Date: Saturday, July 1, 2017

For the past quarter-century, Colorado’s Leftover Salmon has established itself as one of the great purveyors of Americana music, drawing deeply from the wells of rock, folk, bluegrass, Cajun, soul, zydeco, jazz, and blues. They are the direct descendants of bands like New Grass Revival, Grateful Dead, and The Band, playing music that reflects the Appalachian hills, the streets of New Orleans, the clubs of Chicago, the plains of Texas, and the mountains of Colorado. Joining Leftover Salmon at DCA are The Secret Sisters. Real-life sisters Lydia and Laura Rogers grew up in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and have spent a lifetime perfecting their impossibly tight harmonies and unmistakably authentic sound. Barely in their twenties and already building a national reputation, The Secret Sisters sing in a way that’s “true like a river current” (NPR).

Major Sponsors:
The Blacksmith Inn, The Fireside
Supporting Sponsors:

Date: Monday, June 26, 2017

Ray Benson founded the pioneering Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel in West Virginia over 40 years ago. Now an eight-piece band based in Austin, Asleep at the Wheel has accumulated nine Grammy awards, 20 studio albums, and 20 singles on the Billboard country charts—over 1.5 million records sold in all. Fellow Texan and honky-tonker Dale Watson teamed up with Benson this past year to record “Dale and Ray,” a duets album that celebrates two of country music’s biggest mavericks. Performing together, Asleep at the Wheel and Dale Watson pay tribute to the rollicking juke joints that introduced them to audiences—and each other—in the first place.

Presenting Sponsor:
Landmark Resort
Major Sponsors:
The Chop Restaurant, Door County BrewingOn Deck Clothing Company
Supporting Sponsor:

Date: Monday, June 19, 2017
Plus, Dance Workshops on Saturday, June 17

Lucky Plush Productions is an ensemble dance-theater company based in Chicago, led by founder and artistic director Julia Rhoads. The company is committed to provoking and supporting an immediacy of presence—a palpable live-ness—shared by performers in real time with audiences. A unique hybrid of high-level dance and theater, Lucky Plush’s work is recognized for its layered choreography, nuanced dialogue, surprising humor, and socially relevant content. Lucky Plush Productions is the first and only dance company to receive the prestigious MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, a recognition of the company’s exceptional creativity and impact.

Major Sponsor:
Settlement Courtyard Inn & Lavender Spa
Supporting Sponsor:

2017/2018 Passport Program
Program Sponsors:

Supporting Sponsors:

Reduced Ticket Sponsor:

Date: Thursday, June 15, 2017

Memphis multi-instrumentalist Eric Lewis is arguably the most popular Tennessean on the Door County music scene, regularly packing houses on the peninsula (and across the country) with his red-hot guitar picking skills. On June 15, Lewis will take to the DCA stage to officially release his new album, “Before the Last Time.” He will be joined by some of his most talented Memphis and Nashville colleagues, including Paul Taylor, Robby Turner (who’s played with Waylon Jennings and Chris Stapleton), Rory Hoffman (who’s played with Kathy Mattea and Kacey Musgraves), and Leroy and Charles Hodges (who have accompanied Al Green, Ann Peebles, and Robert Cray).

Major Sponsor:
Main Street Market

Date: Sunday, June 11, 2017

Houston native Robert Earl Keen has never worn his Texas heart on his sleeve, but he’s long been regarded as one of the Lone Star State’s finest singer-songwriters. From his humble beginnings on the Texas folk scene to his college friendship with Lyle Lovett (the pair wrote songs together at Texas A&M), Keen has blazed a peer-, critic-, and fan-lauded trail that’s earned him pioneer and living-legend status in the Americana music world. Three decades after the release of his debut album—with eighteen other records to his name and thousands of shows under his belt—Keen remains as committed as ever to his songwriting craft.

