COLLECTION NAME:
Soundscapes of the People: A Musical Ethnography of Pueblo, Colorado
Record
Collection Name:
Soundscapes of the People: A Musical Ethnography of Pueblo, Colorado
Title:
Dave Cesario Interview September 24, 2022
Title Type:
Devised
Name:
Cesario, Dave
Name Role Term Text:
Interviewee
Name:
Wagenknecht, Lydia
Name Role Term Text:
Interviewer
Name:
Thomas, Susan
Name Role Term Text:
Interviewer
Resource Type:
Moving image
Genre:
Oral histories
Date Created:
2022-09-24
Language Term:
English
Extent:
1 online resource (1 video file) (1 hr., 18 min., 52 sec.)
Physical Description Note:
For access to the recordings on YouTube contact the University of Colorado Boulder American Music Research Center.
Abstract:
Dave Cesario is a stage and event production professional from Pueblo, Colorado. In this interview, Dave discusses his career development through his various businesses in spheres like teen night clubs, special events, and Pueblo Memorial Hall. He shares insights on the current state of event production training for young people in Pueblo, and he describes processes of local collaboration for events.
Note:
00:00:00 Lydia Wagenknecht, graduate research assistant at the American Music Research Center, thanks Dave Cesario for being there. The interviewers (Lydia Wagenknecht and Susan Thomas) and interviewee (Dave Cesario) are introduced. Additional topics include: American Music Research Center, Pueblo Memorial Hall, technical director. 00:00:25 Lydia asks Dave about growing up in Pueblo. Dave shares early memories of attending performances at Pueblo Memorial Hall and the Chief Theater (lately known as the Damon Runyon Repertory Theater). Additional topics include: 42nd Street, backstage, Broadway, Chief Theater, COVID-19, Damon Runyon Theater, Def Leppard, Great White, hair bands, Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels, musical, seating, Styx, Broadway musicals, Chief Theater, Pueblo Memorial Hall, Pueblo performance venues, rock concerts. 00:04:50 Lydia asks Dave when he first started getting involved in performance management, and whether that was around the time they were in high school. Dave describes his backstage, event production, special effects, and DJ experiences starting in elementary school through college. Additional topics include: A Lighter Shade of Brown, amphitheater, backstage, Bassin' DJs, Bessemer Elementary, Cinco de Mayo celebrations, Colorado State Fair Event Center, concert promotion, Express Music Productions, FX Express, FX Plus, high school, middle school, mobile disc jockey service, music teacher, school dances, teen night club, The Globe, The Spot, Wayne DeHerrera Sound, weddings, Chieftain, University of Southern Colorado, volcano, pyrotechnics, band, guitar, stereo system, family, house party, Knights of Pythias Hall, disc jockeys, event promotion, music education, night clubs, special effects. 00:13:49 Susan asks Dave to expand about the clubs they were running as a high school student. Dave describes how and where he developed teen night clubs in southeastern Colorado. Additional topics include: The Spot, liquor license, Drug Busters, Arts and Education Council, night club, teen night, Silk's, Cañon City, The Globe, MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice, Paula Abdul, Color Me Badd, Boyz 2 Men, Kid 'n Play, night clubs. 00:18:13 Lydia asks, “As you're moving around to these different weddings, you're moving to high schools, you're playing these clubs...I'm wondering, with different demographics, are you playing different things?” Dave discusses considerations for DJing weddings. Additional topics include: Fort Collins, Center Stage, Stage One, wedding, CDs, records, 78s, 8-tracks, DJs, organization, weddings, DJs. 00:21:42 Lydia asks about the path that led Dave to the Pueblo Memorial Hall. Dave talks about how he has developed his skills in lighting and special effects in the context of local venues. Additional topics include: lighting, light shows, mobile DJ, night clubs, Western Pyrotechnics, concerts, festivals, Pueblo Memorial Hall, Pueblo Convention Center, fireworks, confetti, streamer cannons, event production--special effects. 00:24:20 Lydia asks Dave if it’s been a self-motivated career. Dave describes how he works with local interns to give them experience in backstage work. Additional topics include: high schools, interns, career, college credit, Brook Mead, rock band, production, Disney, SpaceX, Full Sail University, Blackbird, career pathways--event production. 00:26:39 Lydia asks about touring and the groups coming and going. Dave discusses the processes of negotiating technical riders and collaborating with local event production specialists. Additional topics include: technical rider, bus, labor, stage, shows, equipment, promoter, seats, local partners, Wayne DeHerrera, Tony Garcia, sound engineers, monitors, boards, video walls, musical instruments, Elledge Music, Guitar Center, George Scott, Eric Bravo, backlight, B3 organs, Colorado Springs, Ultra Sound, Pro Audio, Broadmoor Hotel, rent, Colorado State Fair, Kevin Ortiz, cost, risk, event production, event programming. 