The B52’s at the Amway Center

Posted on by Thor

It had been raining all day. I was putting finishing touches on an illustration for the Orlando Opera Theater Company when I got a text from Rick & Terry Loewen, “Free concert. B52’s.” I wrote back, “Your kidding! Now?”. “Amway Center let them move the concert indoors. You guys need to come. We will save u seats.” Terry was with Amanda watching “Ides of March.” I texted her to let her know about the free concert. I was going to see the movie with them but I ended up driving to the wrong movie theater. When the movie was over (they didn’t like it) Terry called and agreed to pick me up and rush over to the concert. The warm up band, Logan Belle, was just getting started.

We drove downtown in the pouring rain. Terry couldn’t see the lines on the road and she kept slowing down. She took a wrong turn and we got lost on side streets. She missed a second turn to the road that lead to her office where we planned to use the parking garage. She did a U turn on Orange Blossom Trail and relocated the street. When we parked I fired off another text letting Rick and Terry know we were on foot. She let me know they were seated behind an orange Hooters table. When Terry and I stepped out into the deluge we heard a Train horn blast. There were train tracks between the parking garage and the Amway Center. We jogged towards the tracks. The barriers hadn’t dropped yet. As we ran across the tracks the horn blasted again and we were blinded by the locomotive’s light.

When we entered the Amway Center Terry had her purse checked. My sketchbook was tucked in my belt like a pistol. My pallet was in my rain jacket pocket. I wasn’t frisked. My artists contraband made it through security. We asked several people where the Hooters table was and we were told we needed a wrist band. When we asked about a wrist band we were told we didn’t need one. VIP’s had seating on the floor for $150.We took an escalator to the second level then walked down to the floor. The place wasn’t crowded. Half the VIP seats were empty. Rick and Terry waved to us and we grabbed our seats in the third row.

I started sketching as the B52’s took to the stage. Our seats were on makeshift aluminum bleachers. Everyone was dancing and jumping up and down to the music. The bleachers rocked and swayed. I relaxed and let my lines flow with the turmoil. Terry shouted at a lady to sit down in front of us. Many of the early songs I didn’t recognize. When the band began playing “Love Shack!” I knew my sketch was done. Terry and I agree that this is our song. We danced and shouted out the lyrics. I grabbed Terry by the waste and we bumped hips to the beat. I can check this item off my life list. I believe everyone should hear “Love Shack” performed live at least once in a lifetime. On the floor of the Center everyone continued to dance to “Rock Lobster“.

Circus Abuse

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I went to the Amway Center (400 West Church Street) to see if there were any animal cruelty demonstrators. Ringling Brothers Circus was in town. As I approached I could hear an announcer saying, “Welcome to the Greatest Show on Earth!” I was taken to the circus only once as a child, but the memory flooded back and my pulse quickened. There was a cluster of perhaps 5 demonstrators as soon as I arrived. I asked if there were more demonstrators and was told there were. I walked around for a bit expecting to find a larger crowd. I returned and decided this woman in the blood red jacket was the perfect subject. I let her know I would be sketching her and then got to work. She stood silently the whole time I sketched. There was no shouting in protest, just a silent stoic vigil. The photograph on her protest poster showed handlers choking and using a sharp billhook on a baby elephant. This protest was organized by the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida.

The brochure handed out by the protesters stated that Ringling had consistently racked up U.S. Department of Agriculture violations including: improper handling of animals, inadequate housing, failure to provide veterinary care and failure to allow inspections. Since 1992 twenty six Asian Elephants, including four babies, died under Ringling’s care. The protesters feel circus life is inherently cruel to animals. One elderly woman took a flier and when she realized what it was about she irately gave it back. She then walked on to enter the Amway Center. As I sketched more and more people walked by to the circus. Most people ignored the demonstrators, a few asked to take pictures. It was very cold that night. I put up my hood and I imagined the woman in red must have been freezing. A homeless man from Tennessee asked me if I knew where he could find a meal. On the walk over to Amway I had noticed a long line for food behind the Greek Orthodox Church. I offered the man directions. He shook his head and walked away.

The circus animals don’t perform because they want to, but rather because they fear the painful punishment they will get if they don’t. Kept confined and fearful in chaotic, loud and unnatural environments the animals are always on edge. Trained to amuse they sometimes lash out against the abuse, and the resulting rampages have lead to property damage, injuries and deaths. A policeman walked up to me and asked how I was doing, we had talked at several other events and he liked my work. He asked what I planned to sketch tomorrow and I told him, “The Highland Games.” He told me he is Scottish and he wished he could go, but he was always working. When I finished, I showed the woman in red the sketch and she was amused. As I walked away down Church Street, family’s flooded by me all taking their toddlers to see “ The Greatest Show on Earth.“

Foul!

