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close‘Enjoy the green grass on our side of the fence’
Chris Albert
What a wonderful time for Puyallup residents to rediscover their hometown, said Mayor Don Malloy. The idea that there isn’t anything to do in Puyallup is just not the case and with gas prices and economy being what it is enjoying free family entertainment is only as far as a local park.
“I think I’m going to vacation in my hometown (this summer),” Malloy said. “There’s a lot of things to do in Puyallup.”
Starting in July, the city will host 22 concerts in Pioneer and Bradley Lake parks and have six movie nights at Bradley Lake Park.
“I would say Puyallup has the best concert series in the entire state,” said Lona Graves, concert series coordinator for the Puyallup Parks and Recreation Department. “It’s going to be a huge thing this summer with gas prices.”
This year’s line-up promises to be the best to date, Graves said.
The focus is on family entertainment with the concert series broken into three categories: the children’s series, family series and country western series.
The country western performances are new to the series, with two performances hosted on Wednesday evenings in Bradley Lake Park.
Plus there will be horse-drawn carriage rides available to add to the ambience of the performances.
“I think the country series will be a real plus this year,” Graves said.
To keep on the cutting edge, the concert series is changing from featuring a “Puyallup Idol” facet to “Puyallup’s Got Talent.”
“It will open it up to a variety of talent verses just singing,” Graves said.
The concert series will also feature 1950s and ‘60s musical acts when the car show at The Fair takes place July 24.
It’s a suggestion that came from the community, Graves said, and the paring couldn’t be better.
The Thursday concerts in Pioneer Park have regularly drawn crowds as large as 2,000 people. That draw makes musicians want to perform in Puyallup, Graves said.
“That’s what Puyallup has a reputation for,” she said.
Graves said she tries to rotate acts but a lot of performers want to come back to Puyallup and has led to booking state and nationally known performers, like the a cappella group The Coats.
The concert series regularly draws about 22,000 total in attendance every summer.
And although the family movie night series doesn’t draw people in by the thousands, it is common to see 200 people stretched out to watch a movie.
The movies begin at dusk on Saturdays. The final show will even feature the use of 3-D glasses for the “Hannah Montana Concert Show — Best of Both Worlds 3-D Tour” on Aug. 30 at Bradley Lake Park.
These events are just a little of what Puyallup has to offer, Malloy said.
“A town is more than just a place to live. It’s a place where neighbors come together to enjoy culture,” he said. “This just kind of ties the entire community together.”
“The grass is always greener on the other side” doesn’t need to be the focus, Malloy said.
“It’s nice to enjoy the green grass on our side of the fence,” he said.
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Concerts in the park series
Children’s Series performances are from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesdays in Pioneer Park.
> July 8: “Roc a Roos”
> July 15: Hot Shot Tap Dancers
> July 22: Breaking Point Dance
> July 29: Bochinche
> Aug. 5: “Naomi’s Musical Dreamland”
> Aug. 12: Zig Zag
> Aug. 19: Reptile Man
> Aug. 26: “Puyallup’s Got Talent”
Family Series shows are from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursdays in Pioneer Park.
> July 10: Miss Washington 2007 Elyse Umemoto from 6:30 to 6:45 and The Coats from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
> July 17: Dynamik from 6:30 to 7 p.m. and Alex Duncan from 7:15 to 8:30 p.m.
> July 24: Dead Edsels from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. and Danny Vernon from 7:15 to 8:30 p.m.
> July 31: Spazmatics from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. and Magic Bus from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
> Aug. 7: Tacoma Concert Band from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with a break from 7:15 to 7:30 p.m.
> Aug. 14: Geoffrey Castel from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. and Darren Motamedy from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
> Aug. 21: Afrodisiacs from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. and The Beatniks from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
> Aug. 28: “Puyallup’s Got Talent” from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with a break from 7:15 to 7:30 p.m.
Country and Western Series performances are from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Bradley Lake Park.
> July 23: Big Time Trouble
> Aug. 13: Jonathon Harris