Intimate Venue. Ultimate Experience.
CONCERTS/SHOWS
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6 SHOW PACKAGE
FLEX TICKET
6 shows starting at $132
The Franke Center is back with our most diverse, exciting season ever! The season FlexTicket season pass allows you to pick any six from a wide range of world-class concerts and performances. Choose what inspires you!
SEPTEMBER 11, 2021 | 8PM
MICHIGAN RATTLERS
COUNTRY ROCK
Part of the Michigan Stars series, Rolling Stone named Michigan Rattlers one of their “Ten New Country Artists You Need To Know.”
SEPTEMBER 18, 2021 | 8PM
PETE SEEGER TRIBUTE | 3LB CUT & FRIENDS
FOLK
Celebrate the music of folk icon Pete Seeger, writer of classic songs such as If I Had A Hammer, Where Have All The Flowers Gone and Turn, Turn, Turn. The show will feature Marshall’s own band “3LB Cut”, which includes Kjell Croce, Adrian Bagale, Derek Smith, and Alvin Lautzenheiser, with other special guests.
NOVEMBER 20,2021 | 8PM
JOE LOUIS WALKER
BLUES
Joe Louis Walker, a Blues Hall of Fame inductee and four-time Blues Music Award winner, celebrates a career that exceeds half a century. Within the Blues world, he is described as a “living legend” and has performed at many of the world’s most renowned music festivals.
JANUARY 15, 2022 | 8PMIRISH PUB NIGHT
FEATURING BLACKTHORN
Featuring traditional songs combined with some of Ireland’s best contemporary songs, Blackthorn creates a musical experience that captures the history and legend of Ireland and its people.
JANUARY 22, 2022 | 8PMWOLF TREE FILM FEST
SHORT FILM VIEWING
Featuring traditional songs combined with some of Ireland’s best contemporary songs, Blackthorn creates a musical experience that captures the history and legend of Ireland and its people.
FEBRUARY 5, 2022 | 8PMICE, WINE, BEER & BLUES
MATT SCHOFIELD
Experience a night of exceptional blues from Matt Schofield, a member of the British Blues Hall of Fame
FEBRUARY 26, 2022 | 8PMJACKSON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
CLASSICAL
The Jackson Symphony Orchestra has a rich and vibrant history serving the Jackson area since 1949. The orchestra has performed with many legendary figures in the world of music including Dizzy Gillespie, Grant Johannesen, Ralph Votapek and Ian Hobson. www.jacksonsymphony.org
APRIL 23, 2022 | 8PM
DEAR OLIVIA
FOLK-POP
24-year-old singer-songwriter Olivia Dear (formerly Olivia Millerschin) hails from Detroit. Her unique folk-pop style features thoughtful songwriting powered by her perfect, moving vocals and multi-instrumental prowess.
MAY 6, 2022 | 8PMGILMORE KEYBOARD FESTIVAL | YOUNG ARTIST TBA
CLASSICAL
The mission of The Gilmore is to promote and develop world-class keyboard musical experiences that inspire present and future artists and audiences. The Gilmore Young Artist Award is presented every two years to single out the most promising of the new generation of U.S.-based pianists, age 22 and younger.
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BLACKTHORN
BLACKTHORN
IRISH PUB NIGHT
JANUARY 15, 2022 | 8PM
DOORS AND BAR OPEN AT 7:30
GENERAL ADMISSION
ADV.$22 | $24
One of The Franke Center’s most popular annual events! Featuring traditional songs combined with some of Ireland’s best contemporary songs, Blackthorn creates a musical experience that captures the history and legend of Ireland and its people.
Sponsored by:
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WOLF TREE FILM FESTIVAL 2022
Wolf Tree Film Festival 2022
SHORT FILM SCREENING
JANUARY 22, 2022 | 7PM
PRE-SCREENING MIXER DOWNSTAGE CLUB AT 6pm
GENERAL ADMISSION
ADVANCE $15 | $18 AT DOOR
In its fourth year, Wolf Tree Film Festival showcases films set in the Great Lakes region or that include themes or topics related to the region, as well as the work of filmmakers who reside in or grew up in the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes region is defined as any state or territory that touches one of the Great Lakes (including Ontario, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York).
Submitted films should be no longer than 30 minutes, and all genres will be considered.
The festival will take place at The Franke Center for the Arts in Marshall, MI* and will include screenings of each selected film, a Q&A with select filmmakers, an awards presentation, and a filmmaker roundtable with industry professionals.
