Curtain opens on new season
at Hopelands
5/5/2008 12:31 AM 
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As the sun drops down this evening, a large crowd of people will be gathering at Hopelands Gardens to witness the year's first performance of the Hopelands Summer Concert Series.
The events are held Monday evenings from the first week in May through the last week in August.
Today's performance featuring the Aiken Community Band will be held at the familiar amphitheater at Hopelands, but there will be a notable difference in the setting. The building which has been the backdrop of the stage was demolished at the end of the 2007 season, and a new facility has now aken its place.
The new Roland D. Windham Performing Arts Stage is now graced with a building featuring larger dressing rooms, public restrooms and a breezeway that will provide a dramatically different architectural look to the facility. The stage is named for the longtime city manager who helped provide the vision for many of the City's current amenities, including the role of Hopelands Gardens for the people of Aiken.
Aiken's Summer Concert Series has been one of the many recreational events which separates it from other cities of similar size. Hundreds of people each Monday venture to Hopelands Gardens to see local entertainers in a variety of styles to perform.
As the sun sets tonight on Aiken and the audience watching the performance of the Aiken Community Band, it will mark the beginning of a new era for the Summer Concert Series. And hopefully the new, larger facility will serve to be a magnet for people who have not yet been to the performances and who will discover something magical about this city.