The Palace Theatre's VIP livestream concerts showcase local, original music
For Lindsay Dragan, the best part of being a musician is playing in front of a crowd.
“That’s when I feel most alive,” she said.
There hasn’t been much opportunity for that in the past year, but Dragan and her Pittsburgh-based band at least will be able to get onstage again as the first performers in “The VIP Experience (Virtually in The Palace),” a free Thursday night livestream concert series.
Presented by Westmoreland Cultural Trust, the weekly concerts, beginning Jan. 28 and running through March 25, will feature regional bands playing original songs from The Palace Theatre stage.
Shows will be available for viewing on The Palace Theatre and Westmoreland Cultural Trust Facebook pages. A free preview concert featuring folk/rock singer-songwriter Alan Getto is available until Jan. 28 on those pages.
Dragan sings and plays guitar, with Eric George on drums and Dave Traugh on bass. She describes their original music as “pretty much rock ‘n roll with a little Americana and an indie bent.”
“Fans who have been missing live concerts will be able to enjoy some of their favorite artists and explore new artists, while the bands will get a chance to play our historic stage and showcase their music,” WCT CEO April Kopas said. “The series is a collaborative effort with the Trust supporting regional artists whose performances have been severely limited due to the pandemic.”
“As the new year started, with the uncertainty of when The Palace could open again, we wanted something to share the wealth of talent of people making art and original music in the area,” said Adam Seifert, WCT manager of corporate and community engagement.
The series takes its inspiration from the Trust’s summertime TGIS outdoor concerts, but with a slightly different tack, he said.
“TGIS is about the music, but it’s also about community and having a good time,” Seifert said. “This will be music in an intimate setting. It sounds funny to call the theater intimate, when it seats 1,300 people, but you can make a direct connection when the camera is looking right into someone’s eyes.
“We’ve got some bands that have been involved in Trust events, like East Coast Turnaround and Derek Woods Band,” he said. “We’re also pulling in bands from Pittsburgh, like HABATAT, that are great for a music festival but maybe not so much for TGIS, where people want to hear some songs they know, and not just originals.
“We need more Rusted Roots and Clarks and Christina Aguileras to come out of this area and go nationwide,” he said. “Maybe they can use this to build a fan base.”
“This will be DWB’s opening performance of 2021, and we are looking forward to connecting with our fans once again, but this time through an intimate virtual experience,” said Woods, whose band will perform March 4.
Each concert will incorporate a short fan-inspired Q&A session between music sets. Questions can be sent via the Trust or Palace Facebook pages.
The VIP Experience concert schedule includes:
• Jan. 28 — Lindsay Dragan (Rust Belt garage folk)
• Feb. 4 — Essential Machine (indie)
• Feb. 11 — HABATAT (psychedelic jam/funk/rock)
• Feb. 18 — Tim Vitullo Band (Americana blues/roots rock)
• Feb. 25 — To be announced
• March 4 — Derek Woods Band (Americana/rock)
• March 11 — East Coast Turnaround (rock, blues, country, soul)
• March 18 — Colin Southfield and The Mushroom Country Band (country)
• March 25 — Pack (alternative rock)
For more information, thepalacetheatre.org.
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Shirley by email at smcmarlin@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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