by Casey Welsch
Love, love, love, baby it comes and goes. And so do show houses, almost as often.
After a multi-year run as Lincoln’s most recognized and organized show house, Clawfoot House is closing its doors with one last event on this Sunday, put on by long-time organizer and outgoing renter Bryan Klopping. But that’s not all he’s got in the works this weekend.
It’s better to hear it from him, so here’s an interview with Klopping about the last dance of the Clawfoot.
Hear Nebraska: So what have you got lined up for the Clawfoot’s last weekend?
Bryan Klopping: Well, we have the Clawfoot’s last show on Sunday, and I have another performance art thing on First Friday at Club Blue.
HN: What does that entail?
BK: Some grads and undergrads and their sculptures and visual art. There’s going to be performance art, too. It’s a free show at Club Blue, which is right next to the Night Before Lounge, 18 and up.
HN: What about Clawfoot’s last show?
BK: We have Alexis Gideon lined up. He does this thing where he takes animated films and raps and plays instruments to it. It’s really cool. Headlining the show is The Show is the Rainbow, and he doesn’t need a description. The opening act is me and some grad students doing some experimental stuff. We’re going to be looping analog tapes and things like that.
HN: What brought about the end of the Clawfoot?
BK: I’ll try to put this as respectfully as possible. Amy (Gordon, Klopping’s now ex and former Clawfoot resident/organizer) and I are parting ways. And people are interested in taking it over, but no one has committed to it, so it’s done.
HN: Even the best organized show houses come and go, don’t they.
BK: Yeah, when Ember (Schragg, former Clawfoot organizer) told us to take it over from her, she said there was always the chance that Clawfoot could crash and burn, and we kept it going for a while, but yeah, it’s just done.
HN: How do you think people in Lincoln will react to this?
BK: I don’t know. Some people are going to be bummed, for sure. But I mean, a lot of people say they liked us and what we did, but I never saw them at any of the shows we had, so…
HN: Do you think anyone else could do a show house as well as you and Ember before you did the Clawfoot?
BK: Honestly, I don’t think anyone will take it to the extent that we did, except maybe Joe Younglove, but who knows?
HN: What does it take to do what you did?
BK: It would take some time before anyone else built up the reputation we had when we took it over. But, I don’t know. It’s more of a party scene in Lincoln right now, and we were always about respect. Respect for the artists and the audience. People don’t talk shit in the Clawfoot.
HN: What do you think will be the Clawfoot’s legacy?
BK: I think we’ve set an example for what’s possible with a space. We were supportive of musicians, and I think that’ll leave us with some respect from the community.
Casey Welsch is the editorial intern for Hear Nebraska. You can learn more about Clawfoot House by watching his documentary, "Home is Where the Music Is," here. You can contact him at caseywelsch@hearnebraska.org.