BloNo Beats: Twin Cities popping with summer music fest, bar plays, Civil War-style band
The sights and sounds of summertime music and theater events are sizzling with superb shows this week and next in the Twin Cities.
Today, Nomad Theatre Co. opens its first show of the 2024-25 season, "Shaken, Not Stirred," a site-specific production hosted by Shake It Up Cocktail Lounge in Bloomington. Company leaders tell me they're going back to their roots with their next round of bar plays.
On Friday, the two-day Make Music Normal festival makes a comeback with a banging lineup stacked with many genres of music — even bagpipe music. Opening up the Alley Stage at noon Saturday is "The Rogue Bagpiper," also known as Nolan Schoenle. He hails from St. Louis, close to where he placed second in a Grade 3 competition May 11 in 2/4 march music at the St. Louis Scottish Games in Manchester, Missouri. That's quite an accomplishment for his grade, and I congratulate him for his strong efforts this season.
Then by Monday evening, you can start your Independence Day celebrations early by stopping by the 33rd Illinois Volunteer Regiment Band's free show in Normal.
Nomad Theatre goes back to its roots
An extraordinary theater experience is shaping up inside the Shake It Up Cocktail Lounge & Eatery in downtown Bloomington.
"Shaken Not Stirred" is a performance of eight, 10-minute plays set before the backdrop of a live bar. Theater patrons will observe actors in their character's proper settings, just like a bar fly on the wall. Theatergoers may enjoy beverages during the show, but will be reminded to order from the real bartender — not the bartenders in character.
Connie Blick, who co-founded Nomad Theatre with Cristen Monson, said "Shaken Not Stirred" is taking them back to their roots: Their first project was "Raising The Bar" in 2019, hosted by nightshop in Bloomington.
She said they've learned that keeping open communication with host venues is key, while adding that Shake It Up has been accommodating and wonderful to them. Handling theater logistics, like background noises bleeding from other parts of the bar, became another lesson, too.
"That's what site-specific theatre is all about, right? You're hearing the ambience of the bar in the background... it's free sound effects," said Blick.
They didn't get that at nightshop because the bar was closed to non-theater patrons for the show, she said, but Shake It Up will stay open for other business.
"We're hoping it's a mutual sort of benefit," she continued. "We're bringing theater to the community and we're bringing people to their place of business, too."
While audiences may opt out of stirred drinks, as the production title implies, their moods certainly will be stirred by this show. The play scripts cover a charming range of topics and scenarios, such as William Shakespeare hearing his dramaturg's critiques, singles reading and writing adverts for the classifieds section of a newspaper, an awkward hook-up date and more.
In May, Nomad announced this season's lineup with the production of six short plays for "The Warehouse Plays" in southeast Bloomington. Next up is October's "The Polling Place" production at the Normal Community Activity Center, just in time for election season.
Normal's Brett Cottone was invited to answer the following questions as director of "Shaken Not Stirred."
What was the biggest challenge you faced in scenic design, technology or acting in this site-specific space?
In the case of scenic design, it's actually less of a challenge than "traditional" theater in the sense that you work with what you have. In this case we scoped out the bar, took some measurements, counted chairs and planned accordingly. Technology is limited, so you don't really have to worry about lighting cues, and we are doing pretty basic music cues to lead in and out of scenes. As far as acting goes, I feel like it's the most similar to a traditional show.
Tell us about a principle emotion or conflict that builds up in the plays.
Most of the plays are comedic and light and revolve around relationships. We cover speed dating, singles mixers, divorce, girlfriend gossip, want ads and even a famous playwright. We do have a couple that will tug at the heartstrings as well. It's a fun group of shows and a very talented group of performers.
What's your drink of choice?
I'm a fan of a well-aged bourbon neat, but usually order an old fashioned when I'm out at a bar.
Beats will be thumping about uptown Normal this weekend for the 10th annual Make Music Normal festival.
The festival comprises shows from about 50 artists and organizations on six stages, including genres that range from blues to jazz, folk to soul, and hip-hop to rock 'n' roll.
Beth Whisman, cultural arts director for the Town of Normal, said the festival celebrates the many ways people are inspired and invigorated by music on a daily basis. Morgan Schulte, festival booker and civic arts specialist for the town, said the diverse mix of acts "is a testament to our thriving local music scene."
Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStackThe free two-day event also promises to emphasize participation along with performance.
