RACKTACULAR! A Breast Cancer Benefit

HowWasTheShow.com Presents.......RACKTACULAR!

What: RACKTACULAR! A Breast Cancer Benefit
Where: The Nomad World Pub
When: Friday, July 24th, 9:30 PM 21+, $10 suggested donation

Any fashion or music historian can attest that breasts and rock-n-roll have a long and inextricable history. What better way to celebrate this union than with a rockin’ breast cancer benefit? Join HWTS staff writer Donette Ambrosy for RACKTACULAR! A Breast Cancer Benefit. Proceeds from this bodacious evening of music, burlesque, and ta-ta-tastic tomfoolery go to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fund. Help raise the funds for Donette and her sister, Sheri Kruser – a recent breast cancer survivor from Dubuque, Iowa – to walk together in the Twin Cities Breast Cancer 3-Day in August. Along with the local musical talents of Aviette, Maudlin, and Hojas Rojas, the lovely ladies from Lili’s Burlesque will model blinged-out brassieres featured from the event’s Art Bra Contest. We’ll even have a silent auction. Come on down to the Nomad World Pub on July 24th to show your support for a great cause…and have a RACKTACULAR time! Friday, July 24th, 9:30pm, $10 suggested donation.

HowWasTheShow 7-Year Anniversary Photos and Videos

(Photo is of HowWasTheShow founder David de Young introducing City Pages Music Editor Andrea Swensson - Photo credit Ben Clark.)

HowWasTheShow.com celebrated its 7th Anniversary on the internet Friday night, June 12th at the Turf Club in St. Paul with a few hundred of our closest friends. You'd think that since we know most of the music photographers in town, there'd be more pictures of our show. Several photographers were there, as well as several music writers. Thing is, we were having a party, so most of us were off duty, listening to music, drinking, dancing, talking amongst ourselves.

Big Trouble (featuring guest vocalist David Campbell), Communist Daughter, Aby Wolf, and The Inwood Radio all put on inspiring shows and seemed to have enjoyed themselves as much as we did. It was a line-up custom made to receive a good review, especially if we were to give it one ourselves.

I was unable to resist making a few videos with my Flip Mino, however, and in the interest of making a record of the fun we had on Friday night, I've gathered them here together in this blog post. All videos are by me, except the video of Aby Wolf performing with Big Trouble that was shot by Debbie Donovan.

The first video was a definite highlight of the entire night. As Big Trouble whipped out a cover of Wilco's "I'm Always in Love" from Summerteeth, I jumped up to dance along with writers Jim Walsh, Pat O'Brien and musician Rick Widen. For this song I passed off my video camera to City Pages music-editor Andrea Swensson to capture the action.

This next video was shot by Debbie Donovan. Aby Wolf covers Erykah Badu.

Still more videos from the show are available on the HowWasTheShow YouTube site.

Photos and videos from Mark Mallman's tour kickoff show at the Bryant Lake Bowl

My full review of Mark Mallman's show Saturday night at the Bryant Lake Bowl has been published in the City Pages Blog Gimme Noise. Read it here.

Also, check out my full photo set from the night here. And stay tuned later this week for photographer Jenn Barnett's photos over on the main site at howwastheshow.com.

Below are videos of new and old songs I captured Saturday night at Mallman's intimate sold-out performance, including "You're Never Alone in New York," the first single off his upcoming album Invincible Criminal.

The finale:

David de Young on Saturday Nights with Esme on WCCO

WCCO Saturday Night With Esme for Saturday, June 13th.

Tonight we recap the HowWasTheShow 7-Year Anniversary Party, talk about Power Balladz at the Lab Theater and about my upcoming festival tour of Europe.

20 Minutes.

MP3 File

David de Young on Saturday Nights with Esme on WCCO

On my 20 minutes of WCCO Radio fame this week, I am joined by Bethany Ford of Cromulent Shakepeare Company to talk about the production of Shakespeare's The Tempest. Ford is directing the production of one of Shakespeare's final works that is currently making a tour of Twin Cities parks.

Tonight's production at Lake Harriet was rained out, so Bethany was able to join me and Esme Murphy for a brief discussion about the joys and challenges of producing Shakespeare outdoors.

See the full schedule for The Tempest here,

Other topics Esme asked me about this week are Grand Old Days in Saint Paul, and the HowWasTheShow 7th Anniversary Party which takes place Friday night, June 12th at the Turf Club.


MP3 File

St. Paul songwriter, Jeff Hanson dead at 31

Jeff Hanson at the Turf Club in November, 2008 on a bill with Chris Koza.

Jeff was found dead today in St. Paul. The Star Tribune has more details.

HowWasTheShow extends our condolences to Jeff's friends and family. We are extremely saddened to hear this news.

Shakespeare in the Parks!

Having experienced Shakespeare in Central Park in New York and Holland Park and Green Park in London, I can speak from experience that there's nothing quite like Shakespeare in the great outdoors.

The Twin Cities theater group, Cromulent Shakespeare Company will give locals a taste of big city theatrical magic this summer as they present Shakespeare's The Tempest, not just in one park, but in more than a dozen parks around the Twin Cities. Directed by Bethany Ford, The Tempest opens Friday, June 5th in Kenwood Park (see full schedule below.)

See the Cromulent web page for performance schedule for a bonus production, "Shakespeare Soup," which runs concurrently but on a different schedule.

The Tempest, William Shakespeare's tale of a great sorcerer who creates a storm that maroons his enemies on a magical island and Shakespeare Soup, an entertaining original script featuring familiar Shakespearean characters and plot adaptations.

The Tempest is directed by Bethany Ford, who directed the critically-acclaimed Sense and Sensibility for Cromulent in 2008. "This simple and streamlined production of The Tempest explores what it means to be human and what is required to achieve balance and therefore peace in the universe," says Ford. "We will move the story forward with fascinating relationships, suspense and comedy."

The Tempest schedule

7 p.m. weekdays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, Saturday June 27th at 6:30p.m.
Fri., 6/5 - Kenwood Park
Sat, 6/6 - Lake Harriet Rose Gardens
Sun, 6/7 - Raspberry Park at Harriet Island
Thu., 6/11 - Loring Park
Fri., 6/12 - Powderhorn Park
Sat., 6/13 - Father Hennepin Park
Sun., 6/14 - Como
Tues., 6/16 - Parkers Lake Park, Plymouth
Thu., 6/18 - Washburn Fair Oaks Park
Fri., 6/19 - Riverside Park
Sat., 6/20 - Nokomis Park
Sun., 6/21 - Newell
Thu., 6/25 - Whittier Park
Fri., 6/26 - Phalen
Sat., 6/27 - Caponi Art Park