Presenting Sponsor:
Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant and Butik
Major Sponsor:
White Gull Inn
Supporting Sponsor:

Friends Of Gibraltar & Door Community Auditorium Presents Spanish Literacy Celebration

Date: Thursday, February 16, 2017

Cuban-born singer and bandleader Adonis Puentes invites audiences into the marvelous world of Cuban music with syncopated rhythms, propulsive bass lines, melodic piano and guitar, and nuanced horn arrangements. Puentes’ award-winning vocals are a sensuous testament to the joy and passion of Cuban music, and his dynamic, ten-piece Voice of Cuba Orchestra shines with tight, multilayered backing arrangements. A “musical missionary” of sorts, Puentes and his world-class band have been traveling together for years, spreading a mix of soulful balladry and dance-friendly Cuban vibes to audiences around the world.

Passport Program Partners:

Date: Friday, January 20, 2017

An energetic exploration of the human form, Step Afrika! performs a riveting mix of dance, body percussion, and spoken word certain to inspire audiences of all ages. Step Afrika!, founded in 1994, is the first professional dance company dedicated to the tradition of stepping, a unique art form created at African-American fraternities and based in rich African dance traditions. Incorporating intricate rhythmic patterns of kicks, stomps, claps, and chants, the dancers of Step Afrika! use their bodies as instruments. The dancers’ stomping feet and chanting voices will transform the DCA stage into a rare and joyful space – one where bodily movement is celebrated as a deep well of power, humor, and grace.

Passport Program Partners:

Date: Thursday, December 29, 2016

A tradition that began with a wildly successful inaugural concert in 2013, the Play It Forward concert series reflects the best of Door County life, including the peninsula’s famously tight-knit community and vibrant music scene. Inspired by the life and legacy of Bo Johnson, a young Sister Bay resident who passed away from leukemia in 2012, the Play it Forward concert series benefits regional, national, and international causes selected by the performers. This year’s Play It Forward concert will celebrate the warmth and light of the holiday season as some of Door County’s favorite performers come together to present beloved holiday classics and inspiring original songs.

Passport Program Partners:
Friends of Gibraltar, RocketDSD.com/IceCreamSource.com, Grasse’s Grill

Date: Saturday, November 26, 2016

Since the early ’90s when they first achieved national television fame on PBS’s Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego?, a cappella icons Rockapella have provided a funky, powerful soundtrack to several generations of vocal music fans, touring the globe and always keeping their music fresh along the way. With buckets of catchy original pop songs, as well as complete contemporary revisions of sparkling Motown, pop, and soul classics, this five-man ensemble can create the sound of a full band using only the versatility of their voices. As USA Today proclaimed: “The best musical instrument of all is the human voice – if you’ve seen Rockapella you know that’s the truth.”

Major Sponsor:
Mainstreet Market
Supporting Sponsors:
The Cordon Family Foundation, Wisconsin Public Radio
Passport Program Partners:
Friends of Gibraltar, RocketDSD.com/IceCreamSource.com, Grasse’s Grill

Charlie Musselwhite & North Mississippi AllStars

Date: Saturday, November 5, 2016

Blues harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite is living proof that great music only gets better with age. After cutting his musical teeth in the early ’60s alongside Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, and other Chicago blues greats, Musselwhite is still going strong, riveting audiences with a voice and harp tone like no other.

Brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson grew up soaking in the music of their father, Memphis legend Jim Dickinson, absorbing north Mississippi’s musical legacy through nights at the local juke joints. In 1996, Luther (guitar, vocals) and Cody (drums, vocals) decided to use this musical background as the foundation for a new band, and the North Mississippi Allstars were born, pioneering their own brand of blues-infused rock and roll.

Major Sponsors:
Al Johnson’s Restaurant & Butik, Landmark Resort, Lori & David Nicholas
Supporting Sponsors:
The Fireside Restaurant, Wild Tomato, Wisconsin Public Radio, Young Automotive
Passport Program Partners:
Friends of Gibraltar, RocketDSD.com/IceCreamSource.com, Grasse’s Grill