Peoria's Steady Flow will get grooving to funk music as the Friday night headliner. The Supersuckers will then sweep up crowds in the styles of alternative rock and cowpunk music to close out Saturday, the final festival night.
Event organizers said The Supersuckers were booked with help from Jim Wilson, one of three co-owners of North Street Records, 117 W. North St. in Normal. Wilson's favorite band is The Supersuckers, and he has attended more than 30 shows, according to a statement from the organizers.
North Street Records is also celebrating its 20th year in business this year, as well as Waiting Room Records at 113 W. North St. in Normal. Both stores opened in summer 2004, according to Pantagraph archives.
Several bands on this year's Make Music Normal lineup have been featured in past entries of this column. Read below to see top picks by BloNo Beats.
Brass and drums living history through Civil War-era music
The brassy sounds of a 19th century Union Army regimental band that dug roots in Normal continue to ring across the Illinois State University campus.
The 33rd Illinois Volunteer Regiment Band is a Civil War-era musical reenactment group of at least 16 performers. They return Monday for another free summertime performance on the ISU quad.
In 1996, the band was founded by Gary Borling, who died from cancer in 2000 at age 48. Carlock's John Bergmann, 53, stepped up to serve as bandmaster in 2017, but he has been playing on and off since 1997. Bergmann, a physics teacher for Normal Community High School, said he was invited to join by his high school band instructor and current regiment band member, Kirby Reese, on tenor horn.
Bergmann said he started playing on B-flat cornet, but Borling later moved him up to E-flat cornet, which he continues to play as bandmaster. Other horn sections of the band include alto horns, tenor horns (pitched like a trombone) and bass horn, which is different from a tuba. They have side drums, which would be called a snare drum today, and a bass drum with an attached cymbal.
Bergmann said they're very particular about playing instruments from the 1860 to 1880s. He said they use original instruments that are either very similar or identical to those played during the war. But that particularity doesn't apply to drums, as Bergmann noted wood, leather and rope don't last for 170 years.
"Anyone who thinks instrument technology hasn't improved since the Civil War is crazy," said Bergmann, adding their instruments come with individual quirks and nuances. He said they tune at about one-third higher pitch, meaning their tone could be described as "toy-like," or lighter than your average marching band.
Some of his bandmates own their instruments, and others are owned by the band, which is based in Bloomington-Normal. Their members hail from across Central and Southern Illinois, including Mattoon, Springfield, Minonk, El Paso, Pekin and Collinsville.
Tunes that could be called out include "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and "The Yellow Rose of Texas." They also play songs by Stephen Foster, like "Camptown Races" and "Old Folks at Home," which is also called "Swanee River."
"We also play patriotic tunes, waltzes, polkas, quicksteps, marches, hymns — anything that the solider would have heard during the Civil War," Bergmann said. "But you didn't play patriotic tunes when trying to lull the guys to sleep at night."
No place like home
Bergmann said their band motto is "History through music." He said their performances are fun to listen to, with a repertoire full of variety and lore.
He said the original 33rd Illinois Volunteer Regiment band was a 17-piece group formed by Augustus Woodward and C. S. Elder, both of Lexington. Quite a few regimental bands formed in the first year of the Civil War, on both sides.
Locally, he said the 33rd Illinois Volunteer Regiment was called the "Teacher's Regiment," and led by Col. Charles Hovey, ISU's first president.
Bergmann said it was also called the "Brains Regiment" because of how educated the enlisted troops were; the 33rd had 13 college graduates, all privates, which was rare.
But regimental bands were short-lived. Bergmann said they were mostly disbanded after the first year of the war for cost-saving measures and were reorganized into brigade bands. Brigades are military units consisting of 10 regiments.
"The problem was bandsmen were paid $1 more per month than the ordinary soldier," he said.
Legends of how Civil War soldiers were affected by band music live on. Bergmann said certain songs inspired men to perform great deeds on the battlefield.
As the evening set in during one battle, he said a Union Army band played "Home! Sweet Home." Then, another Union Army band joined in, and before long, a Confederate band starting playing it, too.
"People started singing on both sides," Bergmann said. "They were singing the same song. ... It was just pretty moving."
Contact Brendan Denison at (309) 820-3238. Follow Brendan Denison on Twitter:
INSIDE: The complete lineup for the two-day Make Music Normal festival.
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