Since moving to the DC area 14 years ago, one of my favorite signs of summer has become the release of the Wolf Trap summer concert schedule.
Every May(ish) I anticipate it’s arrival in the mail - the big, colorful, glossy foldout calendar mapping out an entire summer of shows ranging from Prairie Home Companion to Meghan Trainer to Lyle Lovett. It’s always a pretty mixed up line-up, which rarely includes bands or artists that are mega-hot-at-the-moment. Spread amongst the classics like Chicago, Santana, and Dolly Parton, there’s usually a broadway musical or two, a couple of NPR acts, a handful of NSO concerts, and a forgotten (perhaps embarrassing) somebody from your distant (or not so distant..as the case may be) musical past (ex: 98 Degrees will be here in August).
Half of my anticipation of the Wolf Trap lineup is not knowing what surprises might lie within.
Every year, my excitement grows as I unfold the calendar on the kitchen counter.
Who’s coming?
When will they be here?
Which shows are lawn seat shows and which shows deserve actual seats?
I put an X over some and circle others.
I make notes in my calendar to save certain nights.
I make mental lists of which friends might want to go to which concerts.
But, here’s the thing: While every May for the past 14 years I have put a lot of prep work into planning my entire summer around a myriad of great concerts at Wolf Trap, I can count on one hand the number of times I have actually been there.
Because, while I can always (from my seat at the kitchen counter every May) pinpoint 10-15 shows that I would like to see at Wolf Trap,
that would be fun to see at Wolf Trap,
that would make for a nice evening at Wolf Trap,
I have never felt so moved, so dedicated to an artist or show, that I immediately walked to my computer, entered my credit card number, and actually committed myself to an event months away.
The times that I actually have made it there, it’s been because a friend took the initiative to plan the evening or because Dave and I didn’t have plans and I bought the tickets as a day-of whim. Far more typically, I hear somebody talking about a concert that they had just seen at Wolf Trap the night before and think, “Oh yeah, I was totally going to get tickets for that. Shoot.”
I’ve come close a couple of times.
Once (Kelly Clarkson/Pentatonix) I came really, really close.
My credit card was entered and everything.
I was poised and ready to click confirm.
Except the concert was 3 months away.
What if something came up and we couldn’t go?
What if Kelly and Pentatonix had a falling out and stopped touring together?
What if Dave didn’t want to see Kelly Clarkson? (which is actually a pretty safe bet)
So, I decided to think about it a little bit longer...and tickets were never purchased.
Commitment issues? - Not that I know of.
Fear of spending money? - As a triathlete, spending money on “experiences” is something I have become really good at.
The shows? - Well, I guess that has to be it. Apparently Wolf Trap just doesn’t attract the caliber of artist that I need to validate actually purchasing tickets. How else can you explain my general indecisiveness and inability to follow through? I mean, sure, Paul Simon is great, but why spend $60 to see him live when I can just buy a cd…right?
Well the Wolf Trap schedule arrived yesterday and, true to form, I opened it up and started browsing and planning for shows that you, I, and everyone reading this blog knows I will probably never see.
As I skimmed through the Summer 2016 list, my eyes were drawn to several shows – Cyndi Lauper, Barenaked Ladies, “Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me”, Phillip Phillips, O Town (you know you want to see O Town too), Chicago...
and suddenly, out of nowhere, I got up and walked directly to the computer.
I immediately entered my credit card information.
No doubts, no concerns, no questions - I was determined.
I clicked confirm and didn’t look back, purchasing two tickets for a concert four months (a lifetime…anything could happen between now and then) away.
An uncontrollable force seemed to takeover my entire body as I confidently completed the transaction.
For reasons I couldn't identify or understand, nothing (not even a service charge) was going to keep me from this concert.
When the haze had cleared and I looked at the confirmation email, reality hit me like a ton of bricks. For better or for worse, at that moment I got real glimpse of who I, at my very core, actually and truly am. I saw, maybe for the first time, an honest vision of what moves me, what speaks to me, what inspires me to commit (in the musical sense) to something in a way I’ve never, ever been able to commit before...and it was terrifying.
