DULUTH — The William A. Irvin, the retired Great Lakes freighter now permanently parked in Minnesota Slip and operating as a museum, will host a six-week live music series that kicks off July 25.
Local artists will perform on the deck of the ship each night of the series, with listeners seated in camp chairs they supply themselves. Each show will take place from 7-8:30 p.m., with free admission and attendance capped at 140. The events are billed as “family-friendly,” with only nonalcoholic beverages served.
According to a news release from the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center, which owns and operates the Irvin, the series was the brainchild of a woman who grew up in Duluth and recently moved back to town. Charity Benedict, looking to launch a distinctive music series like Glensheen’s Concerts on the Pier, contacted all the artists and secured series sponsorship from Pizza Luce.
“It’s a great idea, and frankly, I’ve been hoping to use the Irvin as a venue but just lacked the capacity to organize it,” DECC Executive Director Dan Hartman said in the news release.
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The William A. Irvin, launched in 1938 and open as a museum since 1986, hosts regular tours during the summer and then becomes the popular Haunted Ship attraction in October.
Upon becoming DECC director in 2021, Hartman
to bring a wider range of entertainment to the complex — the Irvin included — but that goal has since run up against
and the city’s decision to
reassign management of Bayfront Festival Park
from the DECC to a private firm.
The Music on the Ship series opens with sets from Charity & Nate and Eldri Snow and The Wintry Mix, then concludes Aug. 29 with Boss Mama and the Sonja Martin Band.
Dan Williamson / File / Duluth Media Group
Music on the Ship lineup
July 25: Charity & Nate / Eldri Snow and The Wintery Mix
Aug. 1: The Hot Club of Duluth
Aug. 8: Derecho
Aug. 15: Teague Alexy and The Common Thread
Aug. 22: Nvr Tgthr / Sadkin
Aug. 29: Boss Mama and the Sonja Martin Band
Arts and entertainment reporter Jay Gabler joined the Duluth News Tribune in 2022. His previous experience includes eight years as a digital producer at The Current (Minnesota Public Radio), four years as theater critic at Minneapolis alt-weekly City Pages, and six years as arts editor at the Twin Cities Daily Planet. He’s a co-founder of pop culture and creative writing blog The Tangential; he’s also a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the Minnesota Film Critics Alliance. You can reach him at jgabler@duluthnews.com or 218-279-5536.
