Local producer Gary Mandell will once again be at the controls of one of Culver City’s most popular summer entertainment venues, proving that he remains the people’s choice when it comes to music.
The City Council quietly and unanimously approved a licensing agreement with Boulevard Music for $40,775 to produce the 2016 Boulevard Music Summer Concerts Series at its Feb. 8 meeting. The choice seemed almost anticlimactic, given prior years when who should produce the series drew more controversy.
Reached at Boulevard Music the day after the vote, Mandell said he was a little surprised that there was no fanfare associated with his selection.
When he briefly addressed the council near the end of the meeting, Mandell, who is going into his 16th year producing the concert series, said, “I thought I was the sustainability program,” referencing an earlier agenda item that came before the council that evening.
“I’m usually so high-energy and I talk very fast so maybe they just wanted to slow me down,” the affable Mandell joked when asked about the low-key buildup before the council voted to retain him.
Councilwoman Meghan Salhi-Wells said because the venue will remain at City Hill this year before it moves to Town Plaza after it is completed in a few years, there was no real need to solicit other possible producers.
“I think that made it the decision easier for the entire council,” she said.
Asked how he keeps the series fresh, Mandell said bringing in new acts that haven’t played in Culver City is part of the mix.
When he took over the music fest 16 years ago, Mandell said the biggest dilemma that he faced was retaining the concert regulars and expanding it to a wider audience. “I had to take a concert series that was mostly seniors, find a way to bring in a younger crowd without alienating the seniors and keep everyone happy,” he recalled. “That’s not very easy but we’ve been able to do that.”
As a case in point, Mandell has fielded dozens of requests for music that he says is not compatible with a venue such as the City Hall Courtyard and has chosen the artists and bands carefully. “Community festivals are not rock fests. We’re not CulverChella,” Mandell said, referring to the popular but occasionally unruly Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival near Palm Springs. “The most important thing that you have to consider when you’re doing an assembly is safety.”
Sahli-Wells said she is amazed at how Mandell is able to attract quality acts on a shoestring budget. “What we’re currently giving Gary Mandell to put on these concerts is a very small amount of money. His efforts have really been heroic,” the councilwoman said.
There will be six concerts this year, beginning in July.
Gary Walker contributed to this story.