Icons of Rock n' Roll

On Friday night, I had the rare and amazing opportunity to see two musical legends perform, practically in my backyard: Elvis Costello and Bob Dylan. As part of IU's Homecoming Week and the inauguration of a new university president, the school presented this amazing concert. I'm quite a fan of Costello, and rather like Dylan well enough-- but more importantly, it was about taking advantage of a rare opportunity (and a rare opportunity for such a reasonable price!).

The evening's biggest disappointment (other than the $15 posters!) was realizing that I actually had the time of the event wrong-- and ended up coming in during the last minute of Costello's final song! It broke my heart quite a bit. But watching Bob Dylan perform for his whole set was a lovely, relaxing, and vibrant experience.

It was also an intriguing event to observe-- Costello came out to watch Dylan perform, and no one seemed to acknowledge he was there. Hundreds of camera phones came out when Dylan took the stage. My date for the evening, who was unfamiliar with Dylan's work, enjoyed counting beats and rhythms in his music, trying to decipher some semblance of order in what seemed erratic. My favorite thing to realize though--was the energy in the room. Coming from a performing arts background, you recognize and feel the energy of the audience. And this was the most irregular and uneven energy I've ever felt. Despite this though, I thought it was a good thing. It meant that there were hundreds, if not thousands, of patrons seeing a concert where they had no idea what to expect. Their energy was low because they weren't fans of the musicians, but they realized the importance of the opportunity being presented to them, and they took advantage of it.

And really, in my arts administration career, I think that's one of the most fulfilling things that can happen.