BLYN — Barn dances are big around here, so when you want a fundraiser, a hot band and a big, old building make a good bet.
And now the Museum & Arts Center, or MAC, is having its first go at a barn dance — in an unlikely venue.
It will be a barn dance in spirit: the MAC’s night with Blue Rooster, Cort Armstrong’s band enhanced for the occasion.
This Saturday night’s shindig will get going at 6 p.m. at 7 Cedars Casino, 270756 U.S. Highway 101, with the quintet stirring together country, bluegrass, ragtime and country blues.
Tickets are $15 at the MAC, 175 W. Cedar St., or at the door Saturday (July 20).
Proceeds will benefit the museum’s art and history center as well as the Dungeness Schoolhouse, a facility run by the MAC.
“For me, great dance music jumps around musical genres,” said Armstrong, the singer and guitarist with Blue Rooster and with Farmstrong, another local band.
His Blue Rooster set “keeps people guessing what you’re going to do next: a down-and-dirty blues song, and then maybe a waltz.
“There will be bluegrass songs, country songs, blues and even a little gospel music,” Armstrong added.
This dance is the MAC’s big fundraiser for the year, noted Executive Director DJ Bassett.
‘Foot-stompin’ time’
“This is an opportunity to kick up your heels,” he said. “We may not be in an actual barn, but we’re going to have an old-fashioned, foot-stompin’ great time.”
Blue Rooster is 14 years old now and still adds a player now and again.
Cort’s wife, Kia Armstrong, is the upright bassist, and Terry Smith, known for his work with the Soulshakers, Haywire and other groups, will play drums Saturday night.
Rounding out the sound are singer-mandolinist Tyler Richart and Sean Divine on harmonica.
Food and drink will be available from the casino, and the dance should go until 9:30 p.m.
For more details, phone 360-683-8110 or visit www.macsequim.org.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