So…um...is anyone else going to see Weird Al Yankovic at Wolf Trap in September?
Every May(ish) I anticipate it’s arrival in the mail - the big, colorful, glossy foldout calendar mapping out an entire summer of shows ranging from Prairie Home Companion to Meghan Trainer to Lyle Lovett. It’s always a pretty mixed up line-up, which rarely includes bands or artists that are mega-hot-at-the-moment. Spread amongst the classics like Chicago, Santana, and Dolly Parton, there’s usually a broadway musical or two, a couple of NPR acts, a handful of NSO concerts, and a forgotten (perhaps embarrassing) somebody from your distant (or not so distant..as the case may be) musical past (ex: 98 Degrees will be here in August).
Half of my anticipation of the Wolf Trap lineup is not knowing what surprises might lie within.
Every year, my excitement grows as I unfold the calendar on the kitchen counter.
Who’s coming?
When will they be here?
Which shows are lawn seat shows and which shows deserve actual seats?
I put an X over some and circle others.
I make notes in my calendar to save certain nights.
I make mental lists of which friends might want to go to which concerts.
But, here’s the thing: While every May for the past 14 years I have put a lot of prep work into planning my entire summer around a myriad of great concerts at Wolf Trap, I can count on one hand the number of times I have actually been there.
Because, while I can always (from my seat at the kitchen counter every May) pinpoint 10-15 shows that I would like to see at Wolf Trap,
that would be fun to see at Wolf Trap,
that would make for a nice evening at Wolf Trap,
I have never felt so moved, so dedicated to an artist or show, that I immediately walked to my computer, entered my credit card number, and actually committed myself to an event months away.
The times that I actually have made it there, it’s been because a friend took the initiative to plan the evening or because Dave and I didn’t have plans and I bought the tickets as a day-of whim. Far more typically, I hear somebody talking about a concert that they had just seen at Wolf Trap the night before and think, “Oh yeah, I was totally going to get tickets for that. Shoot.”
I’ve come close a couple of times.
Once (Kelly Clarkson/Pentatonix) I came really, really close.
My credit card was entered and everything.
I was poised and ready to click confirm.
Except the concert was 3 months away.
What if something came up and we couldn’t go?
What if Kelly and Pentatonix had a falling out and stopped touring together?
What if Dave didn’t want to see Kelly Clarkson? (which is actually a pretty safe bet)
So, I decided to think about it a little bit longer...and tickets were never purchased.
Commitment issues? - Not that I know of.
Fear of spending money? - As a triathlete, spending money on “experiences” is something I have become really good at.
The shows? - Well, I guess that has to be it. Apparently Wolf Trap just doesn’t attract the caliber of artist that I need to validate actually purchasing tickets. How else can you explain my general indecisiveness and inability to follow through? I mean, sure, Paul Simon is great, but why spend $60 to see him live when I can just buy a cd…right?
Well the Wolf Trap schedule arrived yesterday and, true to form, I opened it up and started browsing and planning for shows that you, I, and everyone reading this blog knows I will probably never see.
As I skimmed through the Summer 2016 list, my eyes were drawn to several shows – Cyndi Lauper, Barenaked Ladies, “Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me”, Phillip Phillips, O Town (you know you want to see O Town too), Chicago...
and suddenly, out of nowhere, I got up and walked directly to the computer.
I immediately entered my credit card information.
No doubts, no concerns, no questions - I was determined.
I clicked confirm and didn’t look back, purchasing two tickets for a concert four months (a lifetime…anything could happen between now and then) away.
An uncontrollable force seemed to takeover my entire body as I confidently completed the transaction.
For reasons I couldn't identify or understand, nothing (not even a service charge) was going to keep me from this concert.
When the haze had cleared and I looked at the confirmation email, reality hit me like a ton of bricks. For better or for worse, at that moment I got real glimpse of who I, at my very core, actually and truly am. I saw, maybe for the first time, an honest vision of what moves me, what speaks to me, what inspires me to commit (in the musical sense) to something in a way I’ve never, ever been able to commit before...and it was terrifying.
So…um...is anyone else going to see Weird Al Yankovic at Wolf Trap in September?
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