Alternative-Rock Concert Series Planned for Mesa Cinema

In an apparent first for Orange County’s dominant movie chain, the 750-seat Edwards Mesa Cinema will host a biweekly series of alternative-rock concerts, starting Friday.

Most of the acts will be ska- and punk-flavored bands with a Christian message--a key element in the Edwards chain’s approval of the series. But the promoters say they will try to reach a general rock audience, filtering in suitable secular bands on three of the eight scheduled nights.

The Chamber, as the series has been dubbed, is the latest sign of rekindled vitality for all-ages concerts at small venues in Orange County that don’t have the over-21 age restriction of a typical rock nightclub.

Attempts during 1994 and 1995 to establish ongoing all-ages series at venues in Fullerton, Orange and Fountain Valley were cut short by outbreaks of violence at shows by old-line punk bands such as the Vandals and Fear.

But punk, no longer an underground form, has entered a new, more mainstream-oriented phase in recent years. Local promoters have adjusted and are featuring groups with a lighter, more upbeat personality that will be less likely to attract some of the hard cases who have caused trouble at previous all-ages shows--including the racist skinhead element that is a small but stubborn blot on Orange County youth culture.

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“There are those elements who come in and try to live those old days” when punk rock was taken as a soundtrack for acting out aggressive rebellion, said Juan Casas, one of the promoters behind the Chamber. “That’s not what this is set up for. It’s happy punk or happy ska.

“And if there are any issues [that would threaten a smooth-running show], we’ll take care of it. We’ll have the parking lot secured, the stage secured, the whole nine yards,” and performers will be under instructions not to foment any rowdiness, he said.

“We’ll see if it works,” said Lawrence H. Davidson, executive vice president and general counsel of the Edwards chain. “With the Christian format, I think it would be wholesome entertainment. That is one of the motivating factors” for experimenting with live rock at the Mesa Cinema, one of the older, more worn and spartan venues in the Edwards circuit.

The theater on Newport Boulevard--where in December a chunk of ceiling fell on empty seats while a movie was being shown--typically offers $1 film features. Davidson said theater executives are counting on the promoters to keep their pledge to secure the shows well and to stick to bands “that would not lead to an unruly element.”

The Supertones and Value Pac, two Christian bands from Orange County, headline shows Friday and March 21; MxPx, a Christian band from Seattle that has had national exposure, will headline on April 4. Three of the five other dates extending to June 13 have been set aside for bands booked in conjunction with Ninety-Eight Posse, a veteran promotion company in Riverside that handles a variety of alternative rock acts outside the Christian music circuit.

“We’re trying to provide something that will have a general-market appeal. That’s why we’ve used Ticketmaster, and not just [Christian] bookstores” to sell tickets, Casas said. “If we’re going to be able to keep going, we’re going to have to provide something for everybody, regardless of religious affiliation.”

The idea of bringing Christian rock to the Mesa began with Dean Ruoff, a college student who is a grandson of James Edwards Sr., founder and chairman of Edwards Theatres Circuit Inc. Ruoff approached Casas, an experienced promoter on the Christian rock circuit who has staged large outdoor festivals, concerts at churches and Christian rock nights in mainstream clubs.

Davdon Artist Agency, a company in Newport Beach that manages and promotes a stable of Christian alternative-rockers, is booking the talent and promoting the shows with Casas. The promoters will pay Edwards a flat rental fee of $700 each night there are concerts, and the theater chain will keep the lion’s share of the concessions income, said David Bahnsen, a partner in Davdon.

The promoters see the Chamber series as a good lead-in to a planned Christian rock festival June 7 at Irvine Valley College, which they hope will draw as many as 5,000 fans. Long-range plans call for a summer break and resumption of the Chamber shows at the Mesa in the fall.

Davidson, however, said that long-term prospects are uncertain even if the shows go well, because the landlord who leases the Mesa building to Edwards has put the property up for sale.

* The Supertones and Fold Zandura play Friday at 7 and 10 p.m. at the Edwards Mesa Cinema, 1884 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa. $9-$10. The concert series will continue every other Friday night. (714) 251-3977.