Spotlight: Bluegrass standouts stop in Spokane
The North Carolina bluegrass quintet Town Mountain will swing through Spokane during a nationwide tour, landing at Bob Rice’s Studio, 1514 S. Cedar St.
Town Mountain, based in Asheville, is touring in support of its fourth record, “Leave the Bottle.” As the bluegrass website The Bluegrass Situation (co-founded by actor-comedian-musician Ed Helms) noted recently: “In the spirit of blending traditional bluegrass instrumentation with modern musicality, Town Mountain has continued to develop with their cover of the Bruce Springsteen tune ‘I’m On Fire.’ And they make it sound like the Boss’ words came straight out of Appalachia. Needless to say, Town Mountain is the real deal. See y’all down the road.”
(A video of the band performing “I’m on Fire” is posted on thebluegrasssituation.com and YouTube.)
“Leave the Bottle” was produced by Mike Bub, the Grammy-winning former bassist for the Del McCoury Band. “Digging on the Mountainside” from “Leave the Bottle” was included on “Putamayo Presents: Bluegrass,” along with Alison Krauss and Union Station, and David Grisman and Jerry Garcia. The group has collaborated or played with a host of bluegrass notables, including Doc Watson, Steep Canyon Rangers, Keller Williams, David Grisman and The Infamous Stringdusters.
The show is Thursday. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. and the show begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20, available by calling Rice at (509) 879-1871 or emailing him at crossroadsbobconcerts@gmail.com.
This will be an intimate show – the studio seats only 40 – and there are a few tickets left.
Changes at Interplayers
With this latest round of financial turmoil behind it, Interplayers Theatre is gearing up for the summer season. First up is a New York-based production of “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised],” directed by Ken Urso.
The play features three actors and 50 costume changes performing all of Shakespeare’s plays in 90 minutes. It’ll run July 31-Aug. 2, Aug. 4 and Aug. 7-11.
Also as part of Interplayers summer season are the one-day-only productions of “SuperBen!” a 40-minute children’s play about bullying, and “Gay Camp,” a not-at-all-for-children comedy centered on a camp whose goal is to “fix” homosexuals. “SuperBen!” will be staged July 31 (although additional performances can be arranged for groups), while “Gay Camp” will be performed on Aug. 3.
Aug. 15 will be the local premiere of “Church Basement Ladies,” a comedy about the women who run a busy church kitchen.
The 2013-14 season kicks off Sept. 19 with “Brighton Beach Memoirs.”
With all this activity at Interplayers – and the addition of an eighth play to the regular season – work is underway to accommodate overlapping rehearsals and performances. According to an Interplayers news release, a second rehearsal space has been renovated, the concession area has been updated, the green room improved, wardrobe has been consolidated and moved, and the sewing area revised.
For showtimes and ticket information on any of these shows, call the Interplayers box office, (509) 455-7529 or visit www.interplayerstheatre.org. Interplayers is located at 174 S. Howard St.
Sabbath picks W.K.
Andrew W.K. has been tapped to open for Black Sabbath on the band’s North American tour that lands at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Wash., on Aug. 24.
Andrew W.K., the self-proclaimed “King of Partying,” will perform a special DJ set before the metal band hits the stage. The musician and entertainer is best known for his 2001 hit single “Party Hard” from the album “I Get Wet.”
For ticket information, visit livenation.com.