Lonestar, video game tourney cap busy few weeks at The Dixon

Hello, Sauk Valley and beyond!

I was thinking we should name this column. Behind the Curtain? The Dixon Dispatch? Midwest Broadway? Let’s brainstorm it.

There has been so much activity in the past two weeks at The Dixon: Historic Theatre!

Let’s start with Lonestar! The show went off flawlessly. The band members were all very nice and complete professionals. Our stage crew was spectacular. Their touring crew said that Scott’s (our resident technical director) team was only a couple minutes short of breaking the record for fastest load out! And that includes major convention centers and amphitheaters!

We did hit a snag the day before the concert. We were contacted that the tour manager that I was dealing with was let go in July, so they had not been receiving any of my calls or emails. Luckily, there were no big surprises, but they did want a 10-passenger van to take them back and forth to their hotel in Rock Falls.

I contacted Enterprise in Rockford and reserved one. At 7 a.m., I was on my way to Rockford when at 7:15 a.m., I received a call saying they didn’t have one and were canceling my reservation. I jumped on the Google and found Mark V Rentals in Freeport! Liz gave us an amazing deal and the 10-passenger van we needed on very short notice. If you need anything that size for your future trips, please give Mark V Rentals a call. Thank you to Mili, owner of Basil Tree, for an amazing meal.

Our newly installed sound system sounded epic! Lonestar played all of their hits and ended with a rock montage of major songs from other bands. They are tremendous songwriters but also fantastic musicians. If you have a chance to see them, we fully recommend them!

We then hosted another video game tournament on the big screen at The Dixon. This time it was Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. The contestants had tripled from our first event. If you have no experience or if you’re a little intimidated, don’t be! It’s a ton of fun. I had no idea how to play and got annihilated by the new Dixon Grand Champion but had a blast!

Old-time gamers to noobs to experts, all are welcome! And it’s a safe space! We shake hands after every match and there were cheers and ovations for great matches. If you don’t want to play but want to watch, please come and experience it for yourselves and watch every player’s eyes light up with the excitement of playing a video game on an enormous movie screen. We’d like to thank the players, parents and viewers for coming out. And a special thank you to the Eastland E-sports team for coming out and representing! I hear the Rockford E-Sports team wants to come to the next one! Our local players better keep practicing!

We had a piano donated to us by Camryn from Chicago. A Jacobean-Gothic Kimball piano from 1929. These baby grand pianos are very rare and very sturdy. When you come to see it, you’ll see that the legs are reenforced and carved with amazing detail. Even the matching bench is a sight. Thank you to Spencer for helping us move it out of the house and into the theater. After getting it tuned for the first time in 30 years, it sounds incredible. And what better way to give it a test run than to bring in a piano player and a singer to perform?

The Heartland Crooner: Matt Atherton and his accompanist, Gloria Minor, took the stage last Sunday and performed the songs of Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. Scott Shipp and Perry Paliga designed the set with a lit sign that read “The Dixon Lounge” and surrounded the piano with gold curtains and palm trees. It felt like a true Vegas Lounge from the 1950s. The piano sounded fantastic. Billy Chips, The Worst Comedian in Vegas, opened for Matt with a 15-minute set of vintage jokes. We will have more Dixon Lounge shows in the future!

Our new ramp is complete thanks to the help of the city and Paul Roe, one of our cherished board members. This helped move rolling boxes for Lonestar easily onto stage. They can weigh hundreds of pounds each. If you’d like to check out the new ramp, just drive down the alley between the theater and KSB. If you are a BMX bike rider, quit ramping it! Ha!

We have a new bar on the balcony floor. Our tech team has installed a new serving window on the audience left side of the balcony. It is equipped with a sliding door cooler and can quickly serve everyone on the balcony during sold-out shows! This was made possible by a generous donation from Paul Roe. We keep upgrading The Dixon so your event experience will be better every visit!

We would like to shout a humongous “thank you” to our fantastic volunteers. We have a generous stable of volunteers growing at The Dixon. A very special thank you to Quinn, Merle, Spencer, Mike, Pam and Bonita for leading the way and helping our new volunteers feel welcomed and supported. We couldn’t do it without you. We are incredibly grateful to be a part of The Impact program at Sauk Valley Community College. We’ve had some amazing high school young adults volunteer at the theater. Thank you so much!

We’d like to thank our friend in Polo that wanted to donate their piano to the theater. Thank you for having us out and showing us your beautiful piano. We will be sending you some free tickets to future shows soon. We hope you can find a good home for it.

We are in need of a washer and dryer at the theater. We need to wash the children’s costumes as well as adult costumes for our upcoming shows. We have touring bands and shows that will ask for a washer and dryer if their hotel doesn’t have one. We also give towels to bands and performers. They need to be washed after the performance as do the black tablecloths we use for catering and other events. If you are upgrading and would like to donate or if you are a dealer and would like some tickets in exchange, contact the theater and be acknowledged as a sponsor of the 2025 season!

Are you following Discover Dixon? They have some amazing events coming up in October! Scarecrow Fest and a Tailgating experience as well as Ladies Night Out on Oct. 17! Speaking of Ladies Night Out, we are having a special event for the ladies at The Dixon Theater! After the Discover Dixon activities, come to The Dixon Theater for the performance group known as Magic Hunks! Yes, it’s that kind of show.

Magic Hunks on Oct. 17 brings you a night of dancing and showmanship. A perfect way to cap off Ladies Night Out. The show is for those 18 and older and there will be full concessions. We will have another Dixon Signature Drink to be announced soon. Only $20 for entry and $40 for the VIP Experience. Limited VIP tickets are available so get yours now at dixontheatre.com.

We are currently building your 2025 season! We will have different season ticket packages for you by December, which will make unique and enjoyable gifts for the holidays! Please join our mailing list for upcoming shows and a few surprises!

Thank you for reading all the way through and we’ll see you at The Dixon!

- Darren Mangler is The Dixon: Historic Theatre’s artistic producer.