OPEN STAGES
Karen Liebel
One of the longest running open stages in our city is at The Rosebowl each Sunday night. The host for the last six years has been Mike McDonald, purveyor of all things musical in Edmonton. Not only can he perform in a regular slot once a week, but McDonald also gets to see all sorts of talent pass through the doors of the pizza palace. He’s become something of an expert on open stages.
One thing to know about open stages is the types of people who play. The variety of musicians have distinct reasons for playing the open stage. There are the singer songwriters who are either professionals wanting to try out new material on a live audience, or non-professionals who want to get some experience playing live. Then there are jammers who just want to play along with someone else. "Those can be really horrible," laughs McDonald.
The show offs play their stuff and leave right after they play, which takes away from the interaction open stages are meant to provide. McDonald describes them as the "Yeah, I’ll only do three songs" guys who don’t tell you that one of their songs is twenty minutes long. "I hate those guys," adds McDonald.
At the Rosebowl, a few well known artists have graced the stage unannounced, or have made stops to check out the action. Jann Arden and Trooper lead singer Ra MacGuire have visited on separate occasions; and Bill Bourne, Luann Kowalek, and Chris Smith have played sets during the open stage.
"Chris Smith will pop in sometimes and play with everybody, if they want him to or not," said McDonald. The open stage is also where McDonald met poet Scott Wicken, who had recently moved to Edmonton when he performed on what McDonald wistfully calls, "...a fateful evening that eventually spawned a great friendship with a circle of us."
The atmosphere at most open stages is loose, depending on how the crowd is. "The worst thing they do is ignore you," quips McDonald. No two open stages are the same because the specifics (performers and audience) are always different.
McDonald adds that playing open stages is good practice for unseasoned performers. "They learn how to survive on stage. I almost wish I had had that when I started out," he said.
McDonald is, in essence, starting out again. After being a primary member of the legendary Jr. Gone Wild, McDonald has re-emerged into the Edmonton scene in a variety of incarnations. Currently, he’s working with a six piece pop band under the name The Mike McDonald Band, which also features members of other local bands, including Cone of Silence, Godiva, and The Craft. Despite the newness of the band, the likelihood of finding him at any open stage other than the one he hosts is unlikely. "I don’t go to them much anymore. I got over wanting to play for eight hours straight," he laughs.
(Thanks to Karen Liebel for permission to reproduce this article, which originally appeared in the University of Alberta's student paper, Gateway. In accordance with Gateway policy, this article is copyrighted by Karen Liebel, 1998.)