So I finally made it to the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center for the first time last night. I thought I was hopelessly late to the party, and that either it had caught on by now, or that it would be a total dud and I’d end the evening elsewhere. I was wrong.
Right now HMAC is really just the Stage on Herr, an “intimate venue”. I think “intimate” is relative to the HMAC spaces that haven’t opened yet, as Stage on Herr is far, far larger than most other city venues. And it’s stunningly beautiful, with warehouse-high ceilings, art everywhere, a long granite bar, and spaces both for sitting and for milling around. If it were part of a movie set — or was set in another city — it would have been filled with beautiful intellectuals talking, drinking, perusing, and just generally, you know, being superior.
In Harrisburg, not so much. The atmosphere was low key — a plus in my mind — and though people came and went, the crowd never exceeded a couple dozen people or so. This made it intimate in that it was easy to have a conversation without shouting, and there were no worries about losing a spot at the bar, but…the space really needed a bigger crowd. That said, the crowd that was there was a pretty eclectic crew, and looked to me like it represented a greater level of diversity — not just ethnic/racial diversity — than I usually encounter in the ‘burg. Or the region.
So why so few people? I suppose one of the pros and cons of out-of-town developers is that they don’t bring an existing audience to their venue. I think this is one reason for the apparent diversity of the crowd — no one was there because it was where all their friends were headed — but also, of course, a weakness. After all, no one was there because it was where all their friends were headed. Also, the initial project announcements were met with such skepticism, and it’s taken so long since the first rumblings for even this small part of the building to open, that I had trouble believing it would ever be a place worth visiting. Like, it would be amateurish or cobbled together as if the developers got overwhelmed halfway through and threw the doors open before it was ready in a desperate attempt to recoup some of the many many dollars they’ve poured into it. But no — it’s sleek and spacious and gorgeous, and well worth visiting.
But. Beautiful as the building is, the operation could use some work. Last night was First Friday, and HMAC advertised live music. There was no live music, at least not during the time I was there (10pm ’til close). That turned out to be okay, as I was glad to be able to hear, but I’d be pretty pissed if I’d been there for the music. In addition, looks like they’ve been creating Facebook events out the wazoo — they have stuff going on nearly every day — but it doesn’t look like they’re actually inviting anyone to those events. So unless you’re a fan and you happen to see the event on your news feed when it’s first created, you might never hear about it.
So, HMAC, email your fans! Invite people to your events! But then make sure to actually put on the events you’ve invited them to….
And those of you who get those invites, go check it out.