The Mount Vernon Area Arts Council’s (MVAAC’s) Winter Fundraiser performance will be Saturday, January 21st @ 6:30pm – 9:30pm.
Performing will be Tony Brown and Dan Johnson.
The event will start with a reception with wine and cheese at 6:30pm, with music beginning at 7:30pm. In addition, Tony Brown will have paintings on display as well.
As with many events at the First Street Community Center in Mount Vernon, Iowa this is a BYOB event with Uptown Theatre travel cups available to purchase – or bring yours from home.
Break out of your igloo and bring your friends to this fundraiser for the Mount Vernon Area Arts Council.
The suggested donation is $15.
The Mount Vernon Area Arts Council is a community organization that exists to increase the knowledge, understanding, appreciation and practice of the arts within our community.
The First Street Community Center’s Uptown Theatre is proud to be hosting a wonderful musical performer, Amy Stoner on Friday, December 9th @ 7:30pm.
We invite you to join cabaret chanteuse Amy Friedl Stoner for an evening of holiday music and laughter.
Mixing traditional Christmas songs with contemporary holiday tunes, Amy and her band will remind you of your favorite songs and introduce you to new ones.
For the performance in the Uptown Theatre this evening Amy is thrilled to be joined by Cameron Sullenberger, Luke Viertel, John Hall & Tim Crumley.
The Uptown Theatre with it’s intimate layout almost erases the separation of stage and audience to let you really feel the performance and not just watch it from a distance.
Get your tickets early before this popular event sells out!
Eddie Piccard will once again be serving up “All That Jazz” at the First Street Community Center on Saturday November 19 at 7:00 p.m.
For each Mount Vernon appearance Eddie offers a special highlight, and this year’s performance will offer “Music of New Orleans.”
“My first instrument was a trombone,” Piccard said. “And one of my heroes is the Texas trombone player, Jack Teagarden. It is always a kick to play piano with Dixie groups. The contrapuntal effects of group improvisation add excitement to the music.”
The first part of this year’s program will feature the Eddie Piccard Quintet. This group plays hot traditional favorites and cool Shearing melodies, as well as warm Latin tunes. Eddie will be on piano and vocals, Craig Dove on bass, Jon Wilson on drums, Rich Martin on vibes, and Dave Richter on guitar.
For the Dixieland part of the program the quintet will be joined by the Busch Brothers – Marty on trombone, Larry on trumpet, and Luke on clarinet.
“We really like playing for the audience at the Community Center,” Eddie said. “And this group will have a swinging, toe-tapping sound that people will really enjoy.”
Eddie Piccard grew up in eastern Iowa, and began playing music at an early age. He left for larger venues in Chicago, Florida and on the west coast. But he came back to Iowa in the 1980s and has become a jazz icon in eastern Iowa. People still talk about the jazz club he and his wife Dallis opened on Mount Vernon Road in the 1990s. Patrons remember a sophisticated spot that offered unforgettable nights of music. Eddie now plays regularly in Cedar Rapids and the surrounding area, as well as in the Chicago area and the Twin Cities.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at Bauman’s Clothing Store or at the performance. You can call (319) 895-8692 for more information.
As with most performances at the First Street Community Center, patrons are welcome to bring a favorite beverage and purchase a Community Center cup.
Performers
Eddie Piccard has been a professional musician and a jazz artist since he left college. Before coming home to Cedar Rapids, he had extensive experience in the jazz world playing in Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, and San Francisco, sometimes opposite such musicians as George Shearing and Ramsey Lewis. As Piccard fans know, Eddie both plays and sings in a wide variety of styles.
Jon Wilson, talented musician and percussion educator, has performed and recorded with many original bands including Jake Kaligis and Driver. A much sought-after drummer since moving to Cedar Rapids in 2000, he has continued to work in several musical genres and plays regularly with Eddie Piccard.
Craig Dove plays piano, upright and electric bass, guitar and is an accomplished vocalist. He has performed throughout the U.S. and in London. He has recorded solo and with a variety of musicians. Craig is also the Medical Director of Rehabilitation Services at St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids.
Rich Martin got his first taste of jazz as a boy hearing Gene Krupa in Sing, Sing, Sing. He grew up surrounded by music and was able to see some of the greatest performers of the time, who remain his idols. Rich has been known to levitate when a tune starts to swing.
Dave Richter comes from Dubuque to perform in All That Jazz. He is well-known in northeast Iowa as an accomplished guitarist, bassist, and banjo player. He performs in Iowa, Wisconsin, and the Chicago area.
Larry Busch is a veteran of the Guy Lombardo, Wayne King, and the Al Pierson Orchestras. He has been leading his own big band for many years and is currently the leader of the Dixieland Allstars.
Marty Busch, a trombonist, has toured with Al Cobine, Johnny Mathis, Dick Jurgens, The American Vintage Orchestra, and the Larry Busch Big Band.
Luke Busch has played with the Dixieland Allstars, the Mad City Funk, and his own SKA band.
This concert is made possible by: Burke Investments – Fred Burke
Saturday, October 22, from 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm the First Street Community Center’s Uptown Theatre is pleased to be hosting the “real deal” North Carolina backwoods picker and songwriter Malcom Holcombe.
It is Malcolm’s perception of the world that make his songs hit you like a gunpowder blast. His gruff and tough delivery is a primordial power full of grit, spit and anthropomorphic expression. — Ray Kennedy
Ray Kennedy is a Nashville 5-time GRAMMY award winning producer of Art Garfunkel, Lucinda Williams, Taylor Swift, Buddy Guy, Greg Brown, Joan Baez and Steve Earle, to pick a few names from his star-studded studio.
Ray continues: “Malcolm Holcombe is fiercely striking every time you encounter him on or off stage. You just get sucked into his extraordinary world of the twisting of words and wisdom that come from a bottomless well. The melodies and fierce rhythms wrap his narrative into an event where you find yourself at his unique musical carnival. Then suddenly he slays you with a sweet love ballad…”
Trends come and go. What is real is the ground beneath our feet, the sky above us, the struggle to earn a living. These are Malcolm Holcombe’s timeless subjects and the spin he puts on them makes our journey here more bearable.
… and that’s a pretty good nod to the effect of hearing Holcombe sing. If you’ve not seen him in a live setting, this is what you have to do. His presence is spooky and timeless, as one imagines it was like to see Son House or Leadbelly. No emotional stone is left unturned. — Craig Havighurst, Nashville
Here is a couple of videos from his YouTube Channel:
The LilFest Series at Uptown Theatre in the First Street Community Center brings worldwide quality performances to an intimate concert setting. These artists follow in the footsteps of performers like Nathan Bell, Chad Elliott, Phil Heywood, Radoslav Lorković, Guy Mendilow, Claudia Nygaard, Jim Post, James Lee Stanley, Eric Taylor, The Sweet Potatoes, Lucie Thorne and The Yearlings. Deeply rooted songs and stories of passion and power for our modern lives.
BYOB with purchase of Uptown Theatre Sippy Cup.
HOW MUCH: Suggested contribution for the Concert $20.00.
Subscription Sponsorships for the series, @ $100 each ensure center front section seating.
