Johnny Rivers came to town April 9 and performed for a near sell-out crowd at the Performing Arts Center. Twice the large audience was brought to its feet for standing ovations as Rivers performed many of his 1960s classic hit songs, as well as a number of his newer compositions. For those patient enough to wait after the show, Rivers came out to the lobby to sign autographs and converse with all who stayed. It was truly a night to remember. It was also a night that almost didn't happen. Johnny Rivers and two of the band members were scheduled to fly into the Central Wisconsin Airport from New York by way of Chicago
on April 8. A fourth member of the band was flying in from Nashville to join them in Chicago where they would fly together to CWA. At mid-day on Friday a call was received that both flights into Chicago were canceled because of fog, and the flights were being re-booked. Given the limited number of flights into CWA, the options were limite.
Rivers and two of the band members ended up flying from New York to Los Angeles on Friday night only to turn around early Saturday morning to catch a flight from L.A. to Chicago and on to central Wisconsin. The lone band member coming from Nashville was uncertain how he was going to get to Wisconsin Rapids in time for the concert and took the only option open to him. On Friday night he flew on an alternate flight from Nashville to Milwaukee and then on to Green Bay where two volunteers from the Arts Council were waiting to pick him up at 10:45 p.m. to whisk him to Wisconsin Rapids by 1 a.m.
The following day, as storm warnings were being posted in central Wisconsin, Rivers and the rest of the band were able to make their flight connections, landing at CWA at 2:40 p.m. They were picked up by another Arts Council volunteer and taken directly to the Performing Arts Center for an extensive sound check before the concert. After that the band only had a short time to go to the hotel, get cleaned up from a long day of travel, grab a quick bite to eat, and hit the stage for a 7:30 p.m. show. It was truly a memorable concert. No one could guess all the "drama" that had happened behind the scenes.
The next day, with thunderstorms rolling through the area and tornados touching down both to the north and south of Wood County, the performers were able to catch their flight out of CWA and on to Los Angeles. It is fair to say that this concert was as memorable for the performers as it was for the audience.
While the events of the weekend were pretty unusual, there are always a lot of things happening behind the scenes when a show or concert takes place at the Performing Arts Center. Thank you to all the volunteers and workers who put in extra effort to make the concert happen. Also thanks to all of the corporate sponsors of Arts Council events. Without their generous support, our shows would not be possible.
Ted Moskonas is board president
for the Arts Council.
on April 8. A fourth member of the band was flying in from Nashville to join them in Chicago where they would fly together to CWA. At mid-day on Friday a call was received that both flights into Chicago were canceled because of fog, and the flights were being re-booked. Given the limited number of flights into CWA, the options were limite.Rivers and two of the band members ended up flying from New York to Los Angeles on Friday night only to turn around early Saturday morning to catch a flight from L.A. to Chicago and on to central Wisconsin
. The lone band member coming from Nashville was uncertain how he was going to get to Wisconsin Rapids in time for the concert and took the only option open to him. On Friday night he flew on an alternate flight from Nashville to Milwaukee and then on to Green Bay where two volunteers from the Arts Council were waiting to pick him up at 10:45 p.m. to whisk him to Wisconsin Rapids by 1 a.m.The following day, as storm warnings were being posted in central Wisconsin, Rivers and the rest of the band were able to make their flight connections, landing at CWA at 2:40 p.m. They were picked up by another Arts Council volunteer and taken directly to the Performing Arts Center for an extensive sound check before the concert. After that the band only had a short time to go to the hotel, get cleaned up from a long day of travel, grab a quick bite to eat, and hit the stage for a 7:30 p.m. show. It was truly a memorable concert. No one could guess all the "drama" that had happened behind the scenes.
The next day, with thunderstorms rolling through the area and tornados touching down both to the north and south of Wood County, the performers were able to catch their flight out of CWA and on to Los Angeles. It is fair to say that this concert was as memorable for the performers as it was for the audience.
While the events of the weekend were pretty unusual, there are always a lot of things happening behind the scenes when a show or concert takes place at the Performing Arts Center. Thank you to all the volunteers and workers who put in extra effort to make the concert happen. Also thanks to all of the corporate sponsors of Arts Council events. Without their generous support, our shows would not be possible.
Ted Moskonas is board president
for the Arts Council.
1 comment:
Johnny Rivers merece todas as homenagens, sempre.
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