Permission to speak freely

Whistle
1

Could I get some feedback on the following feature article, submitted to our 2 local newspapers? I’ve not seen Cherish the Ladies, but rather gleaned these impressions from what I’ve read. In fact, the closest I’ve come to live Celtic music is seeing one Luka Bloom show, one Hothouse Flowers show and 2 Atlanta St. Patty’s Day parades, so please, please pardon my ignorance.

“An Evening to Cherish”

Somewhere between timeless narrative and local gossip, there is a tale of human love, loss, longing or joy best expressed in the musical lore of a people. And when those tunes and those stories are conveyed by worthy musicians, talented in their art and sensitive to the human condition, a listener can be transformed, enriched to have spent a few fleeting moments within earshot.

Enter Cherish the Ladies. The five women comprising the group’s current lineup will grace the stage of the R. E. Lee Auditorium Saturday night, providing the local audience a rich and rare glimpse into some of the best Irish tradition has to offer, from traditional instrumentation to lively step dancing.

Joanie Madden, Cherish the Ladies founder and award-winning virtuoso of the whistle and flute, stated, “It makes my day when people can come to one of our shows and we can make them forget about all their problems with music, singing and dancing for a couple of hours and let them have a good hearty laugh!”

The band has toured throughout North and South America, the U. K. and Europe in their 15 years together. They have performed with Emmy Lou Harris, James Taylor, The Chieftains, and The Boston Pops, and they represented Irish music and culture at the Cultural Olympiad of the Atlanta Summer Olympics. This year, they were named Band of the Year at the BBC Folk Awards, the first American group to receive such a distinction.

It will be an honor, a pleasure and an evening to enliven the spirit when Cherish the Ladies comes to town this Saturday.

The show is sponsored by Quad Graphics. Call the Thomaston-Upson Arts Council at (706) 647-1605 for tickets and information.

2

Just realized what you were asking–the tone of the article is fine and and you should reel them in.

Now…as a former newspaper reporter, I need to see a date, time, place, or price, which you should include with your information number.

Marguerite



[ This Message was edited by: mvhplank on 2002-11-11 09:23 ]

3

It’s all true and accurate as it goes, but there is one dimension you should add if you can see a way to do it. There are a lot of touring bands playing Celtic music and its derivatives, but there’s no band that comes anywhere near CTL in making a concert just plain FUN. I’ve been to three so far and will get to another one in just about a month. They can get the audience into a performance better than any band I’ve seen in many years.

BTW, if I could ask, with ticket prices like yours, how can you afford to put them on? CTL concerts up here (Central Illinois) get 2-3 times that for tickets.

4

Thanks for the feedback.

Marguerite, you’re right, those are big items to omit. I’ll see if I can squeak them in. However, these were submitted to the two papers in our tiny little town, so the place and price info are fairly well known.

As to how we can afford it, we can’t. We’ll lose several thousand dollars putting on this show. But it’s one of 3 shows in our performing arts series, and we generally take a loss on at least one as an (unintentional) good will measure. We have to make up for it in memberships, corporate sponsorships, and donations. The backlash from trying to raise ticket prices in our struggling mill town would make it counterproductive.

I’m glad to be able to take advantage of it myself, and I know I’m going to be brimming with pride to have helped bring them to Thomaston Saturday night.

Thanks for the input!

5

As a former editor and copy writer, I agree with Marguerite…it’s essential that you include the time, date and place in your article. Even in a small town, there are going to be people who either don’t know this essential information or who require confirmation. And remember…you never know WHO is reading the paper.

Redwolf

6

Ya know…my sister’s in the Atlanta area. I’m REAL tempted to come support the concert series.

Good luck!

Marguerite

7

Marguerite, please let me know if you do. I’d love to say hi and send you home with a TUAC t-shirt as a souvenir.

8

An update: I managed to get the additional information included in the article for one of our newspapers (the weekly). The other (thrice weekly-is there a word for that?) ran the above article on the front yesterday and should run a blurb with just the critical facts later this week. Thanks so much for looking it over and pointing out the omission.

9

Hello,

I saw them once…a good band. The only thing about them, is they play alot of sad music. Now “most” Irish music is “sad” but played fast or lively and it just does not sound “sad”. It could have just been the songs they chose when I saw them. Live music is always the best…check out any local play houses…sooner or later an Irish or Irish like band should show up. This Feb. Lunasa is playing in NH! :smiley:

10

On 2002-11-12 12:39, Sage wrote:
Hello,

I saw them once…a good band. The only thing about them, is they play alot of sad music. Now “most” Irish music is “sad” but played fast or lively and it just does not sound “sad”. It could have just been the songs they chose when I saw them. Live music is always the best…check out any local play houses…sooner or later an Irish or Irish like band should show up. This Feb. Lunasa is playing in NH! > :smiley:

You had to bring up Lunasa, didn’t you? :grumble: I missed them when they were recently here in Phoenix…planning to catch their tour date in Las Vegas next time they come around.

Aodhan

11

Their will be a new Christmas Cd from Cherish the Ladies.
I am taking Guitar lessons from Mary Coogan and she has certainly been a great teach. They will be starting their Christmas tour in December and the big cruse in January.