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It was the opening night season premiere game for the Orlando Magic in the brand spanking new Amway Arena. As I walked toward the venue, two hours early, I saw small crowds of fans dressed in blue and white all along Orange Avenue. Several news helicopters hovered over the city most likely shooting footage of the gathering crowds around the Amway Center. I wasn’t going to sketch the game, I was going to catch Brian Feldman as he read the NBA Rulebook to the crowd. At just about any sports or theatrical event in this town there is always a person on a soapbox shouting hell and damnation to the crowd. Brian’s performance didn’t offer salvation, but enlightenment regarding the rules of the game.

When I arrived, I unfolded my compact artist stool and leaned against a metal pylon getting to work. Brian’s father was using his iPhone to shoot continuous video footage of the reading. The sun set behind a bank of deep blue clouds. Brian shouted the rules into the megaphone. The rules are amazingly repetitive. I thought at first that Brian might be reading the same rule over and over, but listening closely I found the variations in the pattern. Erin Volz in a blue jersey rode up on her bicycle. After listening for a while, she relieved Brian’s dad by taking over the iPhone and shooting video. She remained there listening intently, a true Magic fan.

A policeman approached Brian and the two of them spoke for a while. I couldn’t hear what was said. As Brian got back on his crate, he looked at me and shouted, “Incident!” I started sketching faster adding color to Brian and his dad in case they were told to move along. So far I had escaped detection. A female security officer rode up on a high tech electric tricycle. She spoke to Brian and when he showed her the rulebook, she smiled, laughed then drove off. A third officer, a huge muscular fellow with a motorcycle helmet also approached. He insisted Brian move his crate a foot further west. He said to Brian, “You are blocking pedestrian access to the curb.” He also insisted Brian not use the megaphone. He complied and continued reading and shouted into his cupped hand. I couldn’t hear a thing he read from that point on and I was only ten feet from him. The Center was blasting the insipid commentary from two announcers who were predicting a stellar season for the Magic. The crowd rushed past me growing thicker and louder. I wanted more rules.

I think it was Erin who thought of rolling up a Magic poster, creating a crude paper megaphone. Brian shouted into it, “Thor! Can you hear me?!” The second time he shouted my name, I looked up and gave him a thumbs up. The paper megaphone was only a minor improvement. A couple of times fans paused and listened, never for more than a minute. Perhaps two people ever noticed what I was doing. One woman walked up and said, “Look at you, Mr. etch-a-sketch!” I cringed but gave her the blog address. I finished my sketch long before Brian finished reading the rulebook. I patted Brian’s dad on his shoulder and waved to Brian who continued to read valiantly. I made my way East on Church Street a lone fish swimming against the school of blue and white all heading to the game. My job was done, a slam dunk. Brian said this might be his final Orlando performance in 2010, so something big must be on his horizon. I think route 66 is calling his name.

The Eagles

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The Eagles were Terry’s all time favorite band from her college years. When she found out they would be performing as the first concert in the new Amway Center, she had to get tickets. I heard the tickets were not cheap. I met Terry at her office and then we walked over to Hamburger Mary’s for some dinner. The place was packed for Bingo Night. By the time we finished eating, there was a line of people out the door waiting to get tables. People eyed any open seats with annoyance and anticipation. We walked from Church Street Station to the Amway Center. The city splurged and installed blue spotlights to illuminate the I-4 underpass. A veteran in a camouflage uniform was selling tiny American flags. A man was shouting with his raised fist clenched in a peace sign indicating he needed two tickets.

At the entrance to the Arena I pulled out the computer printed tickets Terry had given to me earlier in the evening. We rode the escalator up to our level. There was a huge crowd around the Eagles T-shirts and merchandise. We had to walk down several staircases to get to our seats. I was shocked at how close our seats were to the stage. We arrived about an hour early which gave me plenty of time to sketch the stage as people filed into the immense space. The lighting changed constantly from blue to red. A lighting tech climbed a rope ladder to get to the suspended walkway hundreds of feet high. The crowd cheered for him and he paused and waved making everyone cheer louder.

Finally the band began to play and the cheering and whistling became deafening. When they performed “Peaceful Easy Feeling“, Terry leaned over and said, “This was my favorite song in college.” I looked over and saw that she had tears in her eyes. She dried he eyes grabbed my arm and put her head on my shoulder.When the band played “The Best of my Love”, people started raising their lighters and iPhones. Terry said there was an application for the iPhone that looks like a lighter. She quickly downloaded the application and soon there was the image of a closed lighter on the screen. Laughing, we both tried tapping the screen with our fingers trying to open the virtual lighter. We finally discovered the flicking finger gestures needed and she raised the lighter just as the song was ending.

