Jeff has been working very hard to get some business set up. Through a series of meet-ups, he finally got in contact with someone from the City of Vancouver Parks and Recreations. She got him set up for two gigs over the summer, both on the third Monday of the months (July and August) at a recreation center here in town. We were set to do a show for the 55 and older people who frequent the area. It would be an unpaid gig, but we were more interested in the experience and exposure right now anyway.
It wasn't exactly the crowd Jeff had imagined, but we adjusted. He went to the rec center and talked to a few of the people there to get an idea of what kind of music they liked to listen to and sing. He made a point to find songs in the genres mentioned so that the background music playing between songs would be stuff they would recognize and appreciate, even going as far as borrowing songs from his parents and my grandmother. Then he created fliers for the event and spent a couple weeks going to different retirement establishments and talking with the activities directors about the event.
Since the show was set for the morning time, I took the day off of work so that I could be there for his first gig. I wanted to be there to get pictures and be able to write about it, but mostly I wanted to be there to support my husband.
Turns out he needed the support more than either of us realized, though not in any way that we expected.
We got to the center early so that we would have plenty of time to get things set up. Now, let me tell you, if you haven't looked at the website to check out the equipment, you have no idea how big of a job set up is. We have a lot of equipment we use, including two very large speakers, to make the best show possible. There is so much stuff, we have to use my car to transport it because Jeff's isn't big enough. And even then, it's full to the brim with stuff. I barely fit in the car with everything we have to take. But we got it loaded up and drove over early to start getting all the stuff set up.
As we began unloading the car, a lady came out and told us to stop. She came over to us and told us that there had been a terrible mix-up and somehow the slot got double booked for today. She said that the other person booked for today was someone they used regularly and they had a lot of people who came to see him specifically and if they didn't use him, they would probably stop coming.
We should have expected something like this. Just last week Jeff went to do some confirming with the Park and Recreation people and found out they knew nothing about him. The lady he had been dealing with, who had set the whole thing up, was out for two weeks on medical leave and apparently didn't bother to tell anyone what she had set up before she left.
Still, no one mentioned overlapping engagements. He figured that now that he told them about his event, everything was back on track.
Jeff was beside himself. After all the time and energy he had put into promoting this, they were going to send us on our merry way with a simple "Oops, maybe next time." They made a point to tell us they were going to double check our next date to make sure nothing else got scheduled over it, and maybe they could find a couple of other groups we could do shows for to make up for it. I guess that helps a little, but I told them that my biggest concern right now was about the reputation of Big Hat Karaoke. Jeff had done a lot of promoting and there were several places that said they would definitely be there for it. What was going to happen when they get there and we are not performing? Will they bother coming out next month or will they write him off as a flake? The people at the center told us that they would make sure to tell anyone looking for karaoke what happened and that it was totally their mistake. But at this point, should we really trust them?
So, our first show was a big, disappointing no-go. Instead of getting a chance to show people what we've got and what we do, instead of establishing some credibility, we're left to do damage control. How do we fix the negative first impression that Parks and Recreation created for us? Looks like this week Jeff will be making more personal visits to the retirement community. I just hope they understand and are willing to give us another chance next month.
