ARTT's 2008-2009 Season Series
To Order Season Tickets Click Here and Print Form.
Major Sponsor: Viroqua's Wal-Mart
Contributing Sponsors: Sleepy Hollow Auto and Dr. Robert & Janet Starr
Called the "Midwest's Premier Bluegrass and Gospel Quintet," Monroe Crossing plays an upbeat blend of classic and traditional bluegrass, bluegrass-gospel, and heartfelt originals. The group is known both for its dynamic stage show and for the warmth they share with the audience both on and off stage. They always honor audience requests after intermission. They were an International Bluegrass Music Association Showcase Band at the '07 World of Bluegrass Convention in Nashville. The Crossing was inducted into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame in '07. The band members include Art Blackburn on guitar and singing lead and harmony vocals. Lisa Fuglie plays the fiddle and mandolin as well as singing both lead and harmony vocals. Matt Thompson, on the mandolin and fiddle, contributes baritone vocals. Bass player Mark Anderson also sings bass vocals, and Benji Flaming plays the banjo. Music critics say, "I dare ANYONE to watch Monroe Crossing and not get happy!"
Full Sponsorship by Beatrice Small
In 1957 The Kingston Trio emerged from San Francisco's North Beach club scene to take the country by storm, bringing the rich tradition of American folk music into the mainstream for the first time. The Trio enjoyed unprecedented record sale and worldwide fame during the late 50's and early 60's, while influencing the musical tastes of a generation. Through changing times they have played on, remaining popular for a simple reason...great songs that sound as good today as the first time you heard them. And fifty years after "Tom Dooley" shot to the top of the charts, the Trio is still on the road thirty weeks a year, bringing back all the great memories and making new ones. This will be the premier show of the new season!
Full Sponsorship by Chaseburg Manufacturing Inc.
Bud and Marcia Meshbesher
Since 1950, Five by Design has been preserving the traditions of vocal harmony and the American popular song with its musical theatre retrospectives. Their Christmas show will transport you back to the 1940's as a part of the radio studio audience. Backed by a live big band, they bring their lush harmonies to such Christmas classics as "Winter Wonderland," "White Christmas," and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town." Revisit some of the most popular advertisements to hit the airwaves, such as Halo Shampoo, Pepsi-Cola, and Anacin. Rounding out the evening will be studio visits from pin-up girl Betty Grable, Carmen Miranda in her tutti-frutti hate, and Jolly Old Saint Nick. This show is guaranteed to warm the heart of old Ebenezer himself!
Major Sponsor: Citizens First Bank
Contributing Sponsors: Schlicht Insurance and VARC
Founded in 1972, the Wisconsin Brass Quintet is Ensemble in Residence at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music. The brass chamber music experience of the quintet is widely recognized. They have performed nationally, including appearances at New York's Carnegie Recital Hall and Merkin Hall. The quintet's educational programs and master classes have been presented in such prestigious settings as the Juilliard School and the Yale School of Music. They regularly perform radio broadcast concerts for Wisconsin Public Radio. Critics say, "This remarkable ensemble plays with more reckless abandon, warmth, stylistic variety, and interpretive interest than almost any quintet in memory."
Sponsored by
Madison Gas & Electric
Jake & Katherine Menn
Organic Valley
Vosseteig-Larson Funeral Home
Riders in the Sky are keepers of the flame passed on by the Sons of the Pioneers, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers. While remaining true to the integrity of Western music, they have themselves become modern-day icons by branding the genre with their legendary wacky humor and way-out Western wit. The are the ONLY exclusively Western group to have won a Grammy, and Riders and won two! They have chalked up over 5400 concerts, appearing everywhere from country fairs to Nashville, Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, and the White House. Their cowboy charisma and comedic flair landed them their own weekly show on TNN, as well as a Saturday morning series on CBS. They have been guests on countless TV specials, documentaries and variety shows, appearing with everyone from Barney to Penn & Teller. Their animated likenesses have shared the screen with Daffy Duck on the Cartoon Network. In 1982, Riders became the only Western music group to join the Grand Ol' Opry. Billboard magazine counts them as on of "the most historically significant acts in the history of American Music."