HOW TO GO
What: Lebanon Brew Ha Ha
Where: Warren County Fairgrounds, 665 N. Broadway St., Lebanon
When: April 25, 4 p.m.
Cost: $45 (general), $65 (VIP), and $15 (designated driver)
More Info: www.lebanonbrewhaha.com.
If you thought the upcoming, first annual Lebanon Brew Ha Ha was an offshoot or otherwise inspired by the Cincy Brew Ha Ha, the popular Cincinnati craft beer and stand-up comedy festival that has become the largest of its kind in the nation, think again.
“If you Google ‘brew ha ha,’ you’ll find brew ha ha events all over the country,” said Carol Donovan, managing director of the Lebanon Symphony Orchestra. “For us, the comedians were almost an afterthought.”
The Lebanon Brew Ha Ha is a fundraiser for the Lebanon Symphony Orchestra, the proceeds of which Donovan said would go to expanding their programming while also subsidizing their youth orchestra programs and possibly a scholarship fund. A brew ha ha event, Donovan said, is a fresh approach that targets a coveted demographic at a time when grant money is becoming harder to secure.
“Many arts organizations stick to 5K or 10K runs or elaborate dinners,” she said. “We wanted to do something different that shows we have a fun side, because some of us are a little crazy. An audience for a craft beer event is a young audience, which is what we want to target.”
For its inaugural year, the Lebanon Brew Ha Ha will feature 12 brewers, including such well-known regional breweries as Rhinegeist, MadTree, Mt. Carmel, and Rivertown, with 3 to 4 brews each available for sampling. Admission gets you a 4-ounce sampling glass, nine tasting tickets and two pint tickets. For purposes of inventory control and safety, patrons won’t be allowed to purchase additional drink tickets. Donovan said that policy is part of the learning curve of putting on a festival for the first time.
“We’ve had to try to figure out how much beer to buy because we don’t know how many people are going to show up,” she said. “We also don’t want people to get drunk. It hasn’t been difficult so much as a learning process. Someone on our planning committee suggested that brewers would willingly donate beer. But we found out that, in the state of Ohio, you can’t do that. You have to buy it.”
The headlining comic will be Ivan Pecel, a juggler/stand-up hybrid entertainer who was a semi-finalist in the first season of “America’s Got Talent.” The other two comedians are Mike Berlon and Mark Chalifoux, who perform regularly at the Go Bananas Comedy Club.
“Someone suggested I call Dave Chappelle over in Yellow Springs,” Donovan laughed. “We were just looking for an unique act, and I stumbled on Ivan, who’s unique, funny, and involves the audience. I thought it would be cool especially if people had a little beer in them.”
The Lebanon Brew Ha Ha will also feature four food trucks, a homebrew demonstration, pretzel making, a car dealership, and a silent auction. Donovan said they had sold 500 tickets so far.
“That’s good for a first-year event,” she said. “I’d be happy if we made $5,000. We probably won’t make a lot this year, but it has the potential to make a lot in the future. I still have visions of not knowing who’s going to show up on the day of the event. I want to make sure we have enough beer.”
About the Author