which is among the reasons to come see "Four Finger Five" on Friday night.  Aside from the fact they rock out with their socks out.

Here are the Top Ten Reasons why it’s better to see live music at Wealthy Theatre:

•    Watt-per-watt, our sound system is better..
•    You can stand next to the sound guy and watch him mix.
•    Our beers aren't $8 per can; in fact they’re half that.  
•    Every $10 seat is as good as the $250 seats at arenas.
•    We feature only Michigan-brewed beers, and they're cold.
•    We have a motorized grand curtain which is awesome.
•    Ladies, there is never a line at the bathroom.
•    Our popcorn is kettle-popped, fresh, and it ain't $5.25. 
•    Closed-circuit video feed in the lobbies... which is nice.
•    The Meanwhile & The Sparrows... just down the block.

Tickets for Four Finger Five and UV Hippo are just $7 at the door, $5 in advance.  Please consider supporting a local band that won’t be playing venues this size for much longer… this could be the show that everyone says they saw, when Four Finger Five has a video on MTV and a headlining national tour.

Our graphic artists have been excited to contribute artwork for this concert, please see the poster by Wealthy Theatre's James Tingley here.  

The main poster by Devin Slattery, who recently opened Byrneboehm Gallery at 959 Lake Drive, is available for download as PDF below.

Cheers,

Erin

Devin's Brilliant Promo Poster For The Show

Four Finger Five website

Congratulations to local dance school The Moving Company for raising over $3,000 for Kid's Food Basket at the "Dancing To Make A Difference" event, on Saturday, May 31, at Wealthy Theatre!

The event featured a collaborative of many local dancers, from Grand Rapids to Ann Arbor, and it was a blast.  

The picture (right) illustrates the most creative use of intermission yet this year - a group of Salsa dance teachers waited in the Main Lobby with music playing, and as attendees exited Peter Wege Auditorium, they got to join the fun as partners to the dancers.

A great use of a Saturday event at Wealthy Theatre, by an important local dance company, for an excellent cause.

Cheers,

Erin

Community Media Center (CMC) extends thanks to all who made "The Wealthy Experience," such a hit.  A party for the neighborhood, this 4/18 event was also a "thank-you" to the many donors who helped us successfully complete our capital campaign in late 2007. 

At a table proudly representing Grand Rapids Police Department were Chief Kevin Belk, Deputy Chief James Farris, Captain Eric Payne, and Baxter Neighborhood Community Officer Jim Wojczynski.  What an all-star lineup from GRPD!  We were equally honored to have on hand representatives of Grand Rapids Fire Department, who greeted neighborhood attendees, and even took in some gospel music. 

We were also happy to see City Commissioner David LaGrand, a longtime leader in the neighborhood and in the city. 

An event for every age, right in the neighborhood, on one of the first warm nights of the season - you can't do much better! 

Normally, community members program Wealthy Theatre; but once in a while, CMC likes to throw a party.  "The Wealthy Experience" was such an occasion.  Thanks to all who made this night so special.

The word "community" can mean many things.  For one, the word defines Wealthy Theatre: we are a venue for use by the greater community.  We are a reflection of our community.  

There are no boundaries to this word.  In January we played host to a group of fly-fishing enthusiasts in an event booked by a firm in Seattle.  That month, we also featured well-known Canadian musicians "Blackie and the Rodeo Kings."  Not long ago, we were home to a Flamenco ballet troupe based out of Miami.  This list goes on...

The month of May, however, is much closer to home, with programming by members who are very local - and overwhelmingly ethnic.  It just happened this way (like everything at Wealthy Theatre).  This month, the community using Wealthy Theatre reflects the most diverse corners of the great city in which we live.

Here's a quick rundown of some highlights.

Tonight we have a "Mother's Day Fashion Show" coordinated by Y.T. Galleria, which is based just up the street in East Hills.  

