( march introductions: the half moon café )

march introductions: the half moon café

by jennifer hetrick

     

with two seasonally done sessions per year, clay on main in oley is home to the areas’s only 60s style music coffeehouse under the sky-spent moniker of the half moon café.

     

for five years now, the café has operated on select friday nights, dimmed lights and all, each march through may and september through december, to avoid the costly expenses of summer cooling and winter heating.

    

mike petrauskas of earlville runs the gigs, while his wife kathy kolb makes sure plenty of coffee is brewing and that mugs are freshly clean for use by those sitting at the many two-seater tables which make up the half moon café.

     

“it’s very intimate, in a small room,” petrauskas said, noting that on a good night, it fills easily with 45 to 50 people in the audience.

( musician bonnie wren & mike petrauskas played together last may in the final spring session at the half moon café

photograph courtesy of mike petrauskas ) 

     

aside from coffee, those who show up often can choose from assortments of cookies or grapes and sometimes even tomato pie or soft pretzels for nibbling minutes.

     

a $5 donation is requested at the door since this setup is nonprofit through clay on main, but petrauskas said people who check out the café nights often throw in extra money just because they believe in the cause and this little dose of extra culture in the town as weekends approach.

     

the money collected is split between the performers and clay on main to pay for utility bills, petrauskas said.

     

very selective in his lineup of performances, petrauskas tries to ensure that the artists who visit have the charisma to fit the atmosphere of the half moon café.

     

“even as teenagers, we staged pretend coffeehouses in our basements,” petrauskas said, revealing that he has wanted to do something like this his whole life.

     

so when he tested out the space in clay on main five years ago, his dream took shape and continues by the increasing crowds and lines of regulars dedicated to the few friday nights he is able to host the coffeehouse.

     

among the usual offerings of shows, petrauskas also hosts one night called jammin’ for dollars to help support the café. this fundraiser last year involved lasagna for the audience, at a higher donation amount but goes toward helping the volunteer operation to stay afloat. this year’s event, slated for of all days, april 1, will be to raise money for a pellet stove to replace having to heat the space with increasingly unaffordable oil.

petrauskas said not only is the audience receptive and often coming back for more, but the performers themselves loves to play at the venue again and again each new season.

     

the planned shows for this spring are—

march 18 - maggie spike


april 1- mike, alan, dominique & friends
(& some special guests)

april 8 - jammin' for dollars

april 15 -mike holliday

april 29 - charlie & amy

may 13 - the barn swallows

may 27 - chuck longenecker & friends 

to find out more about the half moon café, search for it on facebook, visit www.clayonmain.org, or contact petrauskas by e-mail at mikepet@dejazzd.com.