New ‘Little Theatre,’ recording studio, and music site

Owner Michael Loveridge has constructed a 100-seat “Mersey House Little Theatre” in a section of the facility that previously housed a women’s clothing shop.

It includes change rooms for artists. In a side room, a recording studio that is connected to both the pub and theatre has also been installed in partnership with Tim Feswick of Feswick Productions in Broad River. In addition, Loveridge is adding an art gallery and an Internet Café and Fish and Chip shop.

He describes the recording side of the business as, “our winter business.

“A lot of it involves overcoming problems with the music industry. The idea is to create a Maritime music web site focusing on Maritime music only.”

Staff will record and manufacture live CDs, including the jackets, for sale on the web site, merseyhouse.com. Loveridge adds individual songs can be downloaded as well, but with one important difference.

He explains many download sites only pay an artist about seven cents per song. “It’s a very unfair balance,” Loveridge says. “In this case, the artist can get 30 or 40 cents per download instead of seven cents. The artist wins and the public wins because it bypasses the B.S. in the distribution system. It’s a very exciting project and enormously supports artists struggling to equip themselves in the modern world.”

He expects to record and sell performance videos sometime in the future.

He adds they have hosted about 430 concerts over the past two years, which demonstrates the potential, and music-only artists can choose between the theatre and the pub, depending on what atmosphere they prefer.

Recordings are starting this week. The music will be available for sale well before Christmas, says Loveridge.

The Little Theatre will not only help The Mersey House, Loveridge says, but the local economy as well.

He says, in part, because of the area’s high low-income population, the local market is limited, “and we have a staff of over 20… and we’re surviving. We have to be innovative about what we do. We have to market to people outside of here. We need to appeal to people who do appreciate music and live theatre.”

He adds, however, “Many, many people in the community do support us, but we also have those who put us down.”

He is establishing packages with area bed and breakfast businesses, “which will also bring more people into the community.”

The packages will include two dinners and two shows at The Mersey House. Loveridge has recently hired a “Red Seal” Chef.

He adds the theatre room can quickly be changed into a conference room for small companies, which is a niche market as well.

Of the fish and chip shop and internet café, Loveridge says with a laugh he believes, “It is the only licensed fish and chip shop in Nova Scotia.”

Loveridge expects the art gallery will open within a month. He says he is bringing in artists in residence to showcase their talents, sell paintings, and offer classes.

The Mersey House also includes 14 apartments that are well priced because affordable housing is lacking in Queens Co., he says.

Eleven days of music at Mersey House started Oct. 18. Shawn Trotter and Dylan Fowler are playing Oct. 22 followed Oct. 23 by Roger Mauder with a Reading opening by Colleen Power. Other performers include Bob Snider, Manitoba Hal, University of Machias Ukulele Club, Cool Hand Uke, The Denver Ukulele Orchestra, Ian Sherwood, Steven Bowers, Kim Beggs, Cara Luft with Hugh McMillan from Spirit of the West, and The Arrogant Worms. Times and dates are available on the web site.