Music Festival Battled Elements, Empty Seats

But Founder Says It Will Be Back in '09

A first-year music festival that one reviewer called "staggeringly ambitious" drew only tiny crowds to Charles County during its 17-day run last month, but organizers hailed it as the start of something bigger.

The Stageworks Festival brought 85 singers and 20 instrumentalists, just beginning their careers, to train with accomplished directors and coaches before performing on the Village Green at Indian Head. The performances included selections from the operas "The Magic Flute," "I Pagliacci," "Suor Angelica" and "Porgy and Bess" and the Broadway musical "Ragtime."

The performers fought bad weather -- more than half of the shows were moved inside because of rain -- difficult logistics and critical reviewers. Yet the festival founder called it a success overall.

"In the big picture, I think we were all very excited," Stageworks founder Lisa Kay Morton said. "We did very well despite monsoon season in Maryland, and the performances went beautifully."

Festival staff members and county tourism officials spent much time and money promoting the festival across the Washington region, but they knew they faced an uphill battle persuading a lot of Southern Marylanders to attend an opera performance. Morton said attendance at weekend events ranged from 120 to 140, with fewer people attending midweek performances. The Village Green accommodates about 2,500.

Marcia Keeth, acting economic development director for the county, said that she was somewhat disappointed with festival attendance but that the low turnout was not surprising for the first year of an event. One disadvantage was the festival's location at the end of Indian Head Highway, where it could not attract passers-by to purchase tickets.

"It takes some time for the awareness to build," Keeth said. "It's a little frustrating, but for a first year I think it's what one can expect."

The other major challenge posed by the location was the lack of restaurants and hotels in the area. Performers stayed at hotels in Waldorf and La Plata, and Keeth said arranging transportation for them took up significant time for Morton. Finding rehearsal space was another issue, she said.

Morton and Keeth said they expect the festival to return in some form next year, although Morton said the staff would make "significant changes." Adjustments could include new locations, with the possibility of holding events at several sites to make the festival more accessible.

"The venue was beautiful in terms of the performances, but the infrastructure to support it was a challenge," Keeth said.

Surveys passed out to audience members showed that roughly half lived in Charles, with the other half coming from Washington and inner-ring suburbs as well as from Calvert and St. Mary's counties. Fans of particular artists or performers' friends traveled from as far as Delaware and England, Morton said.

Morton, a Charles resident who sings professionally and teaches voice, said the most gratifying part of the festival was seeing the reaction of people who had never experienced opera. Keeth agreed, calling the festival a "huge accomplishment" for a county without a big arts community.

"I am so proud of Charles County for bringing this kind of entertainment here," Keeth said. "It fills a need that we've had for a long time, and to be talking about next year already is a major feat."