The organizers now busily getting ready for the 2008 version say it’s “to show that creativity does have a place in the Church.”
Creativity, and a showcase for up-and-coming and established artists from a wealth of Christian music genres, has indeed been a trademark of the Purple Door Arts and Music Festival over the years.
The event was planned and began in Lancaster, in the big open fields at Lancaster Mennonite High School, and after an other stop or two now has become an annual end-of-summer rite on the other side of the Susquehanna, at Ski Roundtop in Lewisberry.
The 2008 version is being held Friday night and all day Saturday, Aug 15-16. And for this year, expect some top “name” acts (like Skillet and, to a lesser degree, Disciple and Red) along with some new bands and solo artists deserving of wider attention.
Looking back at Purple Door’s history since 1996, it’s a little hard, as someone who has gone to most Purple Doors, to pick a favorite moment or band I liked better than others.
I remember Jars of Clay from the first year, in August 1996 at LMH, and Third Day from the following summer.
There was a very pregnant Leigh Bingham Nash of Sixpence None the Richer (before “Kiss Me” was a hit) singing her heart out.
There was a member of the immortantal Supertones giving his testimony during a rainstorm, after they had to cut the power back for safety reasons.
There even was discovering a still-new Lancaster-area band, Jawbone Hill, during an excellent show from the early years.
Purple Door tends to have a more youthful-ish crowd, and this August it will host three music stages, speakers, an art gallery, a skate park, paintball and more.
But another favorite moment was not the music, but the fans … in 2001, just before 9/11, the newspaper sent me over to talk to parents who volunteereed at Purple Door, giving directions and taking tickets, that sort of thing, while their sons and daughters were enjoying the show.
It was a great multi-generational moment, showing the diversity of the church crossing artificial age and other boundaries. And maybe one of us Boomers got to like a millennial’s favorite band.
Starting a month from tomorrow, Purple Door will have a main stage, (featuring Skillet and Emery, among others), an HM Stage offering heavier like bands August Burns Red and Haste The Day, and a Gallery Stage for more “eclectic artists,” according to organizers.
The eclectic stage will include the band Seabird, which won kudos at Creation last month, and artist Dennison Witmer, who will be playing at his 10th Purple Door, the most of any artist.
Tickets for Purple Door are available online at iTickets.com, for $39.50 by Sunday, Aug. 10, and will $45 at the gates on Aug. 16-17.
For more information, visit www.purpledoor.com.