The pouring rain at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wisconsin for Farm Aid 2019 certainly didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits – in the seats, on the lawn, and definitely not backstage.
Sure, there was a lot of ducking under tents and between dressing rooms and buses, but that only brought everyone closer together – wet hair and all. From the artists themselves, to merchandise and catering volunteers to production and crew scurrying about, there was a constant buzz of activity from early Saturday morning until, well, early Sunday morning. Tanya Tucker’s dog Stella even made an appearance to strut her stuff and make some new friends and fans.
As with our HOMEGROWN Concessions© in the front of the house, the catering backstage was carefully sourced from family farmers according to the same criteria. And depending upon which direction you looked at any given time, you might have caught a glimpse of a backstage tour strolling by a line of tour buses and trailers, an artist dashing to or from their set, or their managers whispering about their next potential collaboration in the corner.
Like every year, one of the things that got everyone excited about backstage was the official autograph operation and a team of experienced volunteers who somehow managed to keep everything dry and, most importantly, get everything signed by the artists performing at this year’s festival. It wasn’t an easy challenge given all that rain and the need to relocate all of these rare and unique items from one location to another throughout the long day and into the evening.
This memorabilia raises significant funds for Farm Aid and is just another example of the artists’ commitment to our efforts in support of family farmers. And we simply couldn’t do this without the generous support from the folks at Gibson, Epiphone and Martin who donate the guitars, and our friends at Graphic Guitar Guys who apply the custom designs we create for each festival to the Epiphones.
In addition to the guitars, we have an incredible selection of signed vinyl, portraits and this year’s festival poster all available in our online auction shop to go to the highest bidders. Check them out and consider adding something to (or starting) your own collection. But hurry – the auctions will start to close next Tuesday, October 8 and you don’t want to miss the opportunity to snag one of these incredible items and support family farmers at the same time!
