On Friday August 20th in Saint Paul, MN, the historic Padelford River Boats Anson Northrup and the Betsy set sail in support of Vega Productions- a benefit for music and arts programs in St. Paul Public Schools. The Anson Northrup and the Betsy were connected together to make one super vessel, each boat had two decks which created two separate concert areas. This year being the third year, Vega added a pre-cruise BBQ from 6 to 9pm which was broadcast live by KFAI with special quests interviews and musical performances from the Pistol Whippin Party Penguins one of the Rock the Boat artists. Interviews included DJ Logic and Vega Productions personal such as Jason Fladager, lead guitarist for the Big Wu, who are still regarded to be the base of the jamband scene in Minnesota.

To start the evening and boarding process, a marching band was joined by fire spinners leading all voyagers to the plankway to give a great send off for our 5 hour cruise! Voyagers had the option to jump from ship to ship to enjoy two very different atmospheres, Bluegrass/Rock on the Betsy and Jam/Rock on the Anson Northrup. The lineup included Dance Band, Roster McCabe featuring DJ Logic and the Mark Joseph Project featuring DJ Logic. The Betsy included The Summit featuring Nicholas “The Feelin” Mrozinski, Pistol Whippin Party Penguins and White Iron Band featuring Willy Waldman on trumpet. The two boats were transformed into floating musical vessels heading down the beautiful Mississippi River. Walking between boats was interesting in that the Anson Northup had an extra member to each band, lasers and fog, equipped with pulsing strobe lights. The Betsy had a more stripped down feel, keeping it simple, artist and dancers! At one point as I wondered, I noticed the ceiling bowing from all the people dancing above me on the Betsy dance floor.

All in all, Vega Productions is a registered 501c3 non-profit organization on a mission to rebuild and revitalize music and art education in Minnesota. Vega strives to provide resources and program funding for schools that have been forced to eliminate or reduce art and music education from their curriculum because of budget cuts. For this event %100 of the net proceeds will used to launch five after school guitar programs in Saint Paul Public Schools. The next event to come for Vega Productions will be their New Year’s Eve celebration which never disappoints.