When We’re Not on the Vineyard, What Do We Do?
For four to five months of the year, as if summoned by a long blow on a conch shell, the members of the Dukes reassemble and unite on Martha’s Vineyard to perform music as often as six or seven times each week. By the time October rolls around, the gigs thin out, and one by one, we cast off in different directions.
Where do we go, and what do we do, you ask? Well, luckily for the purposes of retaining your attention, we all lead pretty interesting lives.
Maria Stukey, The Dukes’ owner and lead vocalist, works with a variety of other performing groups and organizations, both domestic and overseas. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, she lends her vocals and showmanship to an umbrella company called Divas Entertainment, which includes a full big band called Belladiva as well as the headliner trios Divas Through the Decades and Divas On Broadway. She frequently tours in Florida with these groups during the winter, as well as in the Midwest during the fall and the spring. This holiday season, however, she’s trading West Palm Beach for Zurich, Switzerland, to perform with The Circus Conelli on the banks of the river Limmat. And of course, The Dukes is a year-round project whose upkeep never allows for a dull moment!
Guitarist and vocalist Casey Smith has a slightly different approach to the off-season: relaxing and taking time for himself, arguably well-deserved after playing over 180 gigs in summer alone! The remainder of his year includes fly fishing, traveling, and seeing friends and family. In the past few years, he’s spent two to three months in countries such as Croatia, Nepal, Chile, and the British Isles, and has also backpacked Europe, Australia and the US. He also makes a point to pick up solo and band gigs in prime fly-fishing locations, from flats of the Florida Keys to the Lower Laguna Madre in Texas. The way he sees it: “Combining travel, fishing, and music keeps me from ever ‘working’ a day in my life!”
Sam Rothberg, the band’s keyboardist and co-owner, keeps busy running Lime Entertainment, a talent agency that supplies cruise ships with musicians and dancers. Lime works with many of the biggest lines in the world as well as performers from over fifty countries, and even its internal organization includes a team that spans five countries and three continents. Sam also gigs in the off months, including performances with Belladiva in Florida and the Midwest and local gigs in the greater New York City area; he also travels frequently for Lime and other music-related projects. He says he’s heard of the concept of free time, but has yet to glimpse it in actuality.
Jeremy Driesen, the Dukes’ drummer, runs an agency of his own called Ray Bloch, which organizes large-scale events for individuals and corporations, often including A-list musical talent and other various celebrities. He’s also the group’s resident photographer, and aside from capturing our cute faces with his camera, his various shots are on display in Vineyard bars and galleries; he just recently released his first photo book, Vineyard Noir, documenting the various musicians that populate our fine island. Say cheese!
Craig Holets, rounding out the quintet and slappin’ da bass, returns back to Minneapolis each fall to resume an assortment of musical projects and groups with whom he performs, including Brat Pack Radio and Blue Water Kings, among others. When he’s not plucking the strings himself, Craig also records, mixes, and masters various artists for singles and full albums’ worth of music. And in his free time, he builds miniature models of houses occupied by dinosaur families.
And that’s us! Want to know more about any of us, in particular? Come to the Vineyard, watch us play, and ask us in person!