RIO RICO FIESTA FESTIVAL AND EXPO

RIO RICO FIESTA FESTIVAL AND EXPO

Back in January, we were asked to sit in on a meeting for this event. We were under the impression we would be part of an entertainment committee. By the end of the meeting we were the entertainment committee. This first annual event was being hosted by the Rio Rico Chamber of Commerce and coordinated by Gene Earl. To ensure that this would indeed be an annual event we were all under pressure to help make it great. Fortunately, Michael is an excellent event planner. He has planned many events through his company, Michael Hargis Entertainment. He wanted to provide entertainment that the attendees would remember and come back for year after year. This task was especially difficult due to the minimal budget.

Rio Rico is about 10 minutes from the Mexican border, so the population of this city is primarily Hispanic. We were asked to take this into condsideration when planning and hiring performers. Rio Rico is about an hour and 15 minutes from Tombstone. We attended a couple of the planning meetings, but 3 hours is a lot of time out of our day, so we did a lot of emailing and phone calls in place of meetings. Michael kept reassuring them that there will be some great entertainment at their event and not to worry.

Friday, prior to the event, Michael dropped off the infrastructure which included and twenty plus foot stage, provided my Michael Hargis Entertainment and Larry and Geri Bowers, of Tombstone. We also set up a 16 x 16 foot raised wooden dance floor provided by Six Gun City's Mike and Nora Carraffa. Fifty chairs were donated by the Gift of Giving Thrift Store in Tombstone and the secondary 4 x 8 foot stage by Michael Hargis Entertainment. This stage was needed for a smooth transition between acts. The volunteer staff was very helpful in the set-up of the event infrastructure.

Saturday arrives and we are on our way to the event. Because our week was so hectic, we left later than planned and Michael started stressing. Now, there are very few things that Michael stresses about. He usually stays calm in any situation, even when everyone else is wigging out. But when it comes to events and shows, that's his baby and it has to be right. We needed to have music playing by 10 a.m. We were cutting it close. A few miles down the road we realized that we hadn't filled the gas tank. The gauge registered a little over 1/4 tank. Hmmm. Not so good. I trust Michael with my heart and my life completely, except for one thing; his judgment of what that big E on the gas gauge means. He gave me his usual, "Not a problem, we have plenty of gas". That has, on two past occasions, resulted in lugging red plastic gas cans down the road to the nearest filling station. To avoid this scenario making us even later, he decided we'd better stop for gas. So with our newly filled tank, I'm relaxed, but he's even more worried about getting there on time. One of the best things about our relationship is that Michael and I rarely freak out at the same time. We seem to have different priorities, which can be a challenge in itself, but that's another blog altogether. At this moment in time, he was worried about time, but I felt confident that we would make it. I won this one. Not only were we on time, but the system was set up and music was blaring 5 minutes early!

It was a picture perfect Arizona Spring day. Guests started arriving at about 10:00 a.m. in good numbers. The attendance was doubling every hour until approximately 2:00, which is outstanding for a first year event. Unfortunately the crowd levelled off due to the winds. As predicted by the all-knowing weather man, we were in the middle of a red flag warning. High winds. Lots of flying dust, dirt, trash and flyers, (so that's how they got their name!).Unfortunately, there were also a couple of EZ Ups destroyed when a high octane dirt devil roared through. Our car window was open for that one. Our gray and black interior was now covered with dirt, dry grass and hay, not to mention what it did to our sound equipment. It really took a beating. Fortunately, nothing was damaged, just dirty.

The first act of the day was our friend and soon to be fellow traveller, Nickel Nancy. She sings country music. She said someone once said she's like a female Jim Nabors. Her speaking and singing voices are completely opposites. When she speaks it's kind of like a little girl, ditsy blond combination. But when she sings it's pure country.

Next up was Kanela. Frank and Martha are a husband and wife duo. Frank accompanies Martha on his acoustic guitar. The background tracks they use are also Frank playing all the instruments. Their reportoire is mostly Spanish songs, with some pop songs in English mixed in. The audience enjoyed them.

Following Kanela was the Spanish rock group Prova. They were very loud as all rock bands are, but unlike some rock bands they were very good musicians and singers. They attracted quite a crowd.

After the band, Nickel performed again and then it was Michael's turn. Watching Michael I realize just how much he loves to perform. I can't wait until he can do this full time.

Last but not least was Partners. Bonnie and Ted Bax have been performing together for many years. They're a very good dance music duo. Ted plays guitar and sings while Bonnie plays keyboard and sings. Our adoptive parents Randy and Hilda Smith who are great dancers, led the audience in an impromptu line dance lesson, (They teach line dancing in Sierra Vista, AZ). They filled the dance floor. One of the girls that participated came up to Hilda later and wanted to learn more. It really made their day. We coined this segment, The Hilda and Randy Show.

The Rio Rico Chamber of Commerce graciously provided rooms at the Esplendor Hotel and Resort for some entertainers. We checked into our room late Saturday night and left early Sunday morning, so we regretfully didn't have a chance to sample the resort's amenities. We hope that someday in the near future, we will be able to visit the Esplendor again and partake in all of it's splendor:) Golf anyone?

On Sunday, Michael, Nickel and Kanela performed again throughout the day. At 1:00 Fire Chief Mike was requested to sing, Amarillo By Morning. The crowd shouted their approval. He then introduced and sang a song with the youth Mariachi band called, Mariachi Nueva Melodia. They were adorable and VERY talented. The confidence and stage presence of these kids is just amazing. Cudos to their directors, Rafael Moran and Jasmin Fimbres.

