In “Half A Star,” Perry draws on the worst reviews of his career to take the audience on a hilarious, heartfelt, and unvarnished journey through a life in the arts as seen mostly from behind the windshield of a used van.
Perry is a New York Times bestselling (#21 for ONE WEEK) author, humorist, playwright, singer/songwriter, and radio host from New Auburn, Wisconsin.
Perry’s bestselling memoirs include Population: 485 (recently adapted for the stage), Truck: A Love Story, Coop, Visiting Tom, and Montaigne in Barn Boots: An Amateur Ambles Through Philosophy. Among his other dozen titles are The Scavengers (for young readers) and his novel The Jesus Cow. Raised on a small Midwestern dairy farm, Perry put himself through nursing school while working on a ranch in Wyoming, then detoured into writing. He lives with his wife and two daughters in rural Wisconsin, where he serves on the local volunteer fire and rescue service and is an intermittent pig farmer. He hosts the nationally-syndicated “Tent Show Radio,” performs widely as a humorist, and tours with his band the Long Beds (currently recording their third album). His three live humor albums include Never Stand Behind A Sneezing Cow and The Clodhopper Monologues, and can be found online at www.sneezingcow.com.
Perry’s essays and nonfiction have appeared in numerous anthologies and publications including The New York Times Magazine, Esquire, The Oxford American, Backpacker, Outside, Runner’s World and Salon.com. His writing assignments have taken him to the top of Mt. Rainier with Iraq War veterans, into the same room as the frozen head of Ted Williams, across the United States with truckers and country music singers, and—once—buck naked into a spray-tan booth. “As a writer,” says Perry, “I find my greatest privilege lies not in telling my story; it lies in being trusted to tell the story of another.”
In the essay collection Off Main Street, Perry wrote of how his nursing education prepared him to become a writer by training him in human assessment, and he credits singer-songwriters like Steve Earle and John Prine and poets like Lucille Clifton with helping him understand that art could have a little dirt on its boots. Above all, he gives credit to his parents, of whom he says, “Anything good is because of them, everything else is simply not their fault.” His mother taught him to read and filled the house with books; his father taught him how to clean calf pens, of which Perry has written, “a childhood spent slinging manure – the metaphorical basis for a writing career.”
Perry has been involved in numerous musical collaborations, composing and performing “Winter Sleeper” with S. Carey and Ben Lester, co-writing “Red Leaf” with Grammy-nominated jazz pianist Geoffrey Keezer, co-writing “Deeper Kind” with Phil Cook, and composing liner notes for the John Prine tribute album “Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows,” (with Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon) and the Blind Boys of Alabama album “I’ll Find A Way.” Perry also collaborated with Vernon and Flaming Lips lead singer Wayne Coyne on a project that began when Vernon approached Perry and said, “Say, you’re a nurse…” The results were bloody, but then that was the point.
Of all his experiences, Perry says the single most meaningful thing he has ever done is serve 12 years beside his neighbors on the New Auburn Area Fire Department.
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Friday, September 27, 2019 - 7:00 pm
LCO Behavioral Health Dept presents:
Indian Horse
Admission: Free Will Donation
Saturday, September 28, 2019 - 7:30 pm
The Barley Jacks featuring Brian Wicklund
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Thursday, October 3, 2019 - 7:30 pm
First Thursday Music Series
featuring: Nici Peper Hosted by Chad Kostner
Admission: Free Will Donation
Friday, October 4, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Alligator Records Recording Artist
Toronzo Cannon "The Preacher, The Politician or The Pimp" Album Release
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Saturday, October 5, 2019 - 7:30 pm
MANHATTAN Shorts
Admission is $15 in advance, $15 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Saturday, October 12, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Randy Otto as Winston Churchill One Man Play
Admission is $25 in advance, $35 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Friday, October 25, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Loudon Wainwright III
Admission is $45 in advance, $55 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets are available in advance at Art Beat of Hayward, 15845 W. 2nd Street (Cash or Check Only) or may be purchased ONLINE.
Saturday, November 2, 2019 - 7:30 pm
WOJB presents:
Suzy Bogguss
Raised in a small Western Illinois town, Suzy Bogguss broke into the country music business after nailing an audition for Dolly Parton and becoming the first featured female performer at Silver Dollar City, later to become Dollywood. Bogguss signed to Capitol Records and released her debut album Somewhere Between, which contained the Top Twenty hit single "Cross My Broken Heart" and the Top New Female Vocalist award by the Academy of Country Music.
A duet with Lee Greenwood, "Hopelessly Yours" garnered Bogguss her first of three GRAMMY nominations. Her third studio album, the platinum-selling Aces yielded four hit singles - "Someday Soon," "Outbound Plane," "Aces," and "Letting Go," the latter three reaching the country Top Ten. At the 1992 Country Music Association Awards, Bogguss won the Horizon Award. Her 1994 album, Simpatico consisted of duets with long-time friend and legendary guitar virtuoso Chet Atkins. That same year, Bogguss's Greatest Hits album was released and went gold. Later, she collaborated with Alison Krauss, Kathy Mattea and Crosby, Stills & Nash to contribute "Teach Your Children" to the AIDS benefit compilation album Red Hot + Country, produced by the Red Hot Organization.
The live performance of her album, American Folk Songbook, has been lauded by fans, critics and buyers as “a show not to miss!” Suzy’s appeal has never wavered and her fan base continues to grow with constant touring around the globe including regular appearances on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion and the Grand Ole Opry.
Advance tickets are $35; Admission is $40 day of the show. We also have 30 VIP Meet & Greet tickets available for $85. VIP ticket holders are invited to a catered reception honoring Suzy Bogguss before the show, and will receive preferred seating in front of the stage.
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets will be available soon.
CELTIC
Friday, November 22, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Dick Hensold & Patsy O'Brien
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets will be available soon.
Saturday, December 7, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Lamont Cranston 50th Anniversary w/ Bruce McCabe
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets will be available soon.
Saturday, December 21, 2019 - 7:30 pm
Randy Sabien X-Mas
Admission is $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Students 18 and under are admitted for $5.
Tickets will be available soon.
Dining Out before the Show at participating restaurants on the evening of a Park Center Event? Show your server your purchased-in-advance ticket for that event, and you’ll receive a discount on your meal. Discounts vary at various restaurants: Anglers / Lumberjack Steakhouse / Flat Creek / Fireside / The Ranch / Black Iron Bar and Grill.
