There is an old saying that says it was the (last) straw that broke the camel’s back. While this is often attributed to a negative situation, what if the last straw was an addition that broke the region wide open and in a good way?
That is exactly what has happened to the 10
th Anniversary season of the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park Outdoor Summer Concert Series this year as their calendar of music events has exploded, causing so much buzz in our community that I knew I had to sit down with the person charged with making the concert series come together, Errol Shewman, guest services manager.
Right away, I congratulated them on their explosive lineup of acts and how much excitement this lineup, which many have proclaimed as their biggest season ever, has generated.
I share that many in the community are excited, saying that The Gardens really took a huge leap in expanding their programming this year as much as they did. Shewman answers, “Well, it’s not really that much more.”
I sit back and scratch my head, asking him how many shows are there this year compared to last season, adding, “This year sure feels like you have doubled the number of acts at your venue.”
“In the beginning and for many years after our debut, we featured between 10-12 national acts with the month of August devoted to our Tuesday night music series showcasing local talent,” says Shewman. “And while the 2012 season is indeed our biggest season with 25 national acts and two months devoted to our Tuesday night music event, in 2011 we featured 22 national acts.”
[Insert the image of the last straw landing on camel’s back. Pause.]
And he was right. As we look over the 2011 season and compare it to the 2012, only three more acts were added. But in the mind of the public, it felt like a doubling of our numbers.
And their secret to this new season?
“Well, we made a commitment after our last expansion in the amphitheatre to match our growth into a (now) 1,900-seat venue as we purposefully focused more deliberately on creating a place where diversity was center stage in our programming,” says Shewman. “We wanted to come off as expansive and not subtractive in our pursing of a diverse program, so we kept it all and kept adding more acts to fill in the gaps.”
And in case you wondered if anyone was noticing, as I wrap up my short time at The Gardens, Shewman shares another story from another personality in our community.
“I was having a conversation with Kevin Murphy, station manager of Community Media Center’s WYCE, the other day and he said, 'I appreciate the fact that Meijer Gardens has continued to make a commitment to the same kind of music that WYCE supports,’” says Shewman of Murphy’s quote, “'Which is to say that they have used the summer concert series to draw attention to great, but somewhat under-the-radar artists like Brandi Carlile, The Head and the Heart and Andrew Bird, as opposed to going for nothing but name recognition and nostalgia and ending up with a watered-down series.’ Well, I think that is a fine endorsement, don’t you think?"
And I think he is correct as I survey a list of artists from young and old, from cutting edge to classically beautiful. Even Lyle Lovett is coming back for his seventh time in a row at The Gardens. “Lyle loves to joke that he is The Gardens’ house band,” says Shewman.
When I explained that I had a favorite concert at The Gardens (David Byrne of the Talking Heads), Shewman adds very diplomatically, “I don’t know if I can pick just one because over 10 years, there have been so many great acts here on our stage. But if I could select three, I would say Pink Martini, Steve Martin and the live version of the Prairie Home Companion. All of these were special in their own way.”
And lest you think this is just about serving our local scene, you better buckle up. The average person does travel about an hour and half to attend a show at The Gardens, the very same as they do to partake in any of their other programming.
It may not be shocking to discover that many artists are actually begging to be booked here now because of the venue’s charm and beauty, but rather that people are traveling from other states as far away as Pennsylvania to see an artist in this setting versus what may be offered in their hometown.
The Gardens, at a glance, may have appeared to have made a camel breaking step by simply adding three more shows, but really their boldness can be discovered and enjoyed both on stage and off on the grounds of their 132-acre facility.
Truth be told, they have been bold for a very long time.
In fact, to look back over the years since they opened in 1995, every step they have taken as an organization has been bold. And because of it, we are better for having them here in our community.
The summer concert series kicks off with an act from my childhood, The B-52s on June 1.
“Love energy is giving us a shove / Making this the summer of love / I said, "I see no clouds ahead." - The B-52s, "Summer of Love,"
Bouncing off the Satellites (1986)
The Future Needs All of Us.
Tommy Allen, Lifestyle Editor
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