00:34:41 Lydia asks, “What are some of your favorite shows that you've run over the years?” Dave discusses tours and artists that he's enjoyed working with. Additional topics include: Kevin Smith, Jay and Silent Bob, Jason Mewes, Gary Sinise, Lt. Dan Band, Ty England, Garth Brooks, U2, 360 Tour, Denver, NHL Outdoor Series, Crew Director, F16, Air Force Academy, X Games, Cystic Fibrosis Fundraiser, Taylor Swift, American Airlines, Salida, popular music--touring. 00:37:36 Lydia asks Dave, “You've done all of this work all over the Front Range and Colorado. When you're here in Pueblo, are there circumstances that change the way you do business?” Dave discusses how Pueblo Memorial Hall creates opportunities for local artists and audiences. Additional topics include: national tours, local artists, rider, Pepsi Center, promoter, renovation, Pikes Peak Center, Red Rocks, dance shows, fly-by-wire, Sarah Shaw Dance, video wall, Second Street Dance, recital, Broadway show, pyrotechnics, "Nightmare Before Nutcracker", Musical Community Productions, "A Christmas Carol", set, Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, props, scripting, blocking, Pueblo Choral Society, balcony boxes, Lighting Director, Air Force Academy Band, Colorado State Fairgrounds, PBS Special, Kennedy Center, music performances--Pueblo, dance performances--Pueblo. 00:45:23 Lydia asks about renovations. Dave talks about the major renovations on Pueblo Memorial Hall between 2009-2013 and how they changed the community's perception of the venue. Additional topics include: renovations, 2009, City Hall, remodel, seating, plasterwork, stage, "Cats", loading dock, dressing rooms, bathrooms, ADA accessible, counterweight, hemp house, scaffolding, orchestra pit, automated pit, rigging, green rooms, 2013, air conditioning, Broadway shows, oldies, professional wrestling, dance, training seminars, motivational speakers, sound system, lighting system, turnkey, Wayne DeHerrera, consulting firm, Boulder, budget, historic theaters, theater renovations. 00:54:55 Lydia asks about community and states, “How do people in Pueblo understand Pueblo Memorial Hall?” Dave discusses Pueblo Memorial Hall's efforts to bolster community engagement and the support of the city. Additional keywords include: Clint Black, pricing, City Council, bishop, weddings, funerals, demographic, East High School, theater classes, District 60, after-school activity, musical, plays, community, Broadway Theatre League, local government, corporate sponsors, city budget, Brue's Alehouse, theater education, community-engaged arts, arts funding. 01:02:14 Susan states, “There seems to be a narrative in your story from when you were in high school: finding ways to make things happen. You've been filling that space--the ‘"there's nothing going on"’ space.” Dave compares his recreational experiences as a middle and high schooler to those of today's young people. Additional topics include: teen night clubs, haunted houses, bounce houses, high school, middle school, Bossa Nova Roller Skating Rink, Stardust, The Slabs, Stauter Field, Bessemer Park, Pueblo Recreation Center, South Side Recreation Center, pool tables, basketball courts, football, Pueblo Police Department, house parties, Pueblo--night life, youth recreation. 01:06:50 Lydia asks “Is there any lore surrounding Pueblo Memorial Hall?” Dave talks about Pueblo venues and their various haunting stories. Additional keywords include: flood, night, trussing, scream, elevator, cold, lore, haunted, theaters, Chief Theatre, tunnels, Central High School, community lore. 01:12:46 Susan asks Dave to talk about the ghost lore of the building, including the tunnels. Dave describes the histories of Pueblo's tunnels. Additional topics include: tunnels, Union Depot, alcohol, B Street, Central High School, Keating School, Elks building, Santa Fe, hotel, Capone, mafia, Trinidad, steam, Prohibition, Seattle, Washington, urban infrastructure. 01:17:02 Lydia asks her final question, “Is there anything that you think that we should know--that people should know--about performing arts here in Pueblo or any last thoughts you want to share?” Dave encourages Pueblo community members to take advantage of the many performing arts opportunities in Pueblo. Additional topics include: opportunity, show, Impossible Players, Steel City Players, community productions, Sarah Shaw, Second Street Dance, The Blue Cactus, El Nopal Restaurant. End of recording.
Note Type:
Time coded description
Note:
Collection is a collaboration between the American Music Research Center (AMRC) and the Colorado State University Pueblo Foundation. For more information contact the AMRC.
Subject Topic:
Event production-
Subject Topic:
Stage production
Subject Topic:
Career development
Subject Topic:
Disc jockeys
Subject Topic:
Sound
Subject Topic:
Weddings
Subject Topic:
Nightclubs
Subject Topic:
Theater
Subject Name:
Colorado State Fair
Subject Geographic:
Pueblo (Colorado, United States, North America) (populated place)
Identifier:
Dave_Cesario_Full_Interview_2022-09-24.mp4
Physical Location:
American Music Research Center
Date Captured:
2022
Internet Media Type:
video/mp4
Digital Origin:
born digital
Access Condition:
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).