A10
NEWS
Wallowa County Chieftain
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
100th OK Theatre Anniversary 100% success
Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
It was a busy weekend
at the OK Theatre as plays
were presented, food was
eaten and top-notch musi-
cians played at the theater’s
centennial celebration held
July 12 and 13 in Enter-
prise, but the most poignant
story of the weekend was the
attendance of Alden Brann,
the son of theater owners
Darell and Christi Brann.
Alden had spent had spent
more than a week at the Ore-
gon Burn Center at Legacy
Emanuel Hospital in Port-
land after an accident left
him with severe burns.
The celebration started
on Friday, July 12 at 5 p.m.,
with a catered dinner served
outdoors to about 400 peo-
ple seated at picnic tables
crafted by Brann and vol-
unteers. That wasn’t all,
though. The celebration
continued afterward with
patrons lined up well out
into the blocked-off street to
see the western farce, “How
the West was Dun.” Inside
the theater, the literally
standing-room-only crowd
sat in rapt attention inter-
spersed with gales of laugh-
ter throughout the three-hour
performance. The evening
started with a brief intro-
duction followed by several
audience sing-alongs from
well-known songs of the era.
The play featured effec-
tive performances by the
cast that included Joseph
Ramirez, Debbie Gay, Lisa
Murphy, Talia Gavin, Stu-
art Vencill, Gwen Trice and
a host of others who brought
the damsel-in-distress pro-
duction to a satisfying
conclusion.
The following day’s
music festivities started
near noon with two stages
alternately featuring music.
Nevada Sowle opened the
show, which featured a stun-
ning version of “Muskrat
Love,” originally popular-
ized by America, and local
blues-rock machine Casey
Kiser and the Jakewalk
Saints with a steaming mix
of covers and originals. The
Bad Penny Pleasuremakers
from New Orleans served up
some old-time gumbo fol-
lowed by local songsmith/
soundman Bart Budwig who
Courtesy Photo/Julia Zeise
HERO’S WELCOME — The best thing about the OK Theatre’s centennial celebration wasn’t the play, the meal or the music, it was the return of Alden Brann, son
of OK owners Darrell and Christi Brann. Alden suff ered severe burns in a tragic accident less than two weeks before and was released by Legacy Oregon Burn
Center in Portland July 13. Caleb Klauder Country Band, who were playing during the boy’s arrival, are on stage.
Steve Tool/Chieftain
Brenda Penner/For The Chieftain
EATS — About 400 people bought tickets to the catered dinner and play to celebrate the OK
Theatre’s Centennial Celebration that began July 12.
Darrell Brann and his son Alden toured the crowds at the
centennial celebration.
opened the door for Mise,
followed by the country
supreme sounds of the Caleb
Klauder Country Band play-
ing country the way it should
be played: traditional.
The band’s performance,
however, was interrupted by
the long-awaited arrival of
Alden Brann, delivered by
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felt the beat and a number
of them moved closer to the
stage to kick up their heels
as the thunder roared and the
lightning illuminated both
the sky and the dancers.
Eventually, Brann had to
halt the performance out of
concern for the musicians
and audience although he
promised to continue the
show in the theater if the
storm did not abate. Cleary
did not continue the show,
although regional stars Kory
Quinn and Elwood, with
occasional support from
Bart Budwig, played a sweet
-Enterprise Mom
Derek Kolbaba
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a pan fl ute, that he played
to great effect. As a true
folk singer and music his-
torian, he often introduced
his songs with background
material to help the audience
understand the milieu from
which the song originated.
It’s hard to tell if headliner
Jon Cleary and the Absolute
Monster Gentlemen arrived
before or after the lightning,
but Cleary, at piano, started
off with a lightning show
heavy on New Orleans sec-
ond-line rhythm sans guitar.
Like Thomas, the audience
“We took
our daughter to
Dr. Allen on several
occasions, and we
were extremely
happy with the care
we received…”
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HOURS:
Steve Tool/Chieftain
AIN’T NO PAIN HERE —
Portland
musician
Ural
Thomas, backed by his band,
The Pain, had nothing but
good times and good vibes
to off er during a sterling
performance July 13.
OF
THE
507 S. River Street
Enterprise, OR 97828
Steve Tool/Chieftain
Actor Stuart Vencill takes
his turn as the villain in the
play, “How the West was
Dun,” performed at the OK
Theatre in Enterprise for its
centennial celebration. The
western farce was a hit with
the sold-out audience.
and intimate show at the the-
ater that featured much ban-
ter between the musicians
and the audience.
Darrell Brann said he and
his family considered the
entire weekend a success,
including the early return of
son, Alden. He also noted,
with the exception of the
Cleary band, the musicians
he invited had an OK con-
nection in that all had played
there before.
“Considering the fact
we had nine hours of music
starting at noon, it was a
pretty good day’s worth of
music for $25,” he said. “The
music was great, and the fact
we got Ural Thomas and
Dom and Caleb (Klauder)
— Bart’s (Budwig) set was
great and Casey’s (Kiser)
set was outstanding. Every-
one’s set was amazing.”
Brann added that Chris and
Christina Lozier offered an
immense amount of help.
“They were amazing for
us all the way through,” he
said.
He also noted the arrival
of son, Alden, and its effect
on the afternoon:
“The fact that Alden was
able to come home in the
middle of it, and that Dick
Stangel was willing to go get
him made it all work out so
beautifully,” Brann said. “It
was overwhelming and very
special. It made us want
to keep doing what we’re
doing.”
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Dick Stangel via plane and
automobile. Young Brann
received a rock star’s wel-
come, complete with ban-
ners and hundreds of
well-wishers.
Local fi ddler extraor-
dinaire, Caleb Samples,
appeared with daughter,
Ariana, fi lling in on song-
bird duties with her amazing
voice and upright bass play-
ing while brother, Nicholas,
more than ably held down
mandolin duties.
Although two slots away
from headliner status, Port-
land rhythm and blues mae-
stro, Ural Thomas and the
Pain took home the top-dog
award for the evening with
people literally dancing in
the streets in response to the
soul man and his smoking
hot revue. Virtually every
soul in the audience was
smiling and tapping their
feet (if they weren’t dancing)
as Thomas spread his gospel
of love through song after
song. Not surprisingly, the
appreciative audience called
Thomas back for an encore,
and he and his band stayed
the rest of the evening.
Music fans also crowded
the stage for Don Flemons,
Grammy winner and for-
mer member of the Caro-
lina Chocolate Drops, as he
showed off his singing and
instrumental talents, play-
ing everything from banjo
to guitar to “the Quills,” an
American south version of