September 2024 - Digital Edition
by Jaiden van Bork
Payomet Performing Arts Center now bears their name as a mark of acknowledgement of their initial inhabitation of this land. We occupy a small corner of it, hosting musical and artistic celebrations in our tent, aspiring to integrate with our land and community as much as our namesake did. Now, Payomet hosts hundreds of performances and events each season, attempting to bring joy and vitality to the Outer Cape community. But how did it come to be?
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By Jaiden van Bork
She has released three acclaimed albums as a solo artist since her 2015 debut. Her most recent, 2021’s What the Flood Leaves Behind, received stunning reviews for its wide-reaching storytelling and meticulous arrangement and instrumentation. “What the Flood Leaves Behind quietly invites us in, takes us to the altar of the heart, and lifts us up, searches our hearts, fills our souls, and lovingly caresses us as we walk emotionally renewed into the fresh light of day,” says one review in No Depression. Another, in American Songwriter, muses, “These concepts could easily devolve into simplistic clichés, but Helm’s sinuous singing and the full yet earthy playing deliver the songs and their messages with subtle passion and clear cut honesty. The album’s river-like flow, reflected in the cover photo, carries listeners along Helm’s spiritual journey, one that led her back to where she started for her finest release yet.”
As of publication, Helm has just released a much-awaited fourth album entitled Silver City. Helm says that this album is very much centered on the stories of women: “Women whispering, singing, shouting their stories – speaking the truth. I wanted to dig into that inherited narrative and reach for what I could.” Recorded at Levon Helm Studios, the album delves into narratives both fictionalized and real to uncover the many joys, sorrows, and traumas of the women that Helm says guide her songwriting. Listening to a few of the lead singles, it is clear that Helm is back at it again.
Don’t miss Helm’s incredible performance at Payomet on October 12th (the last show of the year in the tent) — her words and her voice will carry you away.
Can you believe it? Labor day weekend has finally come and gone. The chaos of Carnival is far behind us. It’s September at last. To quote the central song of the UK Labour Party’s 1997 campaign: “Things can only get better.”
Following Brandy Clark’s earth-shattering performance over the long weekend, Payomet welcomes the incredible José James to the tent. While there’s a lot to be said about this unique artist, one of our contributors, Michael Fee put it perfectly:
In James’s 2017 essay entitled “How I Stopped Being a Jazz Singer and Started Loving Myself”, the artist pondered the question. “[Am I] the awkward biracial kid that grew up in white, blue-collar Minneapolis in the 80’s where everyone seemed to hate [me]? Yes. [Am I] the kid who loved jazz because his dad did, made his daddy’s dreams his own to try to get attention and then surpassed him? Hell yeah. [Am I] the Black kid who was raised white, so he didn’t fit in anywhere but loved everything and all music?” I believe the correct answer is “All of the above.” James is one talented, self-aware and thoughtful cat who is all about the musical journey.
So dear adventurers, is José James a jazz singer or a soul singer? Old school or new school? A guardian of musical traditions or a restless spirit champing to break norms. I suspect all are true, but you need to decide for yourself, Saturday, September 7, 2024, under the tent in North Truro at 7 P.M. I’ll be there.
As he almost always does, Tom Rush joins us the following evening on September 8th for yet another stellar performance. Beyond his musicianship, Rush is truly a fascinating individual. For example, if you ever find yourself in Deering, New Hampshire (the musician’s former home), you will no doubt stumble across Tom Rush Forest, a 300-acre conservation area that was purchased from Rush and subsequently named for him by the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. The forest contains the American Chestnut Orchard, a collaborative community science project with the American Chestnut Foundation (TACF). “The orchard is part of an effort to restore the American chestnut, after a fungal blight wiped out most mature chestnut trees in North America by 1950,” says the Forest Society’s website, “These trees are American chestnuts that have been backcrossed with a Chinese chestnut that is resistant to the blight. They are tended by local Forest Society volunteers and staff.”