The Wolf Tree Film Festival is housed in historic Marshall, Michigan, a gorgeous small town with a vibrant artistic community. Hosted by the Franke Center for the Arts and Marshall’s Youngish Professionals Committee, the festival is held at Franke Center, originally a church built in 1921, now an arts complex that is the proud home of world-class concerts, inspiring theater, and award-winning movies.
This year, Wolf Tree’s host will be John Matthew Riopelle. Riopelle is an American, actor, playwright, lyricist and screenwriter. He is the winner of the Gilman Gonzalez-Falla Musical Theater Award, a two-time Richard Rodgers and Jonathan Larson Grant finalist and a Fred Ebb Musical Theater Award finalist. His musical, Streets of America, with score by Tony Award Winner, Michael Rupert, was developed at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in conjunction with American University as part of their Inaugural Page to Stage Series on the Millennium Stage. It was further developed in New York City and premiered at the Pittsburgh Playhouse. Matthew grew up in Detroit, Michigan and studied acting at the Cranbrook Theater School and Actor’s Alliance Theater Conservatory. After lying about his age, he went on to become the youngest pupil of the acclaimed actress and teacher Uta Hagen. He continued his training at Webster University, Wayne State University, The Studio Theater in Washington DC. and later with acting coach Bob Krakower in New York City.After graduating from the Boston Conservatory of Music with his BFA in Musical Theater, Riopelle moved to New York where he pounded the pavement and finally got his elusive Actor’s Equity card. In between auditions and call-backs, Matthew supported himself as a waiter, a personal trainer and eventually the assistant to cosmetic mogul Bobbi Brown. He embarked on a seven-year collaboration with Tony Award Winner, Michael Rupert on what would later become the musical Streets of America. In the fall of 2003, Matthew met his mentor, playwright, Glyn O’Malley. After his first meeting in Los Angeles, producer Dan Halsted, (Nixon, The Virgin Suicides and Garden State) hired Riopelle to write Chavez, a biopic chronicling the life of UFW leader Cesar Chavez. Shortly after, his first television pilot, Left was optioned and developed by Adam Shankman, Offspring Entertainment and Warner Brother’s Television. His second pilot was optioned and developed by Mark Canton (Purple Rain, As Good As It Gets, Goodfellas) and David Hopwood (Den of Thieves, 300 and Power). In between freelance writing assignments and grad school, Matthew held development, marketing and research positions at A&E, Lifetime Entertainment, the CW Network, Red Bull, Sony Pictures Television and Universal Music Group.
In 2020 producers Claude Del Farra and Brian Keady of BDCF Films, acquired the rights to his feature The Camel Knows the Way, based on Lorna Kelly’s memoir, which they are producing with Ginger Sledge, (Where’d You Go Bernadette?). His play Immaculate Heart, based on his mother’s true story of life after leaving a cloistered convent in 1968, was produced in April of 2021 by the Blank Theater Company in Los Angeles. Upcoming projects include the pilot Blind Pig and the feature Sullivan in Cuba. Riopelle holds an MFA in screenwriting and playwrighting from Point Park University.
*The festival will adhere to all public health and safety recommendations at the time of the event
Attention Filmmakers! Submit your short films to Wolf Tree
Key Dates:
October 1, 2021: FilmFreeway open for submissions
Dec 12, 2021: FilmFreeway deadline for submissions
January 5, 2022: Filmmaker Notification date
January 22, 2022: Wolf Tree Film Festival at the Franke CenterFor more information on submission rules and awards, please visit FilmFreeway.
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Ice, Wine, Beer and Blues Festival
Ice, Wine, Beer and Blues Festival 2022
Featuring Matt Schofield
FEBRUARY 4 & 5, 2022
FRIDAY – BEER & WINE TASTING $25 or $40 with an artisan goblet
SATURDAY – BLUES CONCERT | Advance $28 | Door $30
This 2-day celebration of winter, booze, and blues is one of Marshall’s most popular events each year! Choose to attend one or both nights of fun.
FRIDAY
Friday’s festivities feature wine and beer tasting throughout Marshall’s beautiful downtown. Stroll through shops and enjoy delicious appetizers, craft beers, specially-selected wines, and live Olympics-themed ice sculpting. This year, you can purchase your tickets online! Simply click your link below, print the e-ticket, and bring it to a tasting location to exchange for your wristband.
Click here to purchase beer and wine tasting tickets ONLY. (To purchase concert tickets and tasting tickets together, see below).
