Redwood City a haven of artistry

“One of the reasons I started this show was because there just wasn’t really anything like it around here,” Dorian Dietrich, the producer of burlesque show performances at The Hub, said. “There’s a lot of music that happens between the stuff on the courthouse square and things like Fox [Theater], but nightlife wise, there’s not a ton going on.”

As a Redwood City local, Dietrich worked with the bar to allow “untraditional” entertainment. Allan Rodgers, The Hub’s owner, agreed and gave more communities a time and space to celebrate their passion.

Rodgers was a hospitality novice when he opened the Broadway bar in 2019 and left his career in cybersecurity. He opened the pub with a desire to recreate the “full live music experience” he had in New Zealand while he was in college.

“My city is about 120,000 people, and on a Friday and Saturday night, and often Thursdays and Sundays, there would be at least 25 to 35 venues open with bands playing,” Rodgers said. “It was normal.”

For six years now, Rodgers’ bar has expanded from playing live music and hosting burlesque shows to opening up spaces for emerging musicians to reveal their talents to new audiences and for burned-out workers to take a break from their careers over dice, cards and boardgames during game nights.

Some people don’t vibe with live performance and interactivity, so other Redwood City residents opt for a less intense cultural enrichment, such as open mics and poetry readings. Often, local poets and writers attend cafes where they can indulge in scalding teas and iced coffees as they watch creative writers enunciate their words aloud.

Earlier this year, the arrival of Fireside Books & More on Broadway became the new space to convene wordsmiths. During open mic nights, performers delight attendees by reading their latest works, sharing their criticisms, or introducing new and experimental literary forms.

Like the cats in their logo, the library also cozies up residents as a comfort zone for bibliophiles and craftspeople. Its second floor stands as a hangout spot for people to exchange ideas for their book of the month, while others can focus on connecting yarns in loops, stacking LEGO bricks, or penning their next essays.

For Taylor Kubota, who co-owns the bookstore with her husband, there’s elation in serving as one of the “third spaces” in their town. For her, having a place to reside outside home and sit together with neighbors and strangers forms a healthier community.

Ciel Wood visited Fireside Books & More for last month’s open mic event. The 23-year-old writer moved back to her home city from Redding and is on a mission to be involved with her city’s local literary community.

“I was really pleasantly surprised by the turnout,” Wood said. “It was a pretty full house for how many chairs they had set up, so I was really happy to see that.”

Apart from the bookstore, Wood also frequents Little Green A Plant Bar, a bistro located on the outskirts of the downtown proper. Inside the store, where botanicals and decorative plants grow, she leads a creative writing club that meets every week.

The Main Street plant and coffee shop also functions as a versatile event space, serving as a venue for different functions, from arts and crafts to night markets, live music and plant classes. They bring in artisans and small business owners to support their livelihoods and to expose people to new crafts.

Most events occur at night, from 6-8 p.m., a schedule that works for residents who want to enjoy the evening before heading home and preparing for the following work day. Some of the activities they offer and have hosted in the past include clothing swaps, honey tastings, embroidery workshops and speed-friending events.

“I would say Redwood City is a pretty working-class city,” Riley Talain said, who runs events and general operations for Little Green. “A lot of people work their nine-to-fives, so the time that they have off is in the evening.”

As a powerhouse for events among Redwood City residents and patrons, many people reach out to them in hopes of sharing their expertise. According to Talain, the “influx” of collaboration invites makes it difficult to say yes to everyone, and they have to be “pickier” about who they can accommodate.

“We’re always trying to brainstorm ways that we can offer something different or a twist, so that we can showcase as many people as possible without stepping on the toes of people we’ve worked with in the past, which can be a little tricky,” Talain said.

Despite the ubiquity of things to do in Redwood City, some hope that more spaces downtown could open up so more artists, performers and niche communities could draw people to the city and witness how downtown could compete against major cities such as San Francisco and San Jose.

“Our challenge right now with entertainment is just places all over are losing their venues, and it’s really expensive to put on shows,” Dietrich said. “So, I think if we were to have more things to do, it really depends on people creating those spaces.”

For Rodgers, small venues are vital in sustaining local entertainment. He believes that people should support businesses that provide these spaces so young and emerging talents have a stage to perform.

“Some amazing bands that come out of the Bay Area,” Rodgers said. “If they don’t have anywhere to play, how’s that going to happen?”