The following article appears in the June - August '97 issue of FolkNotes.

Happy Endings: Syracuse's Listening Room

By Larry Hoyt

When Shelby Crowley and her son, John, opened Happy Endings Cake and Coffeehouse in April 1993, they had little idea how important live music would be in building the national reputation of their establishment. "We thought we’d have some kind of live entertainment on Saturday nights," Shelby says, "but we didn’t know who to contact or who to book. Some friends of ours got us in touch with [acoustic performer] Becky Keefe, and John Talbot came to us with the idea of a Saturday night open mic night that he’d host, but that turned into a rock ‘n’ roll night, so we changed things around."

Now, after four years of hard work, some trial and error, and several hundred live music performances, Happy Endings is today the premier listening room venue in the Syracuse area. Respected national acts, such as Marty Sexton, Eric Anderson, and Dave Alvin, have played to standing-room-only crowds, with other equally well-received national acts, such as Susan Werner, the Burns Sisters, and Y’All, spreading the word to their fans and friends about the warm, friendly atmosphere they’ve found at Happy Endings.

The long-awaited opening of the theater-like "New Room" in June of this year made Happy Endings one of the finest small theater venues in the Northeast. Planned and constructed in cooperation with Contemporary Theater of Syracuse, the New Room is a sound-proofed, multipurpose theater with a large stage, raised theater seating, theatrical lighting, and a house sound system. Using various seating configurations, the New Room can seat between 80 and 100 people. Prior to the opening of the New Room, music acts performing in the old coffeehouse space often had to compete with hissing sounds from the espresso machine and the chatter of some not-too-attentive coffeehouse patrons. Now, audience members in the New Room come to Listen, giving every music event, from the Tuesday night open mics to shows by national acts, the same feel of a real concert experience.

When the New Room opened in February, John Crowley joked that his coffeehouse was becoming "The Happy Endings Performing Arts Center." With events now booked months in advance, sometimes seven nights a week, with two shows on weekend nights (a CTS play, followed by a music performance), the New Room at Happy Endings has ushered in a new era of regularly scheduled, high quality live entertainment for the Syracuse area. Without a doubt, you must check it out! Happy Endings is located at 317 South Clinton St., Syracuse. Events coordinator Joe Cleveland, can be reached at Happy Endings on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at 475-1853, or through e-mail at jclevela@mailbox.syr.edu.

This page maintained by Dana Cooke. E-mail me at djcooke@aiusa.com.