© 2024 WEMU
Serving Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County, MI
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
0000017d-4e0c-dda1-a7fd-4fde73920000

Art & Soul: The Performing Arts - The Ann Arbor Blues Festival, Ann Arbor Pride, And More

Ann Arbor Blues Festival
Ann Arbor Blues Festival
/
a2bluesfestival.com

This week, "Art and Soul" is about the local performance arts scene.  WEMU's Lisa Barry and Wendy Wright talk with the executive producer of the Ann Arbor Blues Festival, James Partridge, about the upcoming festival and discuss several other events happening in the coming weeks.

About The Ann Arbor Blues Festival

James Partridge
Credit We Love Ann Arbor / weloveannarbor.com
/
weloveannarbor.com
James Partridge

The original Ann Arbor Blues Festival is widely recognized as the first “electric” blues festival in North America, which, in its early years, featured perhaps the greatest lineup of blues musicians ever assembled.  The experience has always transcended any particular headliner and attracted fans through the fantastic vibe of the overall event.  It is always just all about the music.  That same ethos informs the current incarnation of the festival.

This Year's Lineup Includes:

  • The Allman Betts Band
  • Thornetta Davis
  • Laith Al-Saadi
  • The Ann Arbor Music Center All Stars Youth Band
  • And many more!

The festival takes place Friday, August 16th - Sunday, August 18th, 2019 at the Washtenaw Farm Council Fairgrounds.  For tickets, click here.

UPCOMING PERFORMING EVENTS: 

THEATER

Welcome to Paradise: World Premiere by Julie Marino

Purple Rose Theatre Company - Chelsea

Thru August 31st

"Welcome to Paradise," set in the Caribbean, centers around two people, who, despite their age difference, find love and acceptance in each other.  With a generation gap (or more) between them, they discover they have more in common with each other than they thought.  At what age can one find one’s soulmate?  Are there boundaries to true friendship and affection?  What, exactly, is the meaning and nature of love?

MUSIC 

The Blue Llama Jazz Club

Keyon Harrold Quintet

The trumpeter, who has worked with Beyonce, Eminem, Jay-Z and others -- and, most notably, with Don Cheadle on the Miles Davis film "Miles Ahead" – lands in Ann Arbor on the heels of a date at the Blue Note in New York.

August 10th – 7PM & 9:30PM

The Ark

Paul Thorn

Monday, July 29th – 8:00 PM

Paul Thorn has rambled down back roads and made some of the most emotionally restless yet relatable music of our time.

Yonder Mountain String Band

Friday, August 3rd – 7:30 PM

The king of the bluegrass jam bands.  With their traditional lineup of instruments, the band may look like a traditional bluegrass band at first glance, but they’ve created music that transcends any genre.

26th Annual Week After the Art Fair Song Fest

Tues. July 23rd – Fri. July 26th – 8PM

Kerrytown Concert House

Join us for our quarter-century celebration, featuring four evenings of music, guest artists, a world premiere, and levitation of spirits!  The mini-festival is a musical response to the flood of visual artists every July.  It features uniquely programmed recitals of art song and cabaret performances.

COMMUNITY

Jazz in the Parking Lot: THORNETTA DAVIS

Fri. July 26th – 7-9pm

Ypsilanti Community High School

3rd Annual free community event bringing the community together to enjoy a summer night. Bring your own chair.

25th Annual Ann Arbor Pride

August 3-4, 2019

Kerrytown - 319 Braun Ct and Wheeler Park

Enjoy a full weekend of entertainment including: amazing vocal performances from local and nationally recognized talent, live music, a variety of drag and burlesque shows, DJ performances, beer & wine garden, kid zone, pride picnic, and much more. 

Non-commercial, fact based reporting is made possible by your financial support.  Make your donation to WEMU todayto keep your community NPR station thriving.

Like 89.1 WEMU on Facebook and follow us on Twitter

— Lisa Barry is the host of All Things Considered on WEMU. You can contact Lisa at 734.487.3363, on Twitter @LisaWEMU, or email her at lbarryma@emich.edu

Wendy Wright has been on the radio at WEMU since April 2000. She served as host of 89.1 Jazz, Sunday mornings from 5-8 a.m. for seven years, when she was asked to host From Memphis to Motown. She was then asked to create the Soul Break which airs Wednesday afternoons.
Lisa Barry was a reporter, and host of All Things Considered on 89.1 WEMU.
Related Content