In the past week and a half, a film crew has been shooting performances by all sorts of music artists at various locations in Tucumcari, New Mexico, for a forthcoming “Bands of Enchantment” series on television.
Elkhorn Entertainment, which is producing the series with the help of the city’s motel tax funds, envisions the show as a New Mexico version of PBS-TV’s long-running “Austin City Limits.” They plan to air four Tucumcari episodes, with another four planned in the city later, on New Mexico PBS stations, RFD-TV’s Cowboy Channel and the Amazon Prime streaming service later this year.
The show could reach a potential audience of tens of millions not only on television but on the company’s digital platforms. And the producers said last week during a city commission meeting they want to bring a music festival to town, as well.
Here’s a teaser video of the show:
Much of the shooting for the first four episodes of “Bands of Enchantment” has occurred inside Tucumcari’s historic railroad depot. It was a closed set because of COVID-19, though Elkhorn plans to shoot future episodes in front of live audiences once the pandemic dies down.
Acoustic performances were shot in various locales around town, including Motel Safari, Blue Swallow Motel, Tucumcari Historical Museum and the Odeon Theatre. New Mexico-based artists also were shot at the new Tucumcari Zia Club.
The performers in the first four episodes are Max Gomez, Lilly Hiatt, Lydia Loveless, The Texas Gentlemen, Southern Avenue, Junior Mesa, Brett Dennen and Making Movies. New Mexico-based Carlos Medina, Micah Thunder, Levi Platero and Sara Marie Rorie performed at the Zia Club.
Here are some images from the production via the “Bands of Enchantment” and Elkhorn’s Instagram accounts:
People who’ve observed the work behind the scenes are impressed and think the show will bring a lot of new visitors to Tucumcari.
You can read more detailed reports in the Quay County Sun (my day job) about “Bands of Enchantment” here and here.
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