The Adam Ezra Group, who will arrive the following week, are an equally fascinating bunch. If the name sounds a bit like that of a non-profit organization, you wouldn’t be far off. The group is, of course, a band – but Ezra and his fellow musicians have taken on some seriously unique projects with the goal of building and supporting their fanbase. For example, beginning in 2016 the Boston-based group embarked on a unique tour across the country, not playing in any clubs or concert halls, but instead inside people’s living rooms. Ezra also championed virtual concerts throughout the spread of COVID-19, saying in an interview with Boston Magazine, “If you’d told me a year ago that I would have been playing for 6,000 people on a Wednesday night, I would have accused you of a cruel prank.” This unique band is not to be missed.
If you enjoyed Rosanne Cash’s performance alongside her husband John Leventhal last month, you might also want to check out her ex and frequent collaborator Rodney Crowell, who joins us in the tent on September 21st. The story between the two is rather interesting. In an article for Oxford American, Crowell writes “I remember not appreciating at first the integrity exhibited by my soon-to-be-ex-spouse as she alerted me that her feelings for my new friend and collaborator [Leventhal] were strong enough to end our marriage. Although I sensed something akin to divine consciousness imposing its will on all of our lives, and the future still seemed filled with promise, I preferred to take the news personally. And, as time went on, even the crisis in confidence I indulged for longer than was useful turned out to be a gift from on high.” All parties remain on good terms today, and Crowell and Cash have frequently performed together in the time since, but it just goes to show how wild stories like these can produce some incredible songwriting. Crowell, who has won two GRAMMY Awards — one in 1990 for Best Country Song, and one in 2014 for Best Americana Album — has cut his teeth playing with the Emmylou Harris Band and has been an incredible musician on every level since. Make sure you check out these hot tickets for his show at Payomet.
For another performer with a remarkable story, you can also check out Eilen Jewell. “..In the span of just a few months, Jewell watched as her marriage, her band, and what felt like her entire career fell apart in a series of spectacular, heartbreaking implosions,” says the artist’s website, “By the time the dust had finally settled, the critically acclaimed singer and songwriter was grieving and shocked, living in a remote cabin in the mountains and unsure if she’d ever get to make music again… [With] her ninth studio album, Jewell [plants] herself firmly in the driver’s seat as she picks up the pieces and finds new purpose and meaning in the process.” The Boise-native started performing first as a busker, hitting the streets of Venice Beach with her brand of Americana before traveling to the Boston area (as many Payomet favorites do) and performing in the city’s notable club scene. “[Jewell] possesses & applies generous ounces of retro musical identity & yet manages with expertise to personify it all with sinewy strength,” says Americana Highways, “She doesn’t sound dated. Never.” Come see why on Sunday, September 29th.
As we march into October, one of the most exciting tribute acts in the business comes to Provincetown Town Hall: Lez Zeppelin. Yes, you read that right — Lez Zeppelin. The all-female Led Zeppelin tribute band has come to the Cape before, leaving audiences and Payomet staff members alike completely stunned by the group’s authentic, yet strikingly unique performance of many Zeppelin classics. On October 5th, do not — I repeat, DO NOT — miss this incredible band, which the one and only Jimmy Page said, “…played the Led Zeppelin music with an extraordinary sensuality and an energy and passion that highlighted their superb musicianship.”
Now, that sure sounds like a lot of major talent for the off-season on Cape Cod, but this isn’t even the full list. As the days get shorter and shorter, the music gets better and better. Amy Helm, who you can read more about on page [], joins us on October 12th for our final show before we close down the tent for the year. But fear not, because we will also be presenting the legendary Rickie Lee Jones (of “Chuck E.’s in Love” fame) at the Tilden Arts Center on October 20th, along with another Boston open-mic legend, Vance Gilbert on November 2nd.
So buckle your seatbelts and get ready to groove. While many vacations may be coming to an end, the summer is truly endless here at Payomet. We can’t wait to see you — all year-round.
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Payomet Performing Arts Center was founded in 1998 by Guy Strauss. Strauss – an actor, writer, and a mainstay in the Outer Cape arts scene – recognized Cape Cod’s unique appreciation for the arts. Plus, Truro has long been a destination for cultural tourism, benefitting from Provincetown’s rich artistic scene and the Outer Cape’s many art galleries, theaters, and places of literary significance.