Tomorrow night (Saturday 5/10) we have the 2nd "New Talent Night" event, produced by the great Glenn Ellis.  The first "New Talent Night" was a blast, and auditions have been going strong since that event, a month ago.  If you ever wanted to experience the excitement of an Apollo-style talen show, right here in Grand Rapids, this is your change -- come check it out!

Next week, we have a four-day booking with El Ministerio Internacional, a Spanish-language series of religious events titled "El Evangelio Eterno."  Although several of us speak Spanish, it's our staff's turn to be the "second language" folks as we work with the event promoters (most of whom actually speak better English than us) to create a welcoming and vibrant environment for many new visitors to Wealthy Theatre.

As we turn the corner into the last part of May, the Grand Rapids Hip-Hop Coalition (GRHHC) is celebrating "Hip-Hop Appreciation Week" with many events at our venue.  GRHCC is partnering with CMC and -- thanks to support from the Sebastian Foundation -- presenting a well-rounded, exciting week of activities, centered around Hip-Hop and African-American culture in Grand Rapids.  There will be seminars for young men (5/19) and young women (5/22) in The Koning Micro-Cinema.  We're hosting the 2nd Annual Hip-Hop Awards (5/23).  And just yesterday, CMC announced a special partnership with GRHHC to show "Dave Chapelle's Block Party" on Thursday, May 22, at 8PM.  This $3 movie will look and sound better than ever, and at that price, it's a chance for folks to come out and experience the new technology, rich tradition and plush comfort of the best old theatre in Michigan.

Finally, closing out the month is a return engagement from "The Moving Company," a dance school based just down the street -- the event is "Dancing To Make A Difference," a charity performance to raise funds and collect food for "Kids Food Basket."  We're very excited to have these dancers back on our stage, in what promises to be an exciting night for a good cause!

We're thrilled about the way Spring has turned out, and proud to serve such a vital function for the community.  

And the local vibe continues into Summer, with local breakout rock band "Four Finger Five" on June 6, and the hilarious Henry Sapp on June 21.  

"The Wealthy Experience" continues and it just keeps getting better...

“Once a new technology rolls over you, if you're not part of the steamroller, you're part of the road.”

-Stewart Brand

In one year, Wealthy Theatre has discreetly wired the facility with HMDI 1.3 cabling and brought high-definition to every corner of the facility.  There was no roadmap for this, and we did it ourselves, from top to bottom.

HDMI is a fickle friend.  We have learned a great deal and the results are outstanding.  

The Koning Micro-Cinema is a technological mirror of our Tech Booth (which provides master control for the Peter Wege Auditorium) but The Koning features digital audio.  At the heart of it is a "Digital Processing Synchronizer" (DPS).  

Unexpectedly, the DPS component failed, recently.  When it did, the order came quickly from CMC Executive Director Laurie Cirivello: "Do whatever it takes, make it right, make it better."

I'm happy to report: it has been made right, and it's waaaay better.  We researched and procured the highest-rated DPS system available within a reasonable budget.  We installed it this week.  

In the process, we've gained an additional 10 watts per channel and a more vibrant High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) processor.  

The Koning is a chrome-plated steamroller.

We've also evolved our playback to include a Sony Blu-Ray playback device (certified 2.0) and a "Networked Media Tank" that interfaces with our Tech Booth via ethernet.  Guests who program the space can connect to the Networked Media Tank via USB2 and playback whatever format they've got.  In testing the Networked Media Tank, we haven't found a HD file format that it won't play.  These include: MPEG-HD, AVI, H.264, MP4, TS, MKV, and many more.

As the cinematic world continues to become more digital, it is more common to playback movies from hard drives or streaming from a network, rather than DVDs.  Our Media Tank is a networked hard drive with HDMI out, connected directly to our projector and audio receiver.  Racked along with our DVD player/recorder, miniDV deck, and Blu-Ray player, the Media Tank is our bridge to an emerging trend in digital media.

We listen and we respond.  Our Micro-Cinema is 100 percent online, fully operational and awaiting your reservation.

Cheers.

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