photograph courtesy disciple design
The Overton Park Shell can now take its show anywhere, thanks to the Shell on Wheels initiative.
Editor’s Note: There are always plenty of new and exciting ventures to be found in Memphis. The Bluff City has become something of a hub for innovation, daring creators and dreamers to discover new breakthroughs that move our community forward. In 2023, for our eleventh annual Innovation Awards, Memphis Magazine features five progress-focused individuals and organizations who are showcasing Memphis’ continued evolution through innovation. This year, we recognize UTHSC’s state-of-the-art center for healthcare improvement and patient simulation, Dr. Stephen Haynes and Rhodes College’s curated curriculum that bring the liberal arts to incarcerated students, Dr. Ernö Lindner’s fast-acting drug detection technology which improves medical response time for overdose patients, Tennis Memphis and its commitment to making the sport accessible to all, and the Overton Park Shell’s mobile “Shell on Wheels” that brings live music to every corner of Memphis. They’re all worthy winners in their own right, and are doing their utmost to move Memphis forward. We will celebrate our winners at the 2023 Innovation Awards breakfast on Tuesday, October 10th, sponsored by Protech Services Group and eBiz Solutions. — Samuel X. Cicci
Since its construction in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration, the Overton Park Shell has been Memphis’ stage, its legacy as a cultural icon persevering even in the face of name changes and the occasional threat of demolition. Today, it stands as one of a few Depression-era bandshells still active in the country, staying true to its mission to build community through the performing arts, making it free and accessible to everyone.
But in 2019, Natalie Wilson, executive director of the Overton Park Shell, received a call that would make her reexamine just how accessible the Shell and its programming were. A woman and her two children had ridden the bus to the Shell for a concert, and while they enjoyed their time, the concert ran past the bus route’s schedule, making it difficult to get back home afterward.
“It changed my life,” Wilson says of the phone call. “What we found was we could not just throw money in marketing into communities and say, ‘You’re welcome, come to the show. This is your place,’ when we have people truly marginalized, who don’t have access to the core opportunity that the arts give.
“We want to showcase how special and vibrant our city is and how talented our city is. We hope to inspire other cities to want to do what we’ve done and to purchase our design one day, but right now, we definitely want to keep it Memphis.” — Natalie Wilson
“You know, Overton Park Shell sits in an affluent neighborhood in the middle of a park,” she continues. “But we have no parking lot. We have no easy accessibility with our transit system. There are so many communities here that literally have no access to the show. And we believe the arts, simply, are as vital as food. People need it. We need the joy of music. We need laughter, we need the unity, we need the hope that comes with music and the performing arts.”
photograph courtesy disciple design
So, Wilson thought, if people couldn’t come to the Shell, the next best thing would be to bring the Shell to them — literally. “We wanted to create a complete replica of the Overton Park Shell on wheels that could go to any community,” Wilson says. “There’s nothing more beautiful than Memphis’ stage. The Shell is loved by everyone, and everyone feels connected to it. We all own it. So, we wanted not only to replicate that beautiful, magical experience [that the Shell’s unique architecture offers], but to bring that to anyone.”
Thus, the Shell on Wheels initiative was born, and plans for the centerpiece, the Mobile Shell, commenced. While this won’t be the first time an organization will offer “mobile” performances to different areas in Memphis to boost accessibility to the arts — Opera Memphis has their 30 Days of Opera and the Tennessee Shakespeare Company has their Shout-Out Shakespeare Series — this will be the first time for an organization to do that with a mobile stage of this caliber.
The Mobile Shell, which debuted in July, is a turnkey experience, Wilson says, with the mini-Shell unfolding hydraulically, almost like a Transformer. At 48 feet long, it’s exactly half the size of the original and fits on a tractor-trailer rig. It took about a year and $350,000 to build, and was designed by Tom Edwards, who helped turn Sears Crosstown into Crosstown Concourse. “We have a patent for the design,” Wilson says. “It’s never been done, so it is a revolution.”
Not only will the replica Shell bring the “magic” of an experience at the Shell anywhere it goes; it will also fill a need for nonprofits who often face financial barriers when it comes to putting on free community events. Yolanda Kelly, outreach manager for Shell on Wheels, explains the initiative partners with nonprofits by taking care of all that typically comes with programming events by providing lighting, speakers, set up, breakdown, and more, including reaching out to other local businesses like food trucks that will help make an event successful.
“Shell on Wheels is where you bring your ideas and your dreams, and we listen to them,” Kelly says. “It’s important that we’re able to meet the needs of the community, and we want to make sure the [performances at community events] are free.”
Kelly adds that the mobile stage can be rented for private events, helping to offset the cost for the nonprofit events. Already, Shell on Wheels has programming scheduled through the end of the year and has partnered with two dozen nonprofits, from Memphis Public Libraries to Frayser Connect.
No matter the event, though, Memphis artists are the only ones who can perform on the stage. “There are so many amazing musicians in the city, we don’t need to look any further,” Kelly says. After all, this is a vision conceived by and executed by Memphians on behalf of Memphis.
“We want to showcase how special and vibrant our city is and how talented our city is,” Wilson says. “We hope to inspire other cities to want to do what we’ve done and to purchase our design one day, but right now, we definitely want to keep it Memphis. Memphis and Shelby County need this. This is about our wonderful city, and we’re going to wrap our arms around it.”
