Drop the Needle moves to Hartley/Vey

Rob Chidester has one goal for Baton Rouge: He wants to make the community safe for “artocracy.” “That is, culture and art of the people, by the people and for the people,” he says.

With his Royal Cyclops Productions, Chidester has been building quite the cultural scene in Chelsea’s Café’s side bar. His monthly “Drop the Needle” shows, which feature local musicians playing a classic album front-to-back, are regularly jam-packed. So packed that starting this month, the show will move to a bigger venue—the Hartley/Vey Studio at Manship Theatre.

“Hartley/Vey is the prime place to go,” he says. “We’ll have space for two to three times the people. The sound is great there, and we’ll have ample parking. I’m looking forward to it.”

We wrote about the success of the series in our September issue, at which point Chidester was still eyeing a move from Chelsea’s.

The show will switch from the fourth Thursday of the month to the fourth Friday, as well. For the first show at the new location, set for Nov. 28, musicians will highlight The Beatles’ self-titled 1968 album, often called The White Album. “It will be a major show to celebrate the big move,” Chidester says.

Because “Drop the Needle” will depart from Chelsea’s side bar, Chidester says he’ll fill that fourth Thursday of every month with a rotating variety show and build other concept shows there.

“I think we’re changing the culture of Baton Rouge being a band town,” Chidester says. “The college-age kids aren’t the college-age kids of the ’90s. They aren’t doing what they did back then. The tastes are turning, and the tide has to turn to keep up with that. The ‘Drop the Needle’ series is a testament to the changing atmosphere of the musical community. … We’re pulling all the people from all these groups and bringing them together to do a show as opposed to a gig. We show them what a night of entertainment should be like.” hartleyveytheatres.org Get more information and RSVP here.