Happy Spring from Prairie Fire Lady Choir!

Happy Spring from Prairie Fire Lady Choir! We hope you have had a pleasant hibernation during this snow-laden winter. We are very ready to kick off our 2019 season, and are thrilled about some of the new tunes we will be learning, and new venues where we will be performing. We look forward to sharing our voices with you.

Over our winter break, we held auditions for the 2019 season, and are very pleased to welcome 19 new members – the largest number of newbies since 2012!

Katy Vernon : Suit of Hearts
Also, during our off-season, some of us recorded on Katy Vernon’s upcoming album, Suit of Hearts. We will be performing at her album release at the Parkway Theater tomorrow night.

Parkway Theater
Saturday, March 23rd
Doors at 7, show starts at 8.
$10 adv $15 door

Advance tickets

Dessa with the Minnesota Orchestra
Next Tuesday, we are honored to perform in the lobby of the Minnesota Orchestra Hall, before Dessa’s Live Concert recording with the Minnesota Orchestra.

Minnesota Orchestra Hall
Tuesday, March 26th at 7pm

Ticket prices vary

Save the date for some great events in May!
We are thrilled to be performing at the Minnesota History Center’s opening exhibition: “First Avenue: Stories of Minnesota’s Mainroom,” which will feature everything from memorabilia of the bands that have adorned the stages since the venue’s inception, to the “scenes, sounds and stories” that have made this landmark remarkable.

Minnesota History Center
May 4th, 3 pm
Ticket details to come

And we are so happy to be able to perform in the world famous NE Minneapolis Spring celebration of the Arts, Art-A-Whirl. We will be returning to the 331 Club stage once again. The event is free and open to the public, and we hope to see you there!

331 Club
May 19th, 3 pm
Free

Happy Spring, friends! We hope to sing with you soon!

PFLC accepts 19 new members

After a year of not holding auditions, Prairie Fire Lady Choir opened up for try-outs again on February 21, 2019. We are excited to welcome 19 new members to sing with us this year! Thank you to the 60 women who auditioned – we are continually amazed by the talent that surrounds us in the Twin Cities.

If you’re interested in singing with us, sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know when we next hold auditions.

2019 Auditions Coming in February

After a year off from holding auditions, Prairie Fire Lady Choir will be holding auditions for the 2019 season in February. To learn more about the audition process, how to register, and what it’s like to sing with us, please visit our Audition information page.

Thanks for your interest!

2018 Finale: Heart Break Open with Sarah White

We had such an incredible time at The Cedar Cultural Center for our 2018 season finale. Sarah White and her band gave a captivating performance and we had a blast singing with her. Thank you to all of you who made it out to the show and thank you to Jon Behm who took such amazing photos all night.

Photos: Prairie Fire Lady Choir | Sarah White at the Cedar Cultural Center

 

Wrapping up the 2018 Season

Wrapping up the 2018 season! 🔥

 

 

Photo Credit: Anna Grinets / ANNA GRINETS PHOTOGRAPHY
Happy Autumn from the members of Prairie Fire Lady Choir!

We’ve had such a wonderful season and hope you have as well! We accepted our first 2018 gig across the border and, in October, we carpooled to the lovely, artsy town of Stockholm, WI to perform at WideSpot Performing Arts Center. Check out a video from Rachel Fergus of the Red Wing Republican Eagle here! We also performed at our rehearsal stomping grounds Richfield Lutheran Church for their Fall Festival in October!

But just as the leaves have all nearly fallen to the ground, we too can feel the end of our 2018 season approaching. We have one more exciting performance to share with our audience this year; we very much hope you can join us!

SEASON FINALE

Heart Break Open
Prairie Fire Lady Choir Season Finale with Special Guest Sarah White
Friday, November 9, 2018
Doors: 7:00pm / Show: 8:00pm
Cedar Cultural Center
TICKETS / all ages

We are thrilled to return to the Cedar Cultural Center for our finale, Heart Break Open, featuring special guest Sarah White! This will be a moving evening of music in which we share tunes that opened our hearts in the most beautiful ways. In addition to sharing our long-performed classics, we are excited to share a few new tunes that we learned this season. We even have a special collaboration with Sarah that we look forward to debuting . . .

TICKET GIVEAWAY

We have one highly sought-after pair of tickets available for two lucky fans! Send an email to prairiefireladychoir@gmail.com by Sunday 11/4 at midnight describing the first time you heard Prairie Fire Lady choir and you’ll be entered to win! The winner will be notified via email once the contest has ended. We look forward to hearing your memories!

We hope to see you one last time this season!

Yours in song, 

Prairie Fire Lady Choir

Copyright © 2018 Prairie Fire Lady Choir, All rights reserved.

 

 

Fall Newsletter

It was a wonderful summer for Prairie Fire Lady Choir! We were thrilled to return to First Avenue’s main stage for Rebel Rebel: Rock For Pussy XIV, a tribute to David Bowie and feline rescue fundraiser. We shared the stage with so many incredible local acts, including Venus de Mars, Jeremy Messersmith, Adam Levy and Har Mar Superstar. In August, we performed at a beautiful, new-to-us venue, the Richfield Lake Amphitheater, sharing the stage with the soulful Charity Huot.

