Live Mecca: Peeling in the history of the Varsiti Theater as Baton Rouge’s first -class music place
Some LSU students only know about the Varsiture, as it is adjacent to the bells, but in the 90’s and 2000s the theater was one of the main concerts of Baton Rouge, constantly attracting live actions to its comfortable place, right to it, next to its LSU campus.
The theater opened as a music place in 1990 and within a few years Varsit booked groups such as 311, no doubt, squeezing and other groups of different genres. The place was a hot spot for both students and concert lovers. Glen Pruyan, the Varsit reservation agent from 1991 to 2002, said the period was an exciting time in the music industry Baton Rouge.
“It was a really special time for me,” Prejean said. “I was just going around the neighborhood and that changed so much, you know. I wish I could transport you back in those days. “
The theater for Varsiti will host about three or four live events a week. From Heavy Metal Acts as Body Count to Rock Group as Dave Matthews Band, the site of all audiences. One of Prejean’s goals as a talent agent in The Varsity was to book performers who have not yet been found on the music scene.
“Then somehow I tried to be the first to hear something, he made a connection with them and caught them here before they were too big,” Prejean said. “I was trying to build work on the body, but it was also about putting the wardies on the map. It was my job and that was the other point of it. “
Andy Canulet, a former LSU student and a serial concert, says the Varsity atmosphere will hesitate depending on the artist tonight. The place provided intimate concerts with experimental bands, packed pits in punk performances and sold concerts with national tour acts. He remembers a particularly exciting night in which he was hanging out with Todd and the wet gear wheel after performing their set in the theater.
“It was an amazing show and then the band came down and hanged with us,” Cangule said. “They were really friendly and it was a 19 -year -old experience and was hanging out with those guys who had a hit record.”
For Canulette, the theater was a regular place for the field and a place to meet new friends with similar interests. He believes it is important for Varsit to exhibit a college city like Baton Rouge to experimental music that may have not played in the city otherwise.
“Music was a way to contact like -minded people,” Cangule said. “The college city should be where people learn what they like. It must be crawled with places that have stages for young talented musicians to learn their craft. “
For Caroline Hayman, the Barman of the Warsit in the early 1990s, the theater was a core for the discovery of new music. She often attended shows out of work and managed to meet many of the performers.
“It was just so great to be exposed to all these groups and see them as they appeared,” Hayman said. “It was really cool to see them from day one, you know, you just watch them explode. Just to feel really picked up on the music scene, I really liked it. “
The Varsiti Theater also had events other than live concerts. Their disco nights, nights from the 80s and even Gamedeay football gatherings, helped at the place to generate revenue to cover the cost of hosting some of the smaller, more ground -based groups.
However, the focus of the theater has always been on attracting quality music, regardless of the price. Prejean said Tim Hood, one of the general managers at the time, was particularly supporting his choice of music reservation.
“I would be like a team, I don’t know, man, they want a lot of money and I don’t know if it would happen or not, and he would be like” just do it, “Prejean said. “We had the good fortune to have this type behind us. It’s not just about money, you know? “
One of the shows that stand out on Prejean was the first time he booked 311 in The Varsity. He booked the group in 1993 before reaching peak popularity, but they will return to play many more shows in the Warsit in the 90’s and 2000s.
“They were magical,” Pruyan said. “There were many great shows, but the special ones were those where everything was simple, the audience and the group. That was 311. “
Prejean has since escaped from the music industry, but his instincts to load talents make him strive for the phone when he hears new music he likes. He attributes the early success of Varsity to their hardworking staff and collective love for music.
“It was just a good moment at Baton Rouge and it was because of everyone’s efforts,” Prejean said. “There were many special people who did it what it was. At that time, I would say that I had the most job at Baton Rouge, no doubt. “
You can see a more complete history of the groups that Varsity booked here.
History of the Varsiti Theater – The Reveille, the Student Gazette of LSU
