Arts & Entertainment
Viewfinder: Crazy Art, Yummy Eats and Rockin' Beats to End the Summer
Cooler temperatures and cloudy skies didn't keep crowds away from Arts, Beats, & Eats on Monday.
Downtown Royal Oak wound down from four days of Arts, Beats, & Eats on Labor Day.
Some guests came out more than once to enjoy the food, music and a whole lot of art. Gail Wade attended three of the four days, saying it’s one of the best festivals she and her two sons, Kane, 15, and A.J., 16, have ever been to.
Wade said she started the weekend helping the Beaumont Foundation with wristbands and ended it sharing a frozen cheesecake dipped in nuts. The Wades planned to grab a few Made in Detroit T-shirts before they left.
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The music at Arts, Beats & Eats was nonstop to the very end. A few of the Sunday bands included the Carolyn Striho Band on the Alternative Stage playing a mix of rock; Urban Prairie on the Cultural Stage performing what most call red dirt music – an old country sound that originated from the red dirt of Oklahoma; Jill Jack on the Bud Stage performing soulful folk rock; and the '80s rock band The Psychedelic Furs on the National Music Stage.
Brandishing an original “Jill Jack Rocks” sign from 1999, fans Tracey Walker and her daughter, Julianna, 7, of Farmington Hills, said they follow Jack everywhere.
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“We feel like family and have met some incredible people along the way,” said Walker.
The crowd sang along as the band opened with “Watch Over Me” from Jack's Watch Over Me CD released in 1997.
Nancy and Rolfe Kogelschatz of Garden City met Jack at Arts, Beats & Eats in 2007 and have been fans ever since. As a surprise to Rolfe, Nancy hired Jack to play at their 30th anniversary party two years ago.
“She’s simply amazing and we are diehard fans,” said Kogelschatz.
As the temperatures dropped down into the 50s, festivalgoers bundled up and continued enjoying themselves. Some even opted to keep their ears warm with one of the many crazy hats available from vendors.
"I had to have one of these crazy animal hats and even picked up three for my friends," said Scarlet Rathbun of Indiana. She was keeping her ears warm as she got ready to hit the road.
Some festivalgoers were sad to see the festival end. Peggy Jo Marcuse of Royal Oak enjoyed her day and was very impressed with the event. She particularly appreciated seeing festival director Jon Witz pitch in to help his staff make Arts, Beats & Eats successful.
"It’s been wonderful and I can’t wait until next year,” said Marcuse.
