LAYTON -- Kenny Loggins can add another achievement to his resume. The singer/songwriter was the first performer in the Davis Arts Council's Summer Nights With the Stars to play in front of a sold-out Kenley Centennial Amphitheater.
Loggins wrapped up the 2011 series in September with the DAC's biggest show since the summer concert series began in 1995.
DAC officials say Loggins' show for a crowd of 1,800 put an exclamation point on an exciting summer.
"I felt like it was a really successful season," said Dawn Brandvold, chair of the DAC Board of Trustees. "I felt like we brought in a variety of acts that we haven't before. That, as a council, should be our main goal."
Brandvold was excited that the council finally accomplished another goal.
"As long as I can remember, we wanted to get Kenny Loggins to perform," said Brandvold, who has been on the DAC Board of Trustees for the last six years and a season ticket holder for several years.
"He happened to be touring at the time of the year when we could get him, and we were able to route him with Sandy."
Loggins performed in Sandy the night before his Layton performance, so the cost to have Loggins perform in Layton was not as much as it would have been had he come to Utah for only one performance.
The DAC experienced in-the-black revenues for its 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10 concert seasons, and this summer appears to be successful in the same way.
"Our year-end financials have not been completed, as we just ended our fiscal year," said Kirt Bateman, DAC executive director. "I can tell you that every performance on the 2011 Summer Nights With the Stars season reached its ticket budget goal, which is terrific."
There was nearly another sold-out concert in July with the Indigo Girls. Fewer than 70 tickets remained for that show, Brandvold said.
Along with nearly providing a sell-out, the Indigo Girls concert had another impact on the summer series.
"You're not going to get two more diverse performers than the Indigo Girls and Kenny Loggins," Brandvold said, adding that the popularity of both concerts shows that the DAC's audience is also diverse.
Local acts, such as David Osmond, as well as the comedic juggling Flying Karamazov Brothers, added even more variety.
The diversity of the acts helped make it a successful season. However, ticket sales account for only about 30 percent of the DAC's total operating expenses. Officials credit loyal and generous sponsors and donors for helping the program operate.
Brandvold also said a record number of actors auditioned for the summer's one play, which happened to be "A Midsummer Night's Dream." This was the first time a Shakespeare play was part of the summer series.
"The production was a hit," Bateman said.
"And I am so glad to offer this program as a way of bringing incredible classical theater to our audiences in our beautiful venue and offering an opportunity to local actors and designers to work on challenging and rewarding material like Shakespeare."
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