In-person concerts and shows may still be several months away, but Perseverance Theatre will deliver a live, interactive concert Friday night through their Perseverance People Power series.<\/p>\n
“It’s a way to connect us, to inspire us. Everyone feels so separate after a year of isolation,” said Erika Stone, director of marketing engagement for Perseverance Theatre. “We did a concert like this last summer, and the headliners were so engaged. It really felt like a live concert in your living room.”<\/p>\n
Stone said that the online chat feature is the key to creating the feeling of an in-person performance.<\/p>\n
“People are Zooming in from all over the country and having lots of conversations about random, silly things that come up during the show, as you would at a normal venue,” Stone said.<\/p>\n
She noted that the performers interact with the audience via chat when they aren’t performing. “At the concert we did last summer, the headliners were so engaged. It really had this feeling like everyone was in the same place,” she said.<\/p>\n
Drawing inspiration: State museum debuts new exhibit featuring the work of local illustrators<\/a><\/ins><\/p>\n About the performance<\/p>\n Singer Taylor Vidic will open the show Friday night, followed by singer-songwriter Rebeckah Hastings.<\/p>\n Vidic, who is a Juneau local, performs folky-Americana style acoustic music, Stone said.<\/p>\n “Her music is lovely,” she added.<\/p>\n Hastings will join the show from her home in Anchorage and perform primarily cover songs, Stone said.<\/p>\n Expanded reach<\/p>\n One of the benefits of the online concert format is that people worldwide can log in and share the experience.<\/p>\n “The silver lining of COVID is that we can work with people across the state and have viewership across Alaska with no one leaving home,” Stone said.<\/p>\n “If you have friends across Alaska or across the country, you can all watch together, just as you would at a concert. We want to be as close to that as possible and bring the community together,” she said.<\/p>\n