Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
SINGING HIS own song called "Revival" at Tuesday evening's Hometown Variety Show in Wakefield is Seth Neill, age 13, of Bessemer. The show is an annual fundraiser for the Wakefield Historical Society Museum.
By P.J. GLISSON
Wakefield - The 44th annual Hometown Variety Show on Tuesday evening in Wakefield was steeped in spirit and carried with it a patriotic flair that fit right in with a week of Independence Day celebrations.
Ten performers from various towns filled the night, along with interspersed announcements of raffle winners who took home prizes that included bikes, airline fare vouchers and decorative items.
The event was in the Wakefield-Marenisco K-12 School gym, where an enthusiastic crowd cheered throughout the night.
Two guitar-playing performers presented their own original compositions, which had a lot of audience appeal. Yvonne Blake of Ontonagon sang "The Old Wooden Chair," and Seth Neill of Bessemer sang "Revival."
Ben Benton of Bessemer also moved his listeners by playing Beethoven's "Minuet in G" on the keyboard.
Tammy and Peter Grewe of Ironwood got the audience clapping to a fun patriotic medley, while Nathan Seppa charmed his listeners by singing "Heart of Gold" by Neil Young, while accompanying himself on guitar and harmonica.
The local group Intrepidus sang one of its own compositions called "Perfect World."
Living history presenter Steven Cole, who was an audience favorite last year while portraying 19th century abolitionist Frederick Douglass, reprised that role again this year with a song-and-talk routine in which he explained how Douglass pushed equality for all in his era.
The longest-standing act in the show was titled "Descendants of the Ladies of the Lake." It consisted of Donna Ferson of Wakefield engaging nine volunteers in song, along with a range of contortions that kept viewers laughing.
Denise Haas of Ramsay organized the event and acted as emcee. She also sang the Christian rock song "I Can Only Imagine" with Tammy Grewe and joined other performers to lead the audience in singing "The National Anthem" and "God Bless the USA!"
The event was not a talent show, so no winners were declared.
The evening of arts was a fundraiser for the Wakefield Historical Society Museum, which is open until Labor Day from Tuesday through Saturday, 1-4 p.m. The museum is located on Wakefield's at 306 Sunday Lake St.
