Welcome to Stage Traveler:

 A New, Travel show putting music venues in the spotlight

FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.

 At  Stage Traveler, it is ALL ABOUT THAT SPACE.

"Music makes the people come together," Madonna sang to us at the turn of the millennium, decked out in faux fur and about a metric ton of gold bling jewelry (with matching cowboy hat to boot).  And it's true - music is one of the principal driving forces behnd our human urge to congregate.  And while Madonna's "ghetto-cowgirl" phase (or whatever that was) has long since gone by the wayside, our collective love of gathering and music has not - and most likely never will.  We will always want to experience music with other people.  According to the band Stardust - in a song far better than any  2000s-era Madonna single - "Music sounds better with you."

And so we gather.  We chat, we wait, we drink, we eat, we wait some more, we laugh, we feel the anticipation building up in our throats ... and then the house lights come down, and we are transported; taken away by the thrill of the crowd and the splendor of the spectacle of live performance.  It is a beautiful thing to behold, and its power burns deep into the future, forming the memories that we are left with when the show is over, the music dies down and the lights once again are illuminated.  Shadows fade along the venue walls, revealing to us the true form of the very structure we occupy, the place that has been assigned the task of containing the raw power of live music.

Over the past two decades, I have attended hundreds of shows at venues all over the world - as a journalist and as a fan of many types of music - and each experience has been memorable and unique.  But while artists tour the globe and are constantly on the road, their destinations - the venues - stay exactly where they are, as art literally moves through them.  They have evolved from just the sites of a couple of nights out each month to my absolute favorite places on Earth to be - almost like places of worship.  But what's going on before the show?  After the show?  How are these unforgettable evenings captured and released on a nightly basis?  Who is responsible for helping to create some of my most treasured memories?  I soon found myself desperately wanting to know how these places operate from the inside out, how they are able to provide monumental experiences every single night to an ever-changing clientele - built from a cornucopia of devotees.

And so, I have decided to start my quest for knowledge . . . by becoming the Stage Traveler.  From coast to coast and beyond, from major cities to one-horse towns; the hole-in-the-wall clubs to the majesty of historic theaters, I will seek out these unsung heroes.  I'll stop and chat with everyone I can: local music enthusiasts, musicians and the fans that love them, and of course, all the folks responsible for keeping the lights on at these remarkable places.  We'll do some learnin' about history and hardships, triumphs and turmoil, and of course, the inherent exhiliration of bringing music to  LIFE.

The old saying goes . . . "if these walls could talk . . ."

Well, now they can, 'Cuz Stage Traveler is there  

to Finally HAND THEm THE MIC .    

Curious to Hear whaT They're saying? 

Hop IN, Baby!  LezzzzGo!