The Arcola Optimist Club transformed the town's MacMurray Theatre into Nashville's Bluebird Cafe, in an effort to raise the roof-and the profile- of the town's historic hall, as they welcomed Nashville-based singer-songwriters Victoria Banks, Phil Barton, and Emily Shackleton to the stage on Oct. 25.
"I'm just really happy we had a chance to put on such a great show," said Optimist Club secretary-treasurer Glen Lawson. "We had a close-to sell-out crowd, and the community's response was great. I'd just like to thank everyone for coming out and I'd also like to thank our sponsors. Without their support and generosity, we couldn't have put on a show of this calibre."
"This gives us a leg-up on getting the whole renovation done. It gives us a chance to do immediate repairs to the roof so we can make sure we save things," adds Lawson. "I can't thank Emily, Phil and Victoria enough for coming out. They gave us a great evening and were so supportive of this project, even donating a portion of their CD sales for the evening to the fund."
The accomplished trio often write together in Nashville, and have collectively and individually composed a catalogue of hit songs-recorded by Sara Evans, Lee Brice, Wynonna Judd, Johnny Reid, and Jessica Simpson, and others. Barton and Shackleton have also written songs that have been featured on the television series 'Nashville.'
"Victoria Banks has hosted Telemiracle three times and has a new CD, 'Indigo' that was released Oct. 7," said Lawson. "She was named Female Artist of the year in 2010 and Songwriter of the Year by the Canadian Country Music Association. She's also written songs for people like Sara Evans and Johnny Reid."
"Phil Barton is from Australia and wrote Lee Brice's number one hit 'A Woman Like You' and Emily Shackleton is from Minnesota and has written songs for Reba McEntire, Sara Evans, and Wynonna Judd. Both she and Phil have written songs for the TV show 'Nashville', as well."
Although Banks hails from Muskoka, Ont., Barton from Australia, and Shackleton from rural Minnesota, all three were unanimous in their praise for the town of Arcola.
"I love places like this," said Banks. "Really small towns appreciate the music and this town is beautiful."
"The audience is super-appreciative," added Barton. "And the acoustics are amazing."
"I grew up in a town of 900 people," added Shackleton. "It's my first time in Canada, but I feel like my grandma and grandpa should be here tonight. That's how much it reminds me of home here."
Canadian Banks opened the concert with a request that the audience stand and sing 'Oh Canada', saying, "It's so good to be back in my home country. And this week, my home country has had it hard. Please join us in the singing of our national anthem."
After that heartfelt start, all three artists entertained and enthralled the audience with a collection of their hits---and the stories behind the songs---including Banks' 'Dance With Me,' recorded by Johnny Reid, Barton's award-winning "A Woman Like You', and Shackleton's 'Love Like Mine', a hit for both Canadian duo One More Girl and Hayden Paniettiere, star of TV's 'Nashville.'
Hinting at both heartbreak and hilarity while giving the audience the personal history behind their hits, the trio playfully inserted Canadian content into the song 'Winnebago', referencing the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Canadian 'eh' and even Arcola's bear statue.
However, Shackleton emphasized the trio were there to help preserve the Mac, saying: "I'd like to give a shout out to Glen [Lawson] and the Optimist Club. You have a beautiful theatre here. Look after it, we hope you have us back again to play on this stage."
Optimist secretary-treasurer Lawson said the evening was a success and will aid the club greatly in both the theatre's preservation and the service club's other projects.
"This event gives us the first step. We're taking a proactive approach to fixing the roof on the theatre. We also are looking at a front-end renovation and restoration."
"The Optimist Club also supports other community projects in Arcola," he added. "Right now, we're hoping to complete renovations to the MacMurray Theatre and the Optimist Legion Hall. We also sponsor the Arcola School Nutrition Program, which provides breakfast to students and we fund an annual scholarship to a local high school grad in the amount of $2,500."
"Our next big event is the Snowmobile Rally in January. We partner with other local organizations, and our share of the funds raised will go to the theatre."
"We're going to do a spring concert in the Mac," added Lawson. "It'll depend on whether we get the artist we want, but we have a pattern of doing at least two of these concerts a year, for a couple of reasons. We get a different crowd into the theatre and we can showcase some great musical entertainment right here."
"It's become a really good tradition and we'd like to keep it up."
