Herb Weiss called … again.
It’s a Friday afternoon just after 4 p.m. and Herb wants to know if I am heading over to the Pawtucket Arts Festival after work.
I am not.
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My agenda for this particular evening consists of my daughter’s soccer practice, followed by a family dinner at Papa Gino’s and then straight home to catch as much of the Red Sox-Yankees game as possible. Don’t call DCYF, but I’ve molded my three children into enthusiastic Sox fans.
When they get a little older I’ll explain to them the Curse of the Bambino, Craig Nettles’ assault on Bill Lee’s left arm, Bucky Dent’s pop-fly home run and that slow rolling ground ball that inexplicably found its way through Bill Buckner’s legs.
Wow, get a Red Sox fan started and years of oppressed memories just start pouring out.
This is supposed to be about Herb Weiss.
Weiss works in the city of Pawtucket’s Planning and Development Office. He calls frequently, usually to pitch a story about Pawtucket’s arts district and the fact that it is growing by leaps and bounds.
Weiss is hard to ignore, for a couple of reasons.
First, he’s incredibly persistent. He calls. He calls again. Second, he’s right about the resurgence of Pawtucket’s arts district. The arts scene in the old mill city is, in fact, attracting national attention.
Early this summer, Pawtucket Mayor James E. Doyle was honored by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Management Services for his efforts not only to create an artist-friendly environment, but also to encourage artists and companies to relocate to Pawtucket.
The group singled out Pawtucket, stating: “Experts say that it takes about 10 years to create a thriving arts and entertainment district. In just four-and-half years, Pawtucket has gained both statewide and national recognition for its efforts.”
No one is helping to spread that word faster than Weiss. And remarkably, this is not a good economic climate in which to be selling the arts. But that’s what Weiss is selling – and that’s what he has people buying.
In general, the stagnant economy has not been kind to the Rhode Island arts community. Nowhere has that been more obvious of late than in the capital city.
In Providence, the number of WaterFire events has been reduced due to a lack of sponsors and the First Night celebration is on a forced hiatus for the same reason. Most recently, the annual Convergence International Arts Festival was put on hold due to a lack of funds.
But somehow, in Pawtucket, the script is playing out differently.
Weiss reports that the Pawtucket Arts Festival, which opened on Sept. 5 and runs through Sept. 21, is a rousing success. When a couple of past sponsors pulled out, Weiss quickly found new ones.
What’s his secret?
“This is really a small town … I know people,” says Weiss. “I see them out … we’re on boards together.”
But most important, says Weiss, is having a good product to sell.
“Many of the businesses in Pawtucket realize that when you have a festival like this it revitalizes the city and makes their properties more attractive – more valuable,” he says. “It is in their best interest to see this happen.”
The festival lineup is, indeed, impressive.
Events are playing out at several locations, including the Blackstone Valley Visitor Center, the School Street Pier and Slater Memorial Park. Two weekends ago, the wildly popular Dragon Boat Race & Taiwan Day was held, drawing close to 10,000 spectators.
At the same time, free trolleys and a double-decker bus took visitors on a tour of dozens of artists’ studios, now located in mills throughout the city.
Throughout this past week, the Mirror Image Film Festival has taken place at the visitor center, featuring presentations by Rhode Island’s critically acclaimed filmmaker Michael Corrente.
There are more surprises in store this week, including a poetry reading Thursday by Norah Pollard, daughter of Pawtucket jockey John “Red” Pollard, who is immortalized in the hit movie “Seabiscuit.”
Clearly, Weiss deserves a good deal of the credit for the success of the festival. His persistence has paid off in drawing support from the business community.
The event has 44 sponsors and a total of more than 200 businesses and nonprofits digging into their pockets to come up with cash and countless in-kind donations.
Weiss describes his efforts simply. He talks of rolling up his sleeves and getting to work.
“People say I’m tenacious … well, call people back,” he says.
I can attest. Herb Weiss is tenacious.
I still have a few days to get over to the festival. I just might. Before he calls again.