As we move into the season of falling leaves, the ladies of Prairie Fire Lady Choir are excited about several upcoming concerts.

                                  UPCOMING EVENTS 

PARTY IN THE PRAIRIE
Saturday, September 22, 2018
3:00 – 8:30pm
Richardson Nature Center
TICKETS / all ages

This Saturday, we are performing at Party in the Prairie at the Richardson Nature Center in Bloomington. We are excited to be sharing the stage and collaborating again with our pals, the Roe Family Singers. Reina del Cid is headlining the event. Tickets are sold out online but $7 tickets can be purchased at the North Face stores in Minneapolis, Edina, and St. Paul.

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WIDESPOT PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Saturday, October 13, 2018
Doors: 6:30pm, Performance: 7:00pm
Stockholm, WI
TICKETS / all ages

In October, we’re looking forward to hitting the road and heading to Wisconsin! We’ll be performing at the amazing WideSpot Performing Arts Center in Stockholm on October 13. It should be peak leaf season and we’re looking forward to savoring the best of autumn in Wisconsin. Come and road trip with us!

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FALL FEST
Saturday, October 20, 2018
12:00 – 1:00pm
Richfield Lutheran Church
FREE / all ages

We will return to our rehearsal home on October 20 to perform, once again, at Richfield Lutheran Church’s Fall fest! Vendors at the fest sell wonderful homemade goods, beautiful crafts, and jewelry. Bring the kiddos!

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PRAIRIE FIRE LADY CHOIR FINALE 
Friday, November 9, 2018
7:00pm
Cedar Cultural Center

To wrap up this year’s season, we are thrilled to be returning to the Cedar Cultural Center on November 9! We have a special collaboration we’ve been working on. More details and ticket info to come, but for now, save the date! This is going to be an event you won’t want to miss.

Spring Newsletter

Happy (finally) Spring!

PFLC has been very busy already throughout our off season and this spring. We were honored to return to the Art Shanty Projects for a chilly performance on frozen Lake Harriet. We were also thrilled to be included in the MN Music Coalition Summit and made our debut on the beautiful O’Shaughnessy stage on the St. Kate’s campus. We also made our stage debut at the incredible State Theatre, participating in the MinnPost Roast!

One of the biggest changes that happened this year is we decided to not hold auditions. There were 56 ladies who were interested in returning this season, so we decided to focus on strengthening our current body of work, along with our current members.

We have several amazing opportunities coming up this season, and we hope to see you there.

                                  UPCOMING EVENTS 

PRAIRIE FIRE LADY CHOIR: A PIANOS ON PARADE EVENT WITH LEAH LEMM
Thursday, June 7, 2018
6:30 – 7:30pm
Nicollet Theater in the Round
FREE / all ages

We are so excited that we were selected to perform at a new music performance series and space, Nicollet Theater in the Round, an urban amphitheater just steps from the downtown Minneapolis Central Library! This performance coincides with the downtown Pianos on Parade program, which will feature PFLC founding member and alum Leah Lemm.

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STONE ARCH BRIDGE FESTIVAL 
Saturday, June 16, 2018
3:15 – 4:00pm
Father Hennepin Park
FREE / all ages

We are excited to return to the Stone Arch Festival in June. This is such a great way to  see great local music and art on the banks of Mississippi! Catch us on the Star Tribune Stage (420 SE Main Street, Mpls).

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REBEL REBEL  – ROCK FOR PUSSY XIV – A TRIBUTE TO DAVID BOWIE
Friday, July 13, 2018
8:00pm
First Avenue
TICKETS / 18+

Once again, we are so excited to return to First Ave for Rebel Rebel – Rock for Pussy XIV! Hosted by Mary Lucia & David Campbell and featuring an all-star band led by John Eller (The Shiny Lights), a portion of proceeds benefits Kitty Revolution.

We hope to see you this summer!

Yours in song, 

Prairie Fire Lady Choir

Fall Newsletter

 

 NEWS NEWS NEWS!

Last month, we were extremely honored to perform at three very unique and special events: Prairie Burn Festival, Womenfolk Radio’s Anniversary show, and a side gig at Planned Parenthood’s local Fall Action Fund Event: Resist, Persist, Vote. And though the season is winding down, we have a couple of amazing performances coming up (did someone say finale?!) More below . . .

                                  UPCOMING EVENTS 

FALL FEST AT RICHFIELD LUTHERAN CHURCH
For the second year in a row, we’re happy to perform at Richfield Lutheran Church’s (RLC) Fall Fest! The church has been our rehearsal location for the past two seasons, and we couldn’t think of a better way to thank them for their continued generosity! The festival also features crafts, food, and a flu shot clinic.

Richfield Lutheran Church
Saturday, October 21, 2017
10:00am – 3:00pm
FREE

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PFLC FINALE W/ CHRIS KOZA
Thanks to a generous grant from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (MRAC), we have had the privilege of working closely with local songwriter Chris Koza (of Rogue Valley) this season! Join us in November at TPT’s Studio A for an evening of beautiful harmonies and delightful arrangements.

