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above– screenshots from the livestreamed videos

I hosted my first little market with performances. We had four vendors, Miles Pekala, Wesley Haack, Dominique Nigro, and myself. We had five performing acts Simone Bloch, Squeakie, Light Pollution, The Green Wheel, Dominique and Kevin (duo), and myself.

A note about hosting this show/market. It was a doozy because I was experiencing cold/possibly CO-VID symptoms and I had tested a couple days prior to event day and the results hadn’t come in. I thought they would but they hadn’t. I told everyone in an email and on the Facebook event page that it would be a masked event and not cancelled but there was a potential risk. Then a half an hour later, I had the results but I’m sure that made some attendees pause and evaluate their safety and decide not to come based on that.

We had a great time and it was a relatively small and intimate event. I had a great time hosting. I would like to host more events. I live streamed the performances on Facebook and it felt nice to share with the online world that we were out and experiencing “live art.” A feeling that is rarer these days with concerns of the plague of the day roaming about.

Some great things that I did: order two large pizzas and have some sparkling waters about, collected money for the performers by having a small jug passed around and putting my venmo information on it (after an audience member asked where they can put their money), and holding a raffle (oddly the prize was a half-gallon of 2 percent milk, but audiences love a raffle, don’t they?), introducing each artist and then addressing the audience after each act (which is something I don’t typically do, but I think this event is helped by a little framework). I also liked the feeling of divvying up the tips at the end of the night and sending out those payments to the performers. I love it when organizers remember to give me my money, lol. I liked decorating the yard with streamers and signage. Two people said they liked the streamers on the stairwell leading up to the path to the yard as an indication “this is the place.” I like that sense of arriving to a place with increasing confidence based on visual cues.

Some not so great things, I wish I took more photographs. I have a nice camera and I could have had some of my friends (who know how to use it) take some photos for the history books or posterity or what have you. I would like to do a photo booth for next event. In these strange times, I think photography is a nice way to squeeze out some more of the memory when everything is over. I also would like to experiment with more Instagram stories. I think there’s a great trend to make little videos of performers and vendors, too and tag them in the stories and watch them get reposted. I would also remind my future self to clear the stage for each act, just lift that microphone stand and power cord and PA and put it on the grass. It was a bit intense watching the dancer try to not hit these things I left on the stage (sad face).

I loved the feeling of selling some embroidery and modified clothing. I think I would have made more money if I was showing people my stuff but I think I was too focused on other tasks. It would be interesting to have a friend who is the host of the show when that time comes and I can just hang out by my little booth area to entice people to purchase.

I’m excited for the next big backyard event. I think it will be at night and have a lightshow involved.

Big thanks to everyone who supported the event by participating, to my friend Jason for lending me his PA, and for my housemates for co-hosting this event at our residence.