CityView Magazine

62 | October 2015 feature C harlotte pulls in the national tours of A-list super- stars. Asheville has their indie folk scene. Up the road in Durham, there's DPAC. We've got the Crown Complex and the various offerings there throughout the year. A special or- ganization, the oldest arts focused non-profit in Cumberland County to be exact, Community Concerts, calls this grand venue home. Community Concerts is a popular non-profit in the city, known to bring brand-name entertainment, but it's not an easy endeavor and the organization's history has been chock- full of challenges. In its 80th year, Community Concerts is gearing up for one of their most colossal years to date. Huge acts will be gracing the stage of the Crown. "We've got the number one best-selling duo of all time, Hall & Oates. e lead singer of Chicago for over 20 years, I am talking about Peter Ce- tera. e number one R&B group of all time, Boyz II Men and we finish it off with a household name, a comedy legend, Jay Leno," said Michael Fleishman, 22-year board member and current Attractions Director for Community Concerts. Fleishman maintained their biggest challenge is finding acts who will "excite" the crowd. Truth be told, this is a season that will go down in Fayetteville history. e original Community Concerts series was begun by lo- cal civic leader, Fannie Stein, in 1935 at the pinnacle of the Great Depression. en, it went by a different name, the Civic Music Association. In the mid-1960s, the program became a part of the Com- munity Concerts program under Columbia Artists Manage- ment. Community Concerts was organized in 1927 by the founder of Columbia Artists, Arthur Judson. Community Concerts were present across the country in different, you guessed it, communities. roughout the years, they focused on bringing classical music to their respective audiences. But 22 years ago, in Cumberland County, Fleishman spearheaded a change in the programming. "I got on the board and we be- came more interested in putting on popular concerts." Fleish- man continued, "e lady from Columbia Artists said it could not be done and that contemporizing would not be successful." Still, Fleishman was up for the challenge. Using his con- nections from his prior gig in advertising in the Big Apple, he was able to pull some strings at William Morris Agency. "I made a phone call and we booked e Lettermen." (If you're a millennial like me, think of an early 1960s version of the Backstreet Boys.) Eight Decades of Sound BY MIRIAM LANDRU Community Concerts: The little arts organization that DID Photography by Matthew Wonderly From left: Katie Mikos & Jimmy Grafstrom of the Crown Complex with Michael Fleishman & Caroline Gregory, Community Concerts board members.

• Cover