Michael was ready to hit the stage again when the generator ran out of gas. Oops! The Aztec dancers had arrived early and since they didn't need amplified sound, Michael approached them and requested that they go on prematurely. They agreed. Their group is called Danza Azteca Cuauhtemoc. The leader of the group, a 67 year old man in incredible physical condition, came out with a conch shell and incense. He lit the incense and blew the conch shell to call the other members of the group to the stage. Two young men played gorgeous hand carved ceremonial drums. Once the warriors started beating the drums, it didn't take long for every chair to fill and it was standing room only around the entertainment complex. All the dancers were in traditional costumes and put on a show that required incredible physical endurance. Interspersed with the dancing the leader spoke of the history and struggles of their people, with some political undertones. They were impressive, indeed and a crowd favorite.

Michael ended the weekend with a half-hour of his high-energy performance and it was time to pack it all up and head for home. We believe this first year event was a total success, due to the hard work and time put in by all of the committees and volunteers. They all did an excellent job. Unfortunatley, there are too many too mention individually, but we'd like to recognize Gene Earl, of the Rio Rico Chamber of Commerce, who was the organizer for the event. Special thanks to Sandei Jackson who corralled us into this great event. All of the food vendors did an excellent job in preparing and serving the delicious food. The lines were minimal. The vendors were helpful and courteous to all the guests. Their requested commercials were announced on the entertainment stage at least twice a day throughout the event. We also announced the raffle winners every hour on the hour. We are looking forward to the after event meeting to be announced. All in all, the City of Rio Rico knocked this first year event out of the park. GOOD JOB!!

All the Best, Michael & Christi
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Vigilette's Annual Variety Show

Vigilette's Annual Variety Show
Last Saturday was the Vigilette's (auxillary of the Vigilantes), Annual Variety Show. Michael has lived here in Tombstone for 15 years, I for 5. This show has been held for at least 20 years. Neither of us has ever attended this show. Actually, I never even knew about it. It is usually done in conjuction with the Rose Festival, which we have also never attended. (Except for the year Michael was the MC for the Fashion Show.) But that's another story. Anyway, now they have combined the Rose Festival (which is a celebration of the blooming of the WORLD'S LARGEST ROSE TREE), with a Founder's Day celebration. I know this is confusing, but if I went into anymore detail, we'd be here all day.
So, about 2 months ago Betty Davis of the Vigilette's called and asked us to do the sound for their show. We agreed that we would. We were a bit surprised that they had asked us, (if you knew small town Tombstone politics, you would be too), but we forged ahead, not really knowing what to expect.
We were told we could set up for the rehearsal and then leave the equipment there overnight. The event was being held in historic Schieffelin Hall and all would be locked up and safe. We found out later that there would be other things going on there the next day, so we wouldn't be able to leave the equipment there. OK, a little bump, as it's a pain to set it up for an hour's rehearsal just to take it down, put it in the Jeep and haul it home again, only to do it all again the next evening. But, it doesn't take us long, since we have a good system down. NO WHINING!
The rehearsal, wasn't really a rehearsal, as nothing was done in the order of the show and most of the acts weren't there, BUT, I was really glad to be there. Schieffelin Hall was built in the early 1880's and the acoustics are AWESOME! After all, it's designed for stage performances without the technology of microphones. I'm used to adjusting the sound for RV clubhouses in all their varied sizes, gyms, private homes, amphitheaters and the great outdoors. But this was something new. As I sat in the wings, the music and performers were muted and it was hard for me to balance music and voice. I walked into the hall to check my adjustments and WOW! It was ear shattering. So, I tried to adjust on stage, then run out to the hall and adjust some more, but I just couldn't hear it right. I was blasting the music and drowning out the singers. So, the night of the show, Michael set me up in the hall at the foot of the stage. Much better. I could hear and see the performers.
So here we are, show night. I asked for a list of the performers and songs, which I was promised the night before at rehearsal. What I got was a 3 page list of names, just names. Since a lot of these folks were not at rehearsal I had no ideal who they were. As I tried to sort it out, the woman in charge was frantically running around getting herself ready for her hula dance performance. I didn't have everyone's music and didn't know what songs anyone was doing. Needless to say I was a bit frantic myself. Thank goodness, Michael taught me about professionalism, because left to my own will, I would have lit into someone. I have to admit I did get a little snippy and had to reign it in. My thought was, 'when the music is screwed up because they didn't give me the correct information, the audience will look at me as if I'm the idiot'. So, I guess it was my pride that helped me be proactive instead of reactive and I was able to finally track down the performers and get what I needed. The only problem was a couple of persnickety CD's that didn't like our player. Oh, and don't forget the CD with dried ice cream on it. (I kid you not, Michael actually licked it to get the sticky stuff off and said it was ice cream). It happened to be the CD of a small child. Go figure.
After about the first 6 or 7 songs, I finally calmed down enough to actually enjoy the show. It was VERY entertaining. Michael performed 3 songs. One was with our hairdresser Patti, who is a riot to be around in everyday life. Michael sang, "I Swear" and she acted out a disgruntled housewife, I can't even begin to describe it. Hilarious. Linda Dailing, who teaches voice and performing for a living is an awesome performer in her own right. There was a little girl and a young man who attend Linda's school, Doc Diamond our good friend and saxophone player, Nickel Nancy, another good friend, who will be touring behind us this summer. There were hula dancers, tap dancers and belly dancers. There were also several comedy routines, all very funny. The way things started, I was afraid. I was very, very afraid. But it went very well. The audience was very active and appreciative. A good night for all! Best of all, the proceeds went to our local food bank. Until next time... ( Photo of Nickel and Christi )

All the Best, Michael & Christi
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http://singinglandcruiser.blogspot.com/