City Beat: Entertainment is the same as it ever was

Barry Courter

As 2017 comes to a close, it’s time to take a quick look back and quicker look ahead.

In some ways, it feels like the entertainment scene this year was pretty similar to the one before. We seem to have maintained much of the positive momentum as far as the quantity and quality of shows that came to town. That’s a good thing.

But, this time last year it seemed like we were about to turn a big corner and I’m not sure that happened. Maybe it was naive to think so. After all, all of the professionals in the business have said from the beginning it would take time.

Looking at the big picture, the Tivoli Theatre and Memorial Auditorium presented some great shows from folks like Bob Dylan and Brian Wilson. We lost Track 29, though owners Monica and Adam Kinsey hope to reopen it in a new location, but gained a recently updated Walker Theatre inside Memorial Auditorium.

It seats about 850, and with the additional renovation work that added light and sound systems, it will become more active.