DREAMS ~ A Classic Rock Fantasy
Our Flagship “Broadway style” production ‘DREAMS ~ A Classic Rock Fantasy’ reaches a milestone. We’ve been doing this show in several iterations for 2 whole years now. It’s been a really great run… and I’m not done with it just yet. We’ve had changes in musicians and performers in that time but each version has been a Rock Solid hit with everyone that’s had a chance to see it.
We’ve now been in Branson MO doing a residency at a Theatre of our Own there for just over a year… and while our stay has been marked with a few tragedies, some heartaches, and some difficulties, we’ve done okay from a public perceptions point of view. We call it The Branson Dream Theatre.
One of the most difficult things about Branson is the “old boys club” of ticket brokers and marketing agencies…. who’s business plan include intercepting every visitor to Branson and steering them to the venues and shows THEY choose to promote… largely based on how much money they can make off them. This is HEARTBREAKING at times…because it’s not just about money. The Timeshare sales companies are in bed with all these agencies and commandeer the sales to theatres that they’ve bribed and cajoled into doing deals with them for virtually free tickets in return for having their patrons sit through Timeshare Sales Pitches. It’s been a slow uphill battle. I’m proud to say, however, that we feel like we are winning this battle. We’ve been doing some “intercept” marketing of our own with Billboards, TV, and Radio and sell more than half our tickets at our very own ticket counter by now… AND we haven’t had to stoop to bribery or dealmaking with the Timeshare folks. These companies are parasites….and create a rash of political firestorms wherever they go. It’s so crazy an upsetting some days I feel like writing a BOOK about it… but I actually have a better idea of what to do with this information yet. I’ll keep you posted.
When we got started last year we register with ‘Trip Advisor’ …and naturally started at the bottom of the some 170 shows and attractions including everything from water parks to Country Dinner theatres… and ended last year with a climb to about #65. Of that 170 attractions, there’s about 100 live shows in Branson…and since spring we’ve been on a steady climb to #19 this weekend… and THAT, my friends, feels like an accomplishment. We’ve done it with almost every entry giving us a 5 Star rating and a great review. We’ve now been nominated for two local Entertainment Awards of “Best Live Classic Rock Show” and “Best Big Show in a Small Theatre”…and that’s up agains shows such as “Million Dollar Quartet”, “SIX”, “The Haygoods”, and “Legends in Concert”. We feel pretty pumped about that right now. October 8th we get to see just how we fare on that front.
If I decide to take it back on the road or do some other thing with it, I do know for certain that it’s a hit show that deserves to be seen by still more people. I’d love to hook up with an actual Broadway Promotions and Productions company. We WERE in the early stages of planning a Winter Break tour… since our theatre is likely closed from December 10th to about the end of February in any case. The tour would have included Florida and the Southern States…but with the Hurricanes messing up Florida, we’re not sure they’ll have the appetite for Entertainment there…or what the condition the venues will be in by then. It’s all up in the air as it often is for an entertainer… but such is life. I do hope my friends, fans, and followers will all get to see this version of our show SOMETIME before I move on to something else. Be well out there!! ~ Julie C Myers
Pop, Rock, and Country ~ Blurred lines…
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Pop music all sounds so similar to me today… and I suppose it’s for the same reason my parents used to tell me Rock Music all sounded the same to THEM! It’s the root of the genre that does have a similar beat and timber to it. While there ARE several songs in the Pop music genre I really like bypeople like Katie Perry and Taylor Swift, most of it is a little too close to EDM (Electronic Dance Music) for my taste. I’ll probably be barred from performing at any of the Casinos of Las Vegas for saying this… but EDM has taken over the world in the clubsacross America because it’s DIRT CHEAP to put on.. a DJ is a one man show… but really, it’s the ‘Walmart’ of music… and I don’t know who really LIKEs the stuff… but even I can dance to it if I’m in the right mood. As a collective, us musicians NEED to be out there informing the world and our fans that THAT is what EDM is all about for the club owners. It has it’s legitimate fans and there IS a craft to it… but it’s lacking in real soul. It’s the CHEAP-OUT version of real music…. and nobody wants to be cheap. I am told that I’m a Country artist by today’s definition. I NEVER ever would have been told that 20 years ago. I’m all Rock N Roll !!… surely!… but Country has lost a lot of it’s Twang and appeals to a much wider demographic these days. It’s grown up some. Parts of that genre is what those of us who were Classic Rock fans now listen to… because Classic Rock is just that… I’m told it’s part of ‘History’… and we can’t RECORD newClassic Rock songs. I beg to differ. A rose by any other name still smells the same. Keith Urban of today is as Classic Rock as the Jackson Browne of yesteryear. The genre’s have changed so much because the Country fans don’t want to admit they like Classic Rock and old Rock fans don’t wanna give the New Contemporary Country a chance. There’s so much more that crosses over these days. I agree that there’s still a huge bunch of people subscribing to what I know as “Bro-Country” …and my new Album is aimed pretty much DIRECTLY at that. I’m no fan of the schlock being thrown at us on Country stations from that angle. I’m as ‘girly’ a girl you’ll ever meet but the endless prattle of songs about getting the girl to go for a ride in your pickup truck and drinking some beer and having your way with her is nauseating. It’s gonna come to an end though… mark my word. Women DO want to be girls and everything that goes with it…. but few want to be painted as ‘easy’ and portrayed as brain dead. I, for one, want to be STRONG. I want to embrace my physical side AND the artistic me. I want to be an inspiration to women everywhere that ‘You CAN live your dream’… and ‘You CAN be someone people love to be around’. Be all you can be… be strong… be fearless! Rock On, my music lover friends… and give some of the ‘New Country or Country/Rock a chance. You might find a few nuggets in there you can identify with. Hope you all like me new Album… Rock On ~ Fearless Journey . You tell ME what Genre it belongs to.. …Available Feb 24th 2015… Amazon, iTunes, CDBaby.
Good times in Las Vegas!
I’ve had a really great weekend with friends in Las Vegas. This isn’t my usual experience in this city. Having lived here, I’m not at all into life on “The Strip” and that sort of thing. I’m over it really quickly. My friends, Bob and Stephanie, are wonderful people and we had the greatest time doing things like hanging out in their kitchen enjoying various wines, cheeses, and bread. We grilled Salmon one day and made some unbelievable Margaritas on another. They took us to a few of Las Vegas’s finest restaurants for other meals. We sat in their Hot Tub and gazed at the stars and talked until we just couldn’t take the heat any more! A wonderful Holiday with great friends! Thank you Steph and Bob!
Tonight I had a scheduled rehearsal with the band that will be backing me with the Dallas Symphony on Friday. It went really well with only a few restarts and minor adjustments. It’s always a little unnerving getting ready for these shows when you haven’t sung with the band before. My confidence in these guys and our ability to get it all together for the show is much improved after the rehearsal. It’s so much fun working with a good band! Fun! Fun! Fun! So it’s off to Dallas now…. see you there!!
juliecmyers 