CONDON — The Condon Arts Council will welcome Mike Beck to Condon’s historic Liberty Theatre, 216 S. Main St., on Saturday, May 18. The show is free and for all ages.

Food will be provided by Paradise Rose Chuckwagon starting at 4:30 p.m. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the concert will start at 6 p.m. Those ages 21 and older are welcome to bring their own beverages.

Beck lives in Montana and performs extensively throughout the United States and Europe. According to a press release, he is known as an “engaging acoustic solo artist who has played with some of the greatest cowboy country musicians of all time. Many consider him to be a protégé of his old friend Ian Tyson.”

He is a regular featured performer at The National Cowboy Poetry and Music Gathering and has seven albums with original songs that have been recognized as some of the finest compositions on Western Americana.

The Western Horseman magazine recently picked “The 13 Best Cowboy Songs” and included two of Beck’s compositions, putting him alongside other writers such as Ian Tyson, Tom Russell, Lucinda Williams and Gene Autry.

The Condon Arts Council purchased the Liberty Theatre in 2022 and is working on a large renovation of the historic building, which was constructed in 1922.

Last fall, Buffalo Kin performed at the theater with Tony Furtado and Stephanie Schneiderman.

About the council

The Condon Arts Council was founded as a nonprofit organization in 2021 by a group of local residents with a mission “to build community and creativity through expanded access to arts and culture.”

Condon is a town of 716 people and is the county seat of Gilliam County, located in north-central Oregon. Condon is 2½ hours from Portland, 2 hours from Pendleton, and 30 minutes off Interstate 84.

Over the past three years, the Condon Arts Council has built a strong performing arts and youth theatre troupe, held three film and videography camps for kids, established a weekly adult pottery group, and found opportunities to engage the local community.

In 2022, The Condon Arts Council purchased the historic Liberty Theatre and in 2024 was awarded $250,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for rural development.

The art council’s goal is to save the historic building and to make it a worthy destination for people in north-central Oregon.