The Animas City Theatre filled with aspiring musicians, stand up comedians and performers for the venue’s fourth official open mic night.
Open mics have been held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. each Thursday since late September at the theater. The event is 21+ with no cover charge, and any and all performers are welcome to take to the stage for 10 minutes – so long as they can get on the sign-up list before it fills.
The event was dreamed up by open mic co-hosts Ryan Blundell and Galen Clark, and actualized by Animas City Theatre Talent Buyer and Production Manager Eugene Salaz.
The sign-up list opens at 5:30 p.m. each Thursday, and interest was so high during the event’s inaugural month that some hopeful performers had to be turned away because of time and capacity constraints, Blundell said. The Oct. 23 list was full in less than a half hour.
The event was created to give budding musicians a chance to try their hand at performing in a supportive environment, said Blundell, who has a history of leading open mics around town.
Blundell and Clark co-hosted open mic events at the Tangled Horn before it closed, and the two joined forces to bring the open mic experience back to life.
Blundell said hosting feels like a way to return a favor to the open mic world.
“I, as a musician, didn't start playing music shows until I was 21, and the place that I got out of my house to play at was an open mic,” he said. “So, for me it feels like giving back a little bit.”
Clark said a sense of synergy among the performing community can be felt during ACT open mic nights.
“(They) provide not only a safe space, but an exciting space for people to try something for the first time,” he said.
The open mic Oct. 23 attracted both seasoned performers and newbies. Three-person band Never Around, consisting of community members Caroline Araiza, Paige Sparks and Katie Sieverman, put on their debut performance as a group Oct. 23. The group, which met in the Durango Running Club, said they were “stoked” to be performing on a professional stage. They’d been planning their three-song performance for two months.
Guitar and harmonica player Sparks said her favorite part of the evening was being welcomed into such a collaborative and supportive environment.
“It feels like a safe space,” she said. “It’s just such a rare opportunity to get to share art in a way that feels non competitive, and just open. And I think that this place really exemplifies that.”
The open mic was approved on a four-week trial basis, Salaz said. Because of strong interest, the event has been approved to keep going through Dec. 18.
“I saw that the Tangled Horn was closing, and our door guy, Mike, was always coming to work talking about the open mic night,” Salaz said. “So, (Blundell, Clark and I) talked to the owners, and said, ‘Let’s see if this is something we can try out.’”
Salaz said the event has been successful so far at filling seats and giving budding artists the opportunity to perform for a crowd.
“(We’re) trying to do something new and give local artists that aren’t on that professional level yet an opportunity to come and play our stage and play our room and see what kind of crowds they attract – to see if it’s possible to hire them for opening slots down the road,” Salaz said. “Our sign-ups have been going really fast, and we’ve never had a dead stage.”
Local musician and Los Angeles transplant Rusty Ford, who performed with friend and bandmate Sarah Vader – and later with the pair’s full band, the Western Wallflowers – called the vibrant environment of the event “something that would only happen in a town like this.”
“This would never happen in Los Angeles,” he said. “I just love that this is where I live now, and that things like this are an opportunity.”
Guitarist and singer Clint Keith performed at the ACT open mic for a second time with fellow musician Mike Bear, with an impromptu assist by Blundell on the bass. He said the anxiety of performing onstage, especially when mess-ups happen, is offset by the supportive environment at the event.
“It’s the scariest thing in the world, but when you have people supporting you, like everyone here does, you laugh, too,” Keith said.
Thursday open mic nights are set to continue at the Animas City Theatre through Dec. 18. If all goes well, the event might become a more permanent fixture at the venue.
“We’re going to do this next Thursday also, and the next Thursday, and the next Thursday after that, because y’all are showing up,” Blundell said to the cheering crowd Oct. 23.
For More Information
Open mic nights at the Animas City Theatre are scheduled to run Thursdays through Dec. 18, not including Thanksgiving.
For more information, visit https://animascitytheatre.com/event/open-mic-night-5/animas-city-theatre/durango-colorado
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