The beauty of the Cape’s natural landscape has long brought many tourists to its shores as well. At one time, the Truro Highlands were home to a large hospitality compound owned and operated by the Small family. The Smalls, a Truro family since the 1700’s, built up this tourist destination over the course of a century, centered around the Highland House hotel (which is now a museum documenting the history of Truro’s lands and people). After a railroad track reached Truro in 1873, business boomed. By the end of the 19th century, the area included cottages, a skating rink, a bowling alley, a ball field, and what are now the Highland Golf Links. The Smalls hosted many thousands of guests until the property’s closure in 1942 — perhaps the most prominent of whom was the writer and philosopher Henry David Thoreau, who famously said of the Outer Cape: “a man may stand there and put all America behind him.”
It was the same thinking that brought Payomet into being. Recognizing the rarity of this ecological and cultural frontier, Strauss set up the center, envisioning a home for artistic productions and education. He had little idea how integral it would later become in the community.
At the start, Payomet’s home was a much smaller tent at the intersection of Noons Drive and Route 6, “80 feet from the breakdown lane” as local comedian Jimmy Tingle likes to joke. In this era, Payomet’s productions were almost exclusively plays. The audiences were smaller than they are now, but the ethos was equally laid-back and arts-centered. Longtime Payomet patron Bob MacDonald fondly remembers attending Shakespearean plays, one-person shows, and book talks at the original tent. “In those days,” Bob says, “the performers would stay at Guy’s house.”
After eight years of unique programming, the Payomet tent was relocated to its current site – the Highlands Center. The Highlands Center is envisioned to be a home for arts, education, and research on the Outer Cape. It was conceptualized in 1994 when the Cape Cod National Seashore acquired the site of the abandoned North Truro Air Force Station, where hundreds of soldiers lived and worked here from 1950 to 1984. Their mission was to use radar technology to detect, identify, intercept, and destroy hostile aircraft amidst extreme tension with Soviet powers.
The station was, at one time, a community unto itself. The airmen visited Outer Cape restaurants and bars, hosted dances, and frequented their on-site bowling alley and movie theater. They even had their own team in the Cape Cod Baseball League – the North Truro Blue Sox. Despite the pervasive climate of fear in this era, veterans reminisce upon their time at the station with great warmth and fondness. In the 1970’s, the station’s technology became obsolete and the site was gradually vacated. Now, our tent sits just a few paces away from the empty military buildings, many of which are waiting to be demolished. But with the regulations on this federally owned land, this process is not a short one.
This is part of the reason why the idea of the Highlands Center has become a large question mark. Initially imagined as a bustling campus that would house countless organizations and people – artists, ecologists, teachers, scientists – the project lost momentum as it faced funding shortages and regulatory obstacles.
But Payomet hopes to lead the charge in revitalizing this place of unique natural beauty and historical importance. Since its relocation to the Highlands Center, the tent has brought bustling cultural activity to the site. Kevin Rice took over as Executive Director in 2008, and has worked tirelessly to expand Payomet’s programming while maintaining its familiarity and laid-back charm. While the names and audiences at Payomet get bigger, its commitment to integrating with the community and supporting the arts holds strong. We maintain relationships with a handful of local nonprofits, including WOMR, the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, and the Castle Hill Center for the Arts. We participate in the Card to Culture program, making our events accessible to low-income people in Massachusetts. And we host a variety of educational sessions and free events. All of this reflects Payomet’s commitment to integrate with the people around it. It’s about fostering healthy local relationships, respecting the history and ecology of our environs, and centering original and authentic artistic expression. And under the guidance of Jennifer Flynn, the new Superintendent of Cape Cod National Seashore, there is a renewed optimism in the original vision for the Highlands Center. With luck, Payomet may soon be one of many creative and community-minded organizations at the Center.
But to construct our future, we must connect it to our past. According to Highland House Museum’s permanent exhibition on the history of the Outer Cape’s native people, the Paomets had a conception of time as a circle rather than a linear progression. All of the processes of nature were imbued with divine importance, and important events in this temporal rotation were acknowledged with ritual song and dance. The culture of American settlers, however, has followed linear pathways – the upward development of towns and cities on the land, the outward expulsion of indigenous people, the inevitable uptick of the calendar year. Payomet aspires to close the circle, to produce artistic performances that bring people closer to the here and now. We hope that our little, round tent can be a place for locals and visitors alike to rest, spend time with loved ones, and enjoy art that is immediate and beautiful.
Special thanks to the Highland House Museum for kindly sharing their deep knowledge of the history of Truro.
