Maytag Opry on the move
ASHDOWN, Ark.—Patrons of the Maytag Opry have plenty of space now to enjoy the traditional country music so popular there for many years.
The Maytag Opry has moved locations from its downtown Texarkana home to one just south of downtown Ashdown. The Maytag, which now runs its weekly opry show on Saturday nights at 7 p.m., has 16,000 square feet of indoor space at its new spot on U.S. Highway 71 South.
Owners Mike Helms and Janice Parks renovated a former church to get the new Maytag Opry ready, including bringing a few of the old Coke machines they have and adding large, vintage movie posters.
A concessions area provides hot dogs, Frito pies and similar treats, which adds to the nostalgic feel they’ve created at the
Maytag since it opened at its first West 7th Street location years ago.
With plenty of tables and chairs and wide-open space, there’s lots of room here, including a dance floor and 60-foot-wide stage for the house band and visiting performers to strut their stuff and share their talents.
“We have brought it back to life,” Helms said about prepping the wide brick building, which also has grassy outdoor space where they’ll hold a flea market (Four States Trade Days flea market), auto shows and other events, they say.
This past Saturday night was their first show at the new location, and Parks said they had a crowd of more than 200 people. “We had a pretty good start,” she said.
The venue atmosphere is different at this new location, so they’ll aim to bring the old and mix it with the new as far as their decor is concerned. Right now, they’re decorating for Christmas in this wide-open building.
“We’re going to have all kinds of music events, talent contests, bluegrass, gospel … in time polka,” Parks said. They can do a lot with the building, even hold antique car, tractor and motorcycle shows outside. “Anything we can do on the grounds.”
Helms said they’ll rent the space out for events like weddings and business meetings. He likens it to a Southwest Arkansas convention center able to attract people from all over the area. There’s more than music planned for the space, but the weekly shows remain, now on Saturday nights.
“The acoustics are absolutely perfect here,” Helms said, adding, “This place was built for sound.”
If need be, they can add several feet to the current dance floor at the center of the room. As before, there’s no smoking or alcohol in the building. Their focus is on what they call good country music, although they may mix it up at times.
“We play western swing, ’50s/’60s music, old gospel, the old country and western music, traditional. We’re not into the new music,” Parks said, with Helms adding, “It is for the people.” It’s for their family of musicians, too, he said.
Helms himself grew up on the Bakersfield sound out in California with musicians like Buck Owens.
And on the new Maytag Opry stage, musicians who play that old time country from the likes of Buck Owens and many, many others will find a new home. Helms calls that stage the main attraction for those musicians.
“The stage speaks for itself. It’s a magnificent stage,” he said.
(Admission: $10. The Maytag Opry is located at 714 U.S. Highway 71 South in Ashdown. Phone: 903-293-5898. More info: Check out the Maytag Opry page on Facebook.)
“We’re going to have all kinds of music events, talent contests, bluegrass, gospel … in time polka” —Janice Parks