SATURDAYAt 8pm Saturday, experience a night of exceptional blues from Matt Schofield. A member of the British Blues Hall of Fame, Schofield is considered one of the top British blues guitarists of all time, alongside icons like Eric Clapton and Peter Green. His concert is part of the Franke Center Blues Series. www.mattschofield.com
Opening in our downstage club at 6pm will be one of our favorite local bands, The Fat Animals, providing a jam-infused soul-rock experience. While you watch, enjoy a delicious dinner from Grand River Brewery including pulled pork, slider brioche buns, coleslaw, individual bagged chips, and mini chocolate chip cookies for $15 (to be purchased when you arrive).
Click here to purchase concert tickets only OR concert tickets + tasting tickets.
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JACKSON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 2022
JACKSON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
FEBRUARY 26, 2021 | 8 PM
PRESHOW: JOSH VREELAND 7 PM
ADV. $26 | DOOR $28
The Jackson Symphony Orchestra has a rich and vibrant history serving the Jackson area since 1949. The orchestra has performed with many legendary figures in the world of music including Dizzy Gillespie, Grant Johannesen, Ralph Votapek, and Ian Hobson. Mannheim Steamroller, Ann Murray, and the Manhattan Transfer have invited the orchestra to do multi-state regional tours with them. The repertoire of the orchestra has been adventurous (including two entire seasons where every piece performed was from the 20th Century) and has drawn national attention as evidenced by frequent grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. The orchestra has premiered works by such distinguished composers as Jeff Beal, Crawford Gates, David Gibson, Robert De Gaetano, Falla Guitar Trio, and its own composer in residence, J. Bruce Brown. Operas including Tosca, La Boheme, Merry Wives of Windsor, Die Fledermaus have been presented in fully staged productions and eight different collaborations with the Indianapolis Ballet and Grand Rapids Ballet have resulted in magical productions of Sleeping Beauty and Nutcracker. www.jacksonsymphony.org
Josh Vreeland is a native of Marshall and a recent graduate of Western Michigan University. Josh is no stranger to the Franke Center and has been performing on the main stage since he was a child. This is his first time performing in the DownStage, and he is so excited to share an hour of music with you!
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A Franke Center FUNDRAISER
The Second City
A Franke Center Fundraiser
Comedy
April 9, 2022 | 8PM
Dinner and raffle will take place in the Downstage Club starting at 6pm. Upstairs doors open at 7:30 pm.
ADV. $45 | DOOR $47
In this season’s annual Franke Center Fundraiser, legendary improv troupe The Second City takes aim at Marshall and West Michigan. The Second City finds laughs in local history, events, hot-button issues, and headlines from the hometown newspaper. Experience the classic Chicago-style sketch comedy and improv created by some of Second City’s most lauded alumni, including Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Gilda Radner, and Bill Murray. Cap the night off with a dinner and raffle supporting The Franke Center, and it should be an unforgettable evening!
Sponsored by:
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OLIVIA DEAR
OLIVIA DEAR
FOLK / POP
APRIL 23, 2022 | 8PM
DOORS AND BAR OPEN 7:30 PM
GENERAL ADMISSION
ADV.$16 | DOOR $18
Olivia Dear (formerly Olivia Millerschin) captivates audiences with her celestial voice, wrapping them in a gossamer blend of modern pop with a pinch of folk. Her last record Look Both Ways was nominated for a 2018 Independent Music Award. Dear has won two John Lennon Songwriting Awards, the Great American Song Contest, and she was a quarter-finalist on America’s Got Talent. Backed by TIDAL streaming services and distro partner EQ, Olivia Dear is ready to make a statement with new releases in 2021. Part of the Michigan Stars Series and Music on Tap Series.
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GILMORE KEYBOARD FESTIVAL
GILMORE KEYBOARD FESTIVAL YOUNG ARTISTS – TBA
CLASSICAL
MAY 6 | 8PM
ADV. $15 | DOOR $17
The mission of The Gilmore is to promote and develop world-class keyboard musical experiences that inspire present and future artists and audiences. The Gilmore Young Artist Award is presented every two years to single out the most promising of the new generation of U.S.-based pianists, age 22 and younger.
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FEATURING THE ACCIDENTALS
Michigan Music Video Awards
featuring The Accidentals
May 14, 2022 | 8PM
ADV. $40 | DOOR $42
TICKETSThis star-studded new awards show will celebrate the year’s best music videos by Michigan artists and feature a live performance by folk rock masters “The Accidentals.” Enjoy a screening of the video finalists, watch artists accept their awards, and mingle with some of Michigan’s greatest musical talents and video directors.
The Accidentals are a multi-instrumental songwriting power trio. They kicked off 2018 with the release of their debut album on Sony Masterworks. Composing, arranging, and playing tracks for bands like BTS, Keller Williams, and Flint Eastwood, while also scoring an indie film, teaching workshops across the country, and playing alongside symphonies, this band is only just getting started.