The next day, I was asked, “If you were an abstract painter, how would you imagine the renewed affection that you and Terry are sharing.” My first response was, “I am not an abstract painter.” We laughed. Then I painted the scene he was looking for, “When the Eagles played ‘Desperado‘ the whole arena was lit dark and blue, the lyrics intoned ‘why don’t you come to your senses? Come down from your fences, open the gate.’ Then as the song rang out, ‘You better let somebody love you, before it’s too late’, the lighting pivoted out towards the audience lighting them in warm yellows and oranges. Couples held each other swaying side to side and Terry and I hugged in a long embrace.” Terry was there as I described the scene and she misted up as did the person who asked for the description. The warmth in the arena is the sketch I should have caught.

Amway Opening Day

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The media rushed inside the Amway Center once the ribbon had been cut. I was still putting watercolor washes on the previous sketch. I got a text from Mark Baratelli saying he and Tisse Mallon were inside. I needed to get a media sticker in order to join them. He told me to look for a media tent. When I found the tent, it was deserted. I decided to just “fake” my way to the media section. A security guard told me where the media went. I got to a passage where I was stopped and I explained that I was with the media. I was given a sticker and a lanyard. The media and assorted politicians and building contractors were seated on the floor of the huge arena.
What followed was a series of numbing back patting and self congratulating. When the speeches finally subsided, the Mayor asked everyone to shout out the three words that appeared on the jumbo tron, “I was there!” The crowd shouted and clapped as all the lights in the arena blazed brightly in vibrant blue and white. When the ceremony was over, the media stayed behind for a guided tour of the facility.
The first stop on the tour was the Mercedes Lounge where paintings by local artist Tracy Burke were mounted everywhere. This unexpected abstract work was well integrated with the space. The liquid blue tones perfectly matched the room. Gernagin’s Restaurant recovered some of the magnificent stained glass from Church Street Station. This restaurant has three tiered levels where people can eat dinner and have a great view of the game. Reservations are required.
There is a children’s play area where kids can shoot hoop at baskets hung at 3 different heights.
The highlight at the end of the tour was the Sky Bar. Located at the top of the iconic tower, Sky bar offers stunning views of all of downtown Orlando. Light plastic seats are located all around the bar. I will be going to the Eagles concert next week and I can’t wait to see this brand new arena in action.

Amway Center Ribbon Cutting

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The opening of the Amway Center to the public resulted in a sizable crowd assembling in the street for a ribbon cutting. Just to get into this area, all bags were searched. The security officer joked with me about having so many pens and notebooks. Seems most media folks are all digital. Mayor Buddy Dyer spoke about the long road that had to be traveled to get to this point. He pointed out that a major feature of the building was its transparency. A practice basketball court can be seen from outside the building from Division Street. He felt that the tower and beacon wodld be known years from now as an iconic Orlando feature. A great consideration is that the building offers great amenities to everyone, not just the Box seat season ticket holders. The $5 seats offer great views of the game. Rainwater is captured from the roof saving an estimated 8000 gallons of water a year.

The Center houses an art collection with work from 25 artists with 300 pieces in the hallways and suites. The open wire mesh that was used in the construction of the tower was produced by a metal worker in Parramore, just a few blocks from the Center. Rather than trying to get a glimpse of the ribbon getting cut, I focused on the media that were on hand to record the cutting. Once the ribbon was cut, fireworks exploded out from the Amway Center letters. Then as I was rushing to put on some watercolor washes, the crowds rushed into the huge open space.

