What do you want to do during our short summer season in the Northland? Get outside! So do we at The Reif, presenting world class entertainment in outdoor venues across our region!
Being forced to move performances outside during the Covid pandemic led us to discover a great concert venue and what I think will be a new summer tradition in Grand Rapids. We found that the covered hockey rink at the IRA Civic Center was an extraordinary place for music events! And, taking advantage of our beautiful lakes, we began boat in concerts and continued them every summer since.
With the IRA Civic Center under construction, we’ve branched out to two new venues this summer while continuing boat in concerts and our concert series in Hibbing. This summer we are presenting more outside performances than ever! My job will be to work with national and local bands, production companies, venue owners, park owners and our own staff and crew to assemble all the puzzle pieces we need to present thirteen concerts in seven different outside venues!
MN Discovery Center
At the heart of the Minnesota Discovery Center is this impressive 1600 seat amphitheater. Our biggest shows of the summer will be held here, Blackhawk on June 15th and Hairball on September 8th.
Doug Hunter is the long time Tour Director & Production Manager for Blackhawk. I worked with him in 2021 when they performed at the Civic Center Pavilion. Reaching out to him again we went over load in and sound check schedules. Other decisions included the number of stage hands, if we could cut follow spots, even what to have for dinner. I digress, but you would be surprised how often the hospitality section of a technical rider can be longer than their technical needs! Blackhawk is not one of those, whether advancing the show or after they arrive, their band and crew are so easy going to work with.
I’m expecting an sixteen hour day, our audio and lighting company will be the first in and the last out. The owner of the company is also the long time tour manager for Hairball, a lucky benefit for when they return to provide production support for Hairball in September.
Gunn Park
Three miles north of Grand Rapids nestled on the shores of Prairie Lake is Gunn Park with ball fields, a fishing pier and picnic areas. It also has a beautiful stone and wood 60’ x 90’ pavilion. We are very excited to bring Zeppo: A Celebration of Led Zeppelin (July 28), The Music of Journey & Bon Jovi (Aug 3) and Deuces Wild – Dueling Pianos (Aug 24) to this unique venue!
The primary hurdle to Gunn Park is the lack of infrastructure. There’s power and a roof, but no stage or dressing rooms. Reif crew will need to transport and assemble a 24’ x 20’ stage and Reif staff will need to figure out dressing rooms, perhaps borrowing a motorhome.
The Reif crew will start the day around 7am by assembling the stage and the audio company will arrive by 10am. Our headliner band will arrive at 2pm with the opening band shortly after. Between the opener and the headliner we’ll have approximately 2 ½-3 hours of music and then everything has to come down. Strike, as we call it, will take until at least midnight.
We’ve never brought a performance to Gunn Park before, but we’re very excited to present some exceptional music surrounded by the beauty of northern Minnesota!
Hibbing’s Bennett Park
For a few years now the Reif Center has contracted with the city of Hibbing to bring a series of free outdoor concerts to Bennett Park with local musicians from northern Minnesota. One of my favorites this summer will be by the Christopher David Hanson Band because Christopher always brings his little dog Minnow!
The City of Hibbing sets up a mobile stage and provides power. The bands and The Reif provide the audio system. The audience brings their lawn chairs and everyone has a grand time.
The concerts are held in the northwest corner of Bennett Park, near the curling building.
Reif Boat-In Concerts
The most successful of our pandemic era experiments was a series of boat-in concerts. According to Executive Director Shantel Dow, “There is no better fit for beautiful summers in Northern Minnesota than gathering with family and friends to hear great local music. Supporting these musicians and spreading performing arts to Northern Minnesota communities is a priority of the Reif.”
Finding power is the biggest issue with a boat-in! I always schedule a site visit so I can see what power is available and how far away it is. Even with a pre-visit there was that one time we overloaded the breaker in the boathouse and ended up having to run power all the way from the house instead!
Getting all the equipment to the lake is quite the experience as well. Some homeowners have a utility vehicle for hauling sound gear. Other homes have a long sweaty walk through the backyard then down an endless series of steps to the dock. I must admit I have a few favorite boat-in locations and few not so favorite. Don’t even get me started about the hornet’s nest at that one beach!
In most concert situations the audio person is mixing the sound from a position out in the middle of the audience. We found this difficult on the lake, something about water and electricity not getting along. I’m usually up next to the band running the mix. To find out what it sounds like out on the lake we’ll either send someone out in a kayak during sound check, or more likely, have someone we know out on the lake that can give us feedback during the concert. I think it usually sounds pretty decent, we’ve discovered that sound travels really well over the water!
Whether it’s a big act like Blackhawk or Christopher David Hanson and Minnow I hope you can make it out to one of our concerts this summer and enjoy the great outdoors!