Open-mike scene too hot for fire marshal's liking

March 15, 2005

JOEL DAVIDSON/Frontiersman reporter

WASILLA - Members of Josh Fryfogle's 212 Music Group wanted to create the biggest Valley music scene they could, and with the help of Wasilla-based Frozen Lake Studios, they built a wildly popular event. After only two months, however, the quickly growing Make-A-Scene open-mike contest in Wasilla got just a little too big for the Alaska State Fire Marshal's office.

Earlier this month, Deputy Fire Marshal Daniel Jones heard about the Thursday night open-mike event at Valley Bistro and came down to check things out at the historic Teeland/Mead's building, home of Valley Bistro. The building has a maximum capacity of 150 people. When Jones arrived, on the evening of Thursday, March 3, he started counting heads and stopped when he got to 160 people in the upstairs balcony alone.

"You couldn't even walk down the stairs there were so many people," said Briony Fryfogle, Josh Fryfogle's wife and fellow coordinator of the weekly event. "They asked us to shut down the show."

The goal of the Make-A-Scene open-mike event was to create a happening Valley music scene. Each week, contestants battled each other to see who could bring in the most fans.

Winners of the open-mike contest were decided not by their musical talent, but by sheer popularity. The smoke-free, alcohol-free event caught on quickly with Valley youths and within weeks, hundreds of people were cheering on their favorite musicians. Briony Fryfogle estimated that between 300 and 350 people were present when the deputy fire marshal arrived.

"It was just getting too big to do it there. It was twice the capacity of the building," she said. "That was the worst and best thing that could have happened."

Until a larger venue is found, the open mikes are temporarily suspended. Briony Fryfogle said they are looking for a place that can easily house 400 people or more.

For updated information about the status of the Make-A-Scene open-mike contest, call 373.2698 or e-mail brionyf@joshfryfogle.com.

Contact Joel Davidson at joel.davidson@frontiersman.com