For the second year in a row, the Red Brick Nights July outdoor concert was a must-see event as thousands took the streets for a night of music, entertainment, food and fireworks.
Red Brick Nights (RBN) continues to gain momentum on the first Saturday of each month during the summer, but the July event proves to be the center piece.
The Saturday night event captured an estimated 15,000 people throughout the downtown area.
“We love this town we live in,” Justin Fortney said.
Fortney, along with James Long and Heady Coleman, spearheaded the idea of RBN’s and helped make it become a reality. With the trio of founders, Tracy Zserdin with the Guthrie Chamber of Commerce has planted her finger prints on the event as well.
As the President and CEO of the Chamber, Zserdin constantly fields phone calls, text messages and emails in the days and weeks before the Saturday night events. Then on the night of the event she really gets busy as she orchestrates the emails, calls and messages into action.
“We wanted to have an event where the entire community can come together every single month. They get to share a neighborhood together,” Fortney said.
With music entertainers on stage, which sits in front of a “red brick” downtown building, neighbors and families bring their lawn chairs, couches and blankets to the streets to take in the night.
The event is no longer a secret outside of Guthrie with visitors coming in throughout the state.
“We just want people to come together and spend time with each other by sharing a meal and taking in the arts,” Fortney said.
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In May, Guthrie was recognized by the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association with a Merit award for “Best New Event” – Red Brick Nights. Related article: Red Brick Nights earns Best New Event by Oklahoma Travel Industry Association
Along with several food trucks, pop-up tents and vendors pack the streets with merchandise.
“We have seen additional growth,” James Long said in regards to food trucks and vendors. “We really started to get more notoriety for who and what we are with the fun things that we have going on in Guthrie.”
Long says they want to continue the community focused event with more people becoming involved with activities throughout the year.
With the addition of fireworks, presented by Firewokz A’ Poppin LLC, in the July shows, Guthrie clearly has the momentum on their side.
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