The Savannah Music Festival has hit is halfway point.
What a great opening 9 days. I recap some of the spectacular opening weekend in my Unplugged column today in Do. In that piece, I mention the powerful performance last week by Charles Bradley; click here for a long review by Savannah professor and author Chad Faries.
I’m not going to have time to write a full review of last night’s performance by Dr. John at the Lucas Theatre, but it was really something special. The 72-year old performer walks with a jaunty imprecision these days, but his voice still has that sharp, sometimes-seedy edge, and his fingers dance so beautifully still across the keys. His backup band was stellar, and after a few numbers Dr. John and the rest had the crowd eating out of their hands.
When Dr. John came back out for his encore “Such a Night”, I found myself suddenly struck by the song’s vibrancy and history. That was the first song of Dr. John’s that I ever heard — in the 1976 concert film The Last Waltz. It first appeared on his 1973 album In the Right Place — 40 years ago!
And here were lots fans at the Lucas — many younger than the song itself — thrilled to be right where they were.
I’ve already reviewed a number of shows, including Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, which I loved. From Jim Morekis’ review for Connect:
Speaking of the audience, on another positive note it was exciting to see such a good turnout for a dance event at the Savannah Music Festival. The Festival has never completely turned its back on dance, but dance events are notorious box office underachievers in Savannah, or have been; here’s hoping we’ve turned that particular corner and will see more and better dance performances locally.
Earlier today, I posted excerpts from a spectacular WSJ piece that is great press for the SMF and for the city as a whole. Great mentions of the Owens-Thomas House and the Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home, two places near and dear to my heart.
Let me also say a word about the diversity of this year’s audiences, so far.
The Savannah Music Festival has attracted great crowds over the years, but it has struggled to diversify those audiences. I don’t blame the festival for this problem. Savannah’s cultural audiences are generally segregated and have been for years — on the basis of race, age, class, and many other markers. I’ve even noted in past years the dearth of support from members of the SCAD community and the city’s large gay population.
As an entity largely supported by older, wealthier patrons, it has made sense that the audiences ended up reflecting that demographic, even though the acts themselves have represented incredible diversity.
But the SMF has been steadily breaking down some of the usual barriers. Not to put too fine a point on it, but I feel like I’ve seen more gay audience members, more blacks, more students, and more young adults than ever before. In part, that’s simply a logical result of the programming of acts like Dr. John, Charles Bradley, Cameron Carpenter, and Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, but — as I said — the festival has long featured diverse acts.
I think we’re finally seeing the good news of the festival spreading more broadly through the general population of the city. The tickets aren’t cheap, but we’re seeing an increasing realization that the cost of tickets is nothing compared the opportunities to see world-class performers in shows that are so beautifully produced.
I’m not sure the second half of the SMF will reach as many heights as the first half of the festival did, but I’m sure looking forward to some of the upcoming shows.