Get up outta your seats!
Went to see
Pink Martini at the Gaillard the other night.
Had enjoyed them before, right after we had elected a new Mayor.
He was invited to come up and play a song on the piano and later led a Conga Line through the gorgeous place!
That time I did not fall in line behind the Mayor but I did send him a photo and received a thank you on his City letterhead.
I decided to take a "selfie" as we waited for the show to begin.
Remembering my missed opportunity before, I hoped I could get more involved with the 10-piece band.
Boy, did I ever!
Shortly after they started, an invitation was issued to "the ladies in the audience" to come onstage to dance a number.
Many accepted the offer and streamed up the steep steps on each side.
I hoped there would be a chance for us guys to also climb up there.
A bit later, another offer was made for couples to come up and dance behind the band - a much larger space - so up I went.
The view from the stage was great.
I liked being behind - and among - the band for some outtasight angles as they played.
Pink Martini's lead singer
Storm Large belted out several tunes as we admired the scene from her viewpoint.
A fun, special offer that was gladly accepted.
I can't ever recall being onstage in such a beautiful setting.
Not that I am onstage that often.
Once, years ago, while chairing a tourism conference in Missouri in a small hall, I tapped the mic and said: "
Ahem, can you hear me in the back?"
A male voice loudly bellowed from a curtain behind me
"Yeah, yes I can."
It was really cool to look at the musicians and the audience in the huge hall from a VERY different viewpoint.
The drummer caught my eye and I trained my phone cam on him.
I shuffled around in my stage right corner, peeked into the curtained wings and soaked in a satisfying moment.
I HAVE been backstage at the
Music Farm, coming down the stairs from the Greenroom where the performers had idled and peeked onstage.
But, no "peeking" this time. Right out there among them!
And, yes, the "traditional" Conga line invitation later was announced and the audience members queued up and filled the aisles.
Eventually, they ended up crisscrossing the stage.
Maybe a Mayor was needed to organize and lead the bouncing, swaying procession?
Needless to say, that audience-involved activity was the finale of the show.
It was easier than usual to exit and head to my car.
Here are some additional photos from that delightful evening.
(Click on the links and photos for more details.)
Labels: "Storm Large, Conga Line, Leader Lauderdale, Mayor Tecklenberg, onstage at the Gaillard, Pink Martini, selfie., The Music Farm
Mayor has a Pink Martini...
Pink Martini, a 13-person "Little Orchestra" from Portland, played at the Gaillard last Tuesday night.
It's the first time they've been to Charleston.
Mayor John Tecklenberg was invited by the leader Thomas Lauderdale to sit in on piano. He came out with his music chart, did a piece as Thomas' PhoneCam captured the musical moment.
At the end of the show, the Mayor was asked to lead a
Conga line around the hall.
Handed a tambourine, his honor led a growing crowd up, down, and across the aisles to laughter and applause.
I don't recall former Mayor Joe Riley ever being asked to do that.
But, he did serve a span of 40 years, so it may have been requested.
I thought about joining the end of the line as he passed in front of me (twice).
Instead, I held back and wielded my camera to capture an interesting moment with our new Mayor.
Meanwhile, as they say, the band played on. It reminded me of Lawrence Welk when various band members took the microphone and sang .... in 9 different languages!
It was formed in Portland in 1994, by Lauderdale, who was thinking about running for Mayor so he attended many speeches and observed that political rallies were ill-served by random musicians, hired to "entertain."
He felt they were underwhelming, lackluster and, mainly, just loud. These rallies deserved better so that was the origin of the group.
The talented lead singer was Storm Large, a 5-year veteran, who told the story of her first performance with the large group.
She had to learn songs in Spanish and Croatian, in 4 days.
Oh, and by the way, her opening venue was the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Even though I did not tag along on the Conga, it was a fun and eventful evening at the Gaillard Center.
Footnote: Received this email today:
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Good afternoon, Chuck:
Thank you so much for your e-mail and for the wonderful blog post and pictures detailing my performance with the Pink Martini Orchestra last Tuesday evening. I so enjoyed playing with them and leading the Conga line as well! I appreciate you sending me the pictures and blog to enjoy and share with my staff and family. Thank you for all you do to cover music in Charleston and beyond.
Most sincerely yours,
John J. Tecklenburg |Mayor
City of Charleston|Executive Department
80 Broad Street Street|Charleston, SC 29401
54.77 GB (47%) of 116 GB used
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| tecklenburgj@charleston-sc.gov |
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Labels: "Little Orchestra, "Storm Large, Conga Line., John Tecklenberg, Pink Martini, Portland., Tambourine, Thomas Lauderdale, Timothy Nishimoto
That time I did not fall in line behind the Mayor but I did send him a photo and received a thank you on his City letterhead.
A fun, special offer that was gladly accepted.