TPT Studios
Saturday, November 18, 2017
7:00pm
TICKET DETAILS TO COME

Enjoy the beautiful fall weather! Happy October!

xoxo

Prairie Fire Lady Choir

Copyright © 2017 Prairie Fire Lady Choir, All rights reserved.

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Lady of the Week – Sarah Troedson Haynes

Sarah Joy Troedson Haynes, the First

Soprahno II

How long have you been in the choir?

Just a little baby bit of 6 months!

What’s your favorite PFLC song?

I love Wildewoman. And Run to the Window.

What’s your favorite thing about being in this choir?

Being part of PFLC makes me feel inspired and hopeful and…happy. And understood. And part of something that matters. And part of something that both fills me up and draws me out in the exact way I have needed filling and drawing at this time in my life, and that says, “hey, we need you here right now. You, yes you.” The more I get to know this group, the more I am impressed and inspired by the joyful, artful variety of one-of-a-kind women I am rubbing elbows with each week, who are doing creative, difficult, purposeful things with their lives or jobs or hobbies. And to be part of a group that pushes each other to be better – gently, firmly, lovingly, with strength and power and vigor and verve and humor and awkwardness. Ha! It’s the feeling you get while standing in a quiet street under a thick, warm rain shower on an early, temperate morning – and good hair and dry clothes be damned. Amirite?

What do you like to do outside of choir?

Karaoke, jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles, number puzzles, nature walks with my family, traveling to unusual places both local and international, esp with my family. Watching political youtube clips or religious cult documentaries with my husband. Truthfully I work soooo much. I kind of squeeze in the rest of my life around my job (as International Accounting Manager at CHS Inc). Which I fortunately generally really enjoy my job, but work/life balances is a bit off-kilter.

Who are your favorite local bands/musicians?

Not local, but I am really jonesing on a multitude of David Byrne tunes these days. I also love Richard Thompson, and Guided by Voices is a default setting at our house. Local – I’m an old-time fan of Martin Devaney and I like Atmosphere and was recently introduced to Heiruspecs. I like Roe Family Singers. And Mike Gunther is amazing. Also love local radio! I love radio station Radio K 100.7 FM “real college radio”. It is THE BEST place to hear interesting, weird new music. Not always local music, true – but always fresh and different.

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

You’re killing me with the singular nouns here. Karaoke is my hobby, man. My soundman husband has set up karaoke in our basement so we are always at the mic. Depending on my mood, you may hear What’s Up (4 Non Blondes), I Will Survive (Gloria Gaynor), Con Te Partiro (Bocelli/Brightman), My Heart Will Go On (Celine Dion), Colors of the Wind (Pocahontas), Let it Go (Frozen), Candy (Iggy Pop – duet with my hubs), I Dreamed a Dream (and other Les Mis), Don’t Cry for Me Argentina (and other Evita), Heartbreaker (Pat Benetar), Magic Man (Heart) and a small handful of Carpenters and Joni Mitchell and other Disney and B’way showtunes. I can’t choose just one! #divadonna

Describe yourself in three words

Get. Shit. Done.

Who would play you in a movie about your life?

I think I would want the movie about my life to be one of those European art house films with all the action occurring in a single room over a period of years, and there’s a lot of important dialogue that drives the plot so if you don’t listen carefully, you’re screwed. So I would need to be played by some lesser-known Euro actress who can get the right blend of quirky self-confidence amid overly-frequent social anxiety. She could have a sexy French accent as a point of artistic license. I would sign off on that.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

At peace with the choices I’ve made.

Photo courtesy of Anna Grinets

Lady of the Week – Leah Drury

Leah Drury

Soprano 1

How long have you been in the choir?

This is my second season

What’s your favorite PFLC song?

Can’t Hardly Wait – I’m a longtime ‘Mats fan

What’s your favorite thing about being in this choir?

Harmony – in more ways than one 🙂

What do you like to do outside of choir?

Hang with my hubby and kids (ages 10 & 15); teach Music Together to wee ones; travel; go out to eat (I’m a terrible cook); help folks buy & sell houses – seriously love my job; and disrupt the patriarchy

Who are your favorite local bands/musicians?

Lizzo, Caroline Smith, Polica, Sims, ska band The Prizefighters

What’s your go-to karaoke song?

I love singing with other people (duh) so duets are my favorite – and I’m currently obsessed with finding people to sing “I’ve Had the Time of My Life” from Dirty Dancing with me.  I can also rock either part of “Forgot About Dre,” “The Girl Is Mine,” “Don’t Go Breakin’ My Heart,” “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (not really a duet but it works)

Describe yourself in three words

Outside the box

Who would play you in a movie about your life?

Amy Adams

What do you want to be when you grow up?

The person who picks music snippets to play in pro sports stadiums… or, a lab-coat-wearing makeup saleslady… or, a touring backup singer 50 feet from stardom

Photo courtesy of Anna Grinets