Executives are notorious for working 60-plus hours a week. They're answering floods of emails, leading endless meetings, making highly influential decisions ...
And some are making time for rock'n'roll.
Business leaders from Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky companies such as Cincinnati Bell and the Newport Aquarium take the stage for "
Suits That Rock," the largest fundraiser -- and rockin' dance party -- for the
Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center, located in Covington. It's happening Saturdays June 18 and June 25.
Rocking under the theme "United Suits of America," the Suits, 45 total, cover American hits from the 1950s forward. They play for three electrifying hours in Carnegie's theater, followed by one more hour of unplugged tunes in the gallery.
Retired Procter and Gamble VP Bob Blanchard is playing lead guitar throughout the night. He also plays in the group Sound Management, formed years ago by P&G executives. He became a Suit in 2008.
"I think I have eight songs that I'm doing and it ranges from Chuck Berry to Buddy Holly, all the way through the '60s and '70s," he says of the Suits show. "We're also doing a surf medley - purely instrumental."
He says the Suits are prepped for the gigs, adding that every member did their homework for the first rehearsal in mid-May.
"Nobody wants to let anyone down in this performance. We all want to be at the top of our games."
"The great fun is the people that you get to perform with," he adds. "You've got lawyers and bankers, educators and business people. We probably wouldn't know each other in our professionals lives, but we have this chance to come together and share something in common."
Horn player Ed Hughes has been a Suit since 2008, too. By day, he serves as President and CEO of Gateway Community and Technical College and sits on the board of the Northern Kentucky Tri-County Economic Development Corporation. For him, "Suits that Rock" offers a revival of sorts. He played horns in high school and college bands more than 30 years ago.
"When I pick up the horn, I'm not worrying about budgets or buildings or any other thing related to the college," he laughs. "I'm totally focused on playing as good as I can and improvising. There really is nothing like playing music in front of people."
Suits that Rock, held annually, struck its first chord in 2008.
"I kid you not, we sold out in eight days. All 465 seats," recalls the Carnegie's executive director Katie Brass. "We knew it was going to be good, but we didn't realize it was going to be so well received."
She adds: "The patrons that were walking in the door were people that had probably never been to the Carnegie before -- heads of foundations and corporations. It brought a whole new awareness to a whole level of individuals, which was amazing."
The Carnegie raised a few thousand then, but that number has soared like a Lady Gaga single. According to Brass, the Suits' 2010 concerts raised $71,000.
"The Suits really want to take care of the Carnegie, and that has made a world of difference," she says. "I can call these guys for anything. They are an extension of the Carnegie."
John Domaschko is a co-founder of Suits that Rock, formed from a brainstorm with Kevin Canafax of Fidelity Investments
"It was really just an idea of how to have a good time," Domaschko says. "Maybe that's the way much of rock music starts -- how do we have a good time here?"
A philanthropist at heart, Domaschko sits on numerous boards in the region, including the Thomas More College Foundation and Northern Kentucky Tri-ED. By night, he leads the Suits, scheduling rehearsals, setlists and all things rock stars equally love and hate.
"The quality of the music is amazingly good, considering it's not the day job of these players," he says. "It's kind of like the Richter scale, with every year getting exponentially better."
Though the event sells out, "Suits that Rock" won't move to a larger venue, says Domaschko.
"When we sold out the first and second years, we were faced with a dilemma," he explains. "We needed more seats. We had the choice of doing the show somewhere else, or doing it two nights at the Carnegie. The Carnegie venue is such an intimate space for an event like this, so we decided two nights would be best."
Tickets are $50 or $75, depending on seating preferences, and organizers say about 60 percent are sold. The Carnegie is selling 465 tickets per show. Proceeds benefit the Carnegie's Eva G. Farris Education Center. The Carnegie offers educational programming as well as theatre performances and gallery exhibits.