World’s Largest Smiley Face

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On the morning of the opening of the Amway Center, hundreds of people gathered on the roof of the parking garage adjacent to the Center to set a Guinness World record for the largest group of people to assemble to create a smiley face. When I starred the sketch the crowd was rather thin but slowly people arrived. Each person was given either a bright yellow or a black poncho. The previous record was 250 people who stood for ten minutes assembled to look like a smiley face. Over the loudspeaker an announcer said, “As soon as you enter the smile zone we want to see those pearly whites.”
Mayor Buddy Dyer addressed the assembled crowd along with Brian Dirk the chief operating officer of Smile Train. This organization is responsible for helping get operations for children born with cleft pallets. The organization was given a check for $19,825. One area of the parking garage had hundreds of note cards lying on the pavement arranged in a circular pattern. This was the smile zone. People were given note cards with numbers and letters on it. They needed to locate the matching numbers and letters in the smile zone to know where to stand. When they were in place the announcer said, “Everyone, please put the hoods of your ponchos up.” At the last minute volunteers put on yellow ponchos and squeezed in to fill in any holes. Several children who had cleft pallet operations then joined in.
The photographers on the lift verified that a smile was formed. Three helicopters hoovered noisily above the garage and the assembled crowd waited for ten minutes to set the record. Mark Baratelli who took over as the announcer shouted, “Anyone need to use the bathroom?” A few hands rise. “No! Welcome to Orlando!” Everyone was instructed to shout out “Orlando makes me smile!” Finally the clock countdown indicated the record had been set. A bullhorn blast sounded. People started to walk away and the volunteers shouted out, “Go back, Go back!” Morgan from the Guinness World book of records took the stage and announced that the record had been broken with 500 people. Many of the participants came from around the country because they won a competition by answering the following question, Why does Orlando make you smile? One contestant wrote, “It makes my wife smile and what makes her smile makes me smile even more.”

Drano Royal Flush

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I got a text message from Mark Baratelli from TheDailyCity.com letting me know about an event happening at the new Amway Center that was too good to pass up. He informed me that Mayor Buddy Dyer and City officials would be in the new arena which is still under construction, to test the building’s toilet facilities. All of the bathrooms were going to be manned so that 443 toilets would flush at the exact same moment.
Parking near the new arena is impossible at best right now. I parked about five blocks away under an I-4 overpass and stuffed the meter full of quarters. When I got to the site, makeshift fences still surrounded the building. I approached what I call the masthead corner of the building. As I walked towards the doors, a security guard ran up behind me to stop me from entering the construction site. I explained about the event and yet he had no idea what I was talking about. Luckily for me, City Commissioner Patty Sheehan also approached the building at the same time. He had no idea who she was and insisted we both get back off the site. I used my cell to call Mark and he told me the entrance might be on the other side of the building near the parking garage, and he ultimately found out the 5th floor walkway was the only way to enter the event. Patty and I walked that way. I told Patty I had seen her once before at an event called “Wheels for Kids” where 95 bikes were given away to needy children. She perked up and remembered me immediately. It took a few more phone calls and some waiting before we finally made our way to the event site in the new arena.
When I entered the arena, four Magic dancers were standing at the doorway and greeted me saying, “Hello Thomas.” As I was walked further I thought, “Wait – how did they know my name?” Then, I saw Mark with a construction helmet and bright yellow vest on. He had put the dancers up to the personal greeting. I got my own helmet and vest and then Mark and I walked towards a huge crowd of vested people. There was a red carpet and velvet ropes. We heard the laughter of children. A woman told us to walk down the red carpet. There were plenty of TV cameras.
Then I noticed Dwight Howard who was heads taller than any cameraman. As he was interviewed the cameramen closed in around him. I started sketching frantically. People were in constant motion and I knew I also had to get a sketch inside a bathroom. Groups of children from Nap Ford Community School were on hand and were each assigned a number which corresponded to a team leader. When it was time, the team leaders escorted the children and reporters to the various bathroom scattered throughout the building. Mark and I simply stayed at the bathroom nearest the staging area.
Once inside the bathroom, the team members kept posing for pictures. Then over the public address system, Dwight Howard said, “Everyone man your stations. The Royal Flush shall begin in 10, 9, …” The flushing began with Swiss accuracy. People ran from stall to stall, flushing in each. A woman barged in on Mark’s stall and shouted out, “Oh my! Excuse me!” The flushing continued for the next ten minutes. I imagined man hole covers being blown sky high all over the city. Then, all at once, it was over. The announcer suggested snacks out in the staging area and the bathroom immediately cleared. I remained behind adding watercolor washes to my sketch. I suddenly realized I was missing a rag and so I took the free tee shirt I had been given and used it instead. When the sketch was just about complete, a woman walked in and asked, “Can I wash my hands?” I, of course, said “Yes.” As she washed her hands, I asked, “Do you know if this is a men’s room or a women’s room?” She pointed out that there were no wall urinals and I realized I was doing my very first drawing in the new arena in the women’s bathroom.
Out in the hall I returned to the first sketch I had started, and worked on it some more. As I sketched, Buddy Dyer walked up to me and asked if I was one of the 25 artists who would have work in the arena. I said no, but let him know about my blog and gave him a card. After the event was over, I walked back to my truck only to find it had a bright green parking ticket envelope on the windshield. I had banked on it only taking two hours to flush some toilets. My enthusiasm for sketching events downtown was shattered.