Last Saturday night my wife and I dropped by Bert's in the Marketplace in Detroit's Eastern Market to have a drink and wound up next door at the new Bert's Marketplace Theatre to watch amateur and professional boxing. A couple of promoters are trying to revive the boxing game in Detroit, and if this night is any indication, I think they might be on to something. Some 1000 folks of all ages -- black, white, Latino, Arabic, whatever -- paid $15-$85 to watch several club boxers duke it out prior to the main event between two professionals. The dancing group Velocity from the Greektown Casino did a wild and sexy number in the ring to build excitement before the main event, and other entertainers filled in between fights to keep things interesting. With your hand stamped, you could walk between the boxing arena and the jazz club. After the fights, a VIP party went down, and patrons could drift between one bar where a blues band played, and the jazz club without having to go outside. The jazz players -- I apologize for not having their names -- were outstanding. Bert's, owned by Bert Dearing, is one of the last intimate jazz clubs in the city. The promoters want to bring back the glory days of Thomas Hitman Hearns (shown here) and the legendary Kronk Gym. The Detroit News' Terry Foster covers the story much better than I. The next night of boxing at Bert's will be Saturday, Feb. 3, with an all-female card. Hmmmm.
No comments:
Post a Comment