Upcoming events at the Link Centre

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Here are notes from yesterday's Performing Arts Commission meeting at the Link Centre.

• This past weekend's Monthly Music Mix gospel show, featuring various performers from Lee County and the surrounding area, was a success.
  
  The next Monthly Music Mix is a bluegrass band, New York City Slickers, on Oct. 11. This show is a bit different than usual music mix concerts, because a barbecue dinner will be served before the show. Ticket prices could be $25 or $30 for both dinner and a concert.
  
  On Nov. 2, jazz pianist Michael Jefry Stevens returns and brings with him saxophonist Brian "Breeze" Cayolle.
  
  Typically the Monthly Music Mix shows skip December, but there will be a special Christmas show on Dec. 23 featuring Calvin and Jauna Ellis. They usually invite other Tupelo singers to perform with them, but no word on that just yet.
  
  Next year, the Monthly Music Mix shows include blues great Grady Champion on Jan. 12 and  Kim and Reggie Harris in February. They're looking at how to fill out the dates in March, April and June (music mix breaks in May).
• Tupelo Film Commissioner Pat Rasberry gave an Indie Film Series update; you can read all about that in today's Daily Journal. But she has a lot more going on, like the upcoming Manhattan Film Festival. It's an international film fest, with screenings taking place all over the world. Audiences vote on their favorites and a world-wide winner is announced later. This year the fest is broken into two separate events: a film fest for shorts on Oct. 4, and a film fest for features in March. Both will take place at the Malco in Tupelo. Link Centre's executive director Melanie Deas has been to the Manhattan before and said the films are always "interesting" and "edgy."
  
  Also, as mentioned in the paper today, there's a Tupelo Film Alliance meeting at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Tupelo CVB featuring an acting workshop. Cristina Skinner with Corinth Theatre-Arts will teach acting for theater and Sam Dalton will teach acting for film. It's free to attend the meeting/workshop.
  
  Also, submissions are open for the Mississppi High School Film Competition, which will be next spring. Deadline is Jan. 31.
• The Link Centre's arist residency will be a group of storytellers. Confirmed to come to Tupelo and perform at the Link and work with students are Kim and Reggie Harris and storyteller Laura Simms. Simms is also the mother of Ishmael Beah, a former child soldier who wrote the book "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier."
• In other biz, the commission pondered why so many of Tupelo's young professionals – those ages 25ish-40 – aren't attending many events, like indie film screenings, music mix shows, etc. Money? Time? If you have any suggestions as to why, leave a comment.
  
  The commission also said they'd love to have volunteers from that young group.
• There was also talk of renovating the Black Box Theatre in the Link Centre's basement, where things like the indie film screenings and West of Shake Rag shows take place. It would mean demo'ing rooms that aren't being used in the basement to create lobby and lounge areas, fixing up the alley entrance, etc. The proposed renovation – which wouldn't take place for several years until the funds are raised – look really terrific.