April 8, 2021 | By Suzanne Norman
Palladium Live presents a 21st century entertainment option for the at-home audience. Unwind on Friday nights to your favorite Bay area musicians, singers and dancers performing via livestream from the historic venue’s stage. Pour a libation and sip while you tune in on your laptop, tablet or smart TV.
The theater’s blue curtain backdrop and lighting set the mood.
A recent concert featuring sax man Jeremy Carter and his Rubber Band rocked the small screen with perfect sound clarity and lively stage presence. Listeners are easily seduced by the sounds of sultry saxophones, keyboards and rhythmic guitars playing covers of songs by Alicia Keys, Herbie Hancock, the Bee Gees and more.
Damon Fowler, Tampa Bay’s bluesman and multi-talented guitarist, recently played songs from his new CD Alafia Moon. It was 90 minutes of blues jamming with fiery guitar runs and roots rock tunes from Fowler and an outstanding five-piece band.
The heart of the musicians comes through just as if there was a packed house in the audience hall. Performing for online audiences is different as there is no applause. However, once the group steps onto the stage and begins to play, the concert energy is there. Solo listeners can interact with others in the chat feature. The investment in high-quality lenses, cameras and superior sound equipment provide exceptional quality on the livestream recording.
“This is much better than livestreaming in the past. There is no need to be wary,” says Paul Wilborn, Executive Director of the Palladium at St. Petersburg College. “Our event experts shopped around for streaming services and liked Mandolin. Their clients present high-end talent like we do. It is a good fit for what we’re doing.”
Mandolin is a service that features shows from national venues such as the Ryman Auditorium, City Winery and locally, Ruth Eckerd Hall. Event exposure on Mandolin gives Bay area musicians a chance to grow a broader national audience, all at the touch of a link.
April livestream performances include the sounds of jazz, Bossa nova, Latin beat, dance and more:
- April 9 – The jazz trio La Lucha appears with James Suggs and Ken Peplowski.
- April 16 – An evening of contemporary dance featuring the artists from BEACON, the Palladium’s artists-in-residence.
- April 23 – A special bossa nova show featuring Daniela Soledade and Nate Najar, plus an all-star band.
- April 30 – “This Bird Has Flown,” a jazz tribute to the Beatles led by singer Ona Kirei.
The $25 cost is worthwhile, especially if you host a few friends to share the cost. The streaming link is active for 48 hours following the show.
The theater’s future looks brighter for live audiences, limited in size. A hybrid approach with a limited audience along with the livestream is a possibility.
Wilborn adds, “We anticipate continuing to use streaming as part of what we do. We will assess live shows in May on a case-by-case basis.”
In the Tampa Bay area, the Palladium consistently ranks as one of the more affordable venues for classical, jazz, blues, opera, Celtic, comedy, dance, educational, literary, community events and more. The main 850-seat Hough Hall with its new top-notch sound system is ideal for large performances. The 175-seat Side Door Cabaret has a nightclub atmosphere perfect for smaller crowds.
Cancellations in the past year have been difficult for performing artists, as momentum is often based on fine tuning for upcoming performances. Support local performers to nurture the creative spirit and keep Bay area talents rocking.
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Find the schedule at mypalladium.org
Energizing the Performing Arts
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The Palladium is stepping in to give a helping hand to our area’s performing artists, whose stage careers were hardest hit during the pandemic.
11 Tampa Bay performers were chosen as members of the initial Palladium Creative Class of 2021. Each receives a stipend of $2,500 to create a new project for the Palladium – a positive way to give performing artists a stage and income, and give the Palladium new performances to host.
The Palladium Creative Class of 2021 includes
- BEACON (Helen Hansen French & Lauren Ree Sloan) – Dance
- James Suggs – Jazz
- Nate Najar – Jazz
- La Lucha (Mark Feinman, Alejandro Arenas and John O’Leary) – Jazz
- Jeremy Carter – Jazz
- Damon Fowler – Blues
- Elizabeth Baker – New Music
- Jeremy Douglass of The Florida Bjorkestra – Pop
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“The Palladium is thrilled to be able to support these talented artists as they create new work. To be an arts town you must support your homegrown talent. This is one of the ways we can do that,” explains Paul Wilborn, Palladium Executive Director
All Creative Class performances are being captured for the Palladium Live! streaming series.
Find out more about these artists
and their projects here
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