Saturday night I had tickets to the Punch Brothers concert in Ogden. Two precious slips of paper I kept track of for months. There were times when I was not sure where my wedding ring or my daughter was, but I always knew where those tickets were. Let's just say I was excited.
It was quite a night on the town. My skirt was a little short and my lipstick a little red. Riley looked, I will just say it, delicious. My Mr. Husband in his levi's just tight enough and tie just smart enough. The show was at the Peery Egyptian Theater, a gem from the 1920's wedged between empty buildings. It's exterior is all color, art deco, and heiroglyphs. We got to the theater hungry, an hour and a half before showtime. There were ten people in line. Riley seemed to think that meant we had time to get dinner. Cute. I knew it meant we were ten people later to the line than I hoped to be. I may have said, "Riley, we can ALWAYS eat. We can't always be 11th in line." Annoying, right? But the sweetie jumped right into line. Happily.
I pretended I couldn't hear both of our stomachs rumbling while we waited.
The inside of the theater is almost as fabulous as the outside. Gilded kitsch. The Peery Theater is one of only a handful of deco era theaters that still maintain an atmospheric ceiling. Their promotion of this is enthusiastic and extensive. And I quote, "with the flick of a switch, a daytime sky magically turns to nighttime, replete with twinkling stars." Sounds like the dining room in Harry Potter. The lights dimmed and the stars did twinkle. All four of them. I am sure it was very impressive in 1924.
It was quite a night on the town. My skirt was a little short and my lipstick a little red. Riley looked, I will just say it, delicious. My Mr. Husband in his levi's just tight enough and tie just smart enough. The show was at the Peery Egyptian Theater, a gem from the 1920's wedged between empty buildings. It's exterior is all color, art deco, and heiroglyphs. We got to the theater hungry, an hour and a half before showtime. There were ten people in line. Riley seemed to think that meant we had time to get dinner. Cute. I knew it meant we were ten people later to the line than I hoped to be. I may have said, "Riley, we can ALWAYS eat. We can't always be 11th in line." Annoying, right? But the sweetie jumped right into line. Happily.
I pretended I couldn't hear both of our stomachs rumbling while we waited.
The inside of the theater is almost as fabulous as the outside. Gilded kitsch. The Peery Theater is one of only a handful of deco era theaters that still maintain an atmospheric ceiling. Their promotion of this is enthusiastic and extensive. And I quote, "with the flick of a switch, a daytime sky magically turns to nighttime, replete with twinkling stars." Sounds like the dining room in Harry Potter. The lights dimmed and the stars did twinkle. All four of them. I am sure it was very impressive in 1924.
The Punch Brothers took the stage and my heart. It is a group of five string instrument rock stars, representing the best of the fiddle, guitar, bass, banjo and one sleek little mandolin. Nattily dressed purveyors of a bluegrass/jazz/classical fusion that makes you want to dance, sing and create. Create anything! A story, a sonnet, a moment. The music worked its way into me until I felt that maybe I was made of the notes, maybe life is a symphony and maybe I am a composer. Riley and I kept turning to one another, smiling in amazement. What a lovely thing, a world in which noise can be bent and held and controlled until a song, rich and lasting, emerges. What a lucky thing that we get to be a part of it...together.
The show ended and we left happy and starving. Apparently, one can't "ALWAYS eat", as I so naively proclaimed. At least not in Utah. There is no such thing as a restaurant opened after ten between Ogden and Provo. Not even Chick-Fil-A.
The night that inspired also left me with a rumbling, hungry question. The same world that produced Chris Thile and his Bach playing mandolin cannot produce a local late night burger or carnitas taco. How is this blasphemy possible and how long can it stand?
If you being pregnant means we all (your faithful readers) get (almost) daily blog updates--well I'll just say it, I hope there are at least 10 more children in your future.
ReplyDeleteI don't even know her, but I second Heather!
ReplyDeleteGirls...You are making me blush.
ReplyDelete