By Clayton Stairs
cstairs@gtowntimes.com
Sam Bush, known as the "King of Newgrass," and Barrage, described as "a high-octane fiddlefest," will open this year's Pawleys Island Festival of Music and Art at Brookgreen Gardens.
For three weekends, starting on Friday, Sept. 12, spectacular performances of music and theater by regional and national acts will delight audiences inside the performance tent at Brookgreen, as well as two other locations on the Waccamaw Neck. Tickets are now available.
"This is the largest cultural event on the Grand Strand," said Festival Director Susan Baldwin. "The Pawleys Island Festival of Music and Art is the only annual event lasting three weeks that I know of in this area."
Fred Newby, chair of the Board of Directors for the festival, agrees.
"It is really remarkable that a community as small as the Waccamaw Neck has a three-week festival like this," Newby said. "I don't know of any other small communities that have anything comparable."
Shows will include Sam Bush; Barrage; the Waccamaw High School Chorus with the Hallelujah Singers; Chamber Music with Philip Powell, Agnes Dael-Nagy and Erin Althoff (at Holy Cross Faith Memorial Episcopal Church); Chicago City Limits Theater Group; Children's Theater: Fairy Tales and Fantasy Figures; the Long Bay Symphony; and Jazz Under the Oaks featuring David Duckworth, one of the South's foremost pianists, and Brazilian singer/composer Duda Lucena (at Litchfield Plantation). Another event, which is actually a bene-
SEE FESTIVAL, Page 4B
efit for the festival, will be the Pawleys Island Wine Festival to be held in the Carriage House Club at Litchfield Plantation.
Baldwin says that she and other festival organizers are excited to have such a variety of talent for the festival.
"For music lovers, we have everything from bluegrass to chamber music," Baldwin said. "We also have some great theater groups, including Chicago City Limits, an improv comedy group which is new to the festival this year, and Children's Theater by local dance students in the Litchfield Ballet Foundation."
Newby, who has served on the board of directors for six years, says that the types of entertainers they have booked this year should bring in record crowds. He says that because Georgetown County voted this year to discontinue funding of festival promotions, ticket sales are more important than ever to ensure the success of future festivals.
"The quality of the entertainment makes this a don't miss event," Newby said. "We have four nationally prominent performers -- Sam Bush, Barrage, Chicago City Limits and the Hallelujah Singers -- and we also have the cream of the crop of local and regional performers."
He says that the three different locations hosting the events -- Brookgreen Gardens, Litchfield Plantation and Holy Cross Faith Memorial Episcopal Church -- add to the unforgettable atmosphere of the festival.
"To be able to combine a music festival of this caliber with a venue like Brookgreen Gardens is just about unmatched and the people who are able to experience both at the same time are very lucky," Newby said. "The same can be said for Litchfield Plantation and Holy Cross Church, which is the appropriate size and scale for chamber music."
Sam Bush
As the cofounder and leader of the seminal progressive bluegrass band New Grass Revival, which performed and recorded music for 18 years in the 1970s and '80s, Bush has been named the "King of Newgrass," according to a recent biography.
Newgrass is described as the wild bluegrass stepchild that features rock 'n' roll grooves and extended virtuoso jams. As a leader in this musical style, Bush, a mandolin prodigy from Kentucky, is said to perform captivating, high-energy live shows.
The Sam Bush Band has headlined many festivals, including Telluride and MerleFest, and has served as a "supersideman" for artists such as Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, and Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Bush has also spearheaded boundary-stretching collaborations with Edgar Meyer, Mark O'Connor and David Grisman.
Bush's newest album, "Laps in Seven," is said to inadvertently define his lifelong approach to music. He also pays tribute to old friends and musical influences.
"I wanted to try something different," Bush says of the new record. "I wanted to shake things up a bit while still displaying the live sound of the road band."
Newby says that the Pawleys Island Festival of Music and Art is lucky to have Sam Bush as its headliner.
"He has been an innovator, fusing bluegrass with popular music," Newby said. "Sam Bush has developed a tremendous following of fans, so we expect a big crowd."
For more information, visit www.sambush.com.
Barrage
Performing their new show, titled "High Strung," Barrage offers a diverse fusion of cultures, musical styles and incredible performance vitality. According to their official Web site, Barrage is described as a high-octane fiddle fest that features an international, multi-talented cast performing an eclectic mix of music, song and dance.
The cast of Barrage features six violinists/vocalists, one drummer, one bass player, and a guitarist. The show is a creative offering of 5 to 1 Entertainments, the team responsible for determining the show's music selections, training each player, composing and arranging all music and recording and producing all shows.
Since its creation in Calgary, Canada in 1996, Barrage has been featured many times at events worldwide and has played for presidents, prime ministers and princes. Barrage has also had its television productions aired on several international TV networks including the PBS network in the USA, the BBC in the UK and CBC in Canada, and has performed live shows in New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, China, Korea, Canada, Guatemala, Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Norway, Monaco, the USA and the UK.
This is the second year in a row that Barrage will be part of the Pawleys island Festival of Music and Art. Newby says that the board decided to pursue bringing them back this year because the response was so positive after last year's show.
"Barrage gave a fantastic performance last year and everybody I talked to said it was the best show anywhere of any type they had seen," Newby said. "It is an extremely high-energy performance bringing together violins, Celtic-type dancing and extreme showmanship by a young cast."
For more information, visit www.barrage.org.
Baldwin and Newby urge everyone who is interested in the arts to reserve their seats for their favorite shows.
"This festival offers something for everyone," Baldwin said. "Come out and join the excitement."
Tickets for the 2008 Pawleys Island Festival of Music & Art are on sale now. Tickets may be purchased online at www.pawleysmusic.com, by calling the festival office at 843-237-4774, or by visiting the Cultural Council in the Litchfield Exchange. Some events will sell out quickly, so order early. Please allow 7 to 10 days for tickets to arrive.
Festival Events:
* Friday, Sept. 12, at 7 p.m.
Sam Bush
Sponsored by: WMBF News
Location: Performance Tent - Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $35.00 and $25.00
* Saturday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m.
Barrage!
Sponsored by: The Sun News
Location: Performance Tent - Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $30.00
* Sunday, Sept. 14, at 3 p.m.
Waccamaw High School Chorus/Hallelujah Singers
Sponsored by: Beach First
Location: Performance Tent - Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $10.00
* Friday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m.
Chamber Music with Philip Powell, Agnes Kael-Nagy & Erin Althoff
Location: Holy Cross Faith Memorial Church
Tickets: $20.00
* Saturday, Sept. 20, at 7 p.m.
Chicago City Limits
Sponsored by: Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina
Location: Performance Tent:- Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $30.00
* Sunday, Sept. 21, at 3 p.m.
Children's Theatre Fairy Tales and Fantasy Figures
Location: Performance Tent - Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $15.00
* Friday, Sept. 26, at 6 p.m.
Pawleys Island Wine Festival
Sponsored by: Carolina First
Location: The Carriage House Club at Litchfield Plantation
Tickets: $75.00
* Saturday, Sept. 27, at 7 p.m.
Long Bay Symphony
Sponsored by: Barrow, Hanley, Mewhinney & Strauss, Inc.
Location: Performance Tent - Brookgreen Gardens
Tickets: $35.00 and $25.00
* Sunday, Sept. 28, at 4 p.m.
Jazz Under the Oaks
Location: Litchfield Plantation
Tickets: $15.00