Whether you're looking to see a booming arena concert, classical music in a swanky theater or a solo musician in the intimacy of a cozy bar, Spokane has got you covered.
But for a different kind of entertainment in a setting unlike any other, music lovers can now head to the Historic Davenport Hotel to get their fix of big band swing and 1920s jazz.
Opened in 1914, the hotel has been a destination for fine dining and extravagance for over 100 years. Its rooms have served as temporary accommodations for many famous guests — 10 U.S. presidents, Betty White, Johnny Cash, Nat King Cole and others have walked the Davenport's ornate halls.
The hotel is adored by locals and admired by visitors for its lavish Renaissance Revival-style facade and opulent interior. (Even ghost hunters are attracted to the premises, for reasons other than the hotel's appearance.) Upon arriving in Spokane just over a year ago, Dania Duke was immediately enamored with the Historic Davenport, too.
"When I was sent here to manage the Davenport Collection I started looking at all of the opportunities we had with the hotels," says Duke, vice president and area managing director of the Davenport Hotels. "We have this historical register property that is so beloved to Spokanites and the beautiful lobby with nothing going on inside of it."
With over 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Duke made it her mission to, as she puts it, "activate the space" within the hotel's lobby by bringing people inside for reasons other than dinner and drinks.
"We want to create experiences that are memorable," she says. "I really felt like the historic Davenport could be the living room of Spokane."
For Duke that meant involving prior hospitality industry collaborators to create a space that felt welcoming, lavish, special and new for all who entered. So she contacted opera singer Sacha Boutros to aid her in making the Historic Davenport a new music destination.
Boutros came to Spokane in 2022 to help Duke build this new music series from the ground up. Her entertainment company, Hear Me Roar, specializes in seeking out female performers to perform in historic venues like the Davenport.
"I started Hear Me Roar to promote the voices of women in the arts," Boutros says. "Women often took the backseat during the era [1920s to 1960s] of the American Songbook. I want to be a part of that change."
With her new series Sacha's Supper Club, Boutros aims to give guests the experience of a lifetime while lifting up female musicians from Spokane and beyond.
The first Sacha's Supper Club event, Swing with Bing, honored Spokane's own Bing Crosby. Featuring swing dancers from Woodside Swing, flowing drinks, and period-accurate dress and music, all 350 tickets sold out by the night of the event, on May 6.
"Everyone really showed out," Boutros says. "It was like a time warp. Everyone was dressed to the nines. Spokane really made that first event special."
After the success of Swing with Bing, Boutros and Duke began crafting an entire season of experiences at the Historic Davenport.
Next, Sacha's Supper Club is hosting its Candlelight Concert with opera vocalist Susanna Poretsky. On Aug. 19, guests will fill the Historic Davenport's Isabella Ballroom for a night of acoustic opera from all around the world.
"The idea came from the salons in Versailles in the 1600s," Boutros says. "After dinner, people would gather for cocktails and a musical performance, a comedic performance, really anything like that. It was a concert by candlelight, and that's what we're hoping to accomplish with Susanna. Dinner and then a spectacular performance."
Poretsky is a classically trained mezzo-soprano and is set to sing in eight different languages at the Candlelight Concert, something you'll have to hear to believe.
Along with Sacha's Supper Club, the entirety of the music programming for the Davenport Hotel Collection (other properties are the Davenport Tower, Lusso and Grand, and the Centennial Hotel) has been rebooted, revived and updated to fit the needs of each hotel.
"We have music at all five hotels," Duke says. "We have country performers, singer-songwriters, guitarists — everything. If people want to go hang out by the pool and hear some live music, the Centennial is the place to be."
Duke and Boutros want to ensure that no matter the reason you're at the Davenport, there's an opportunity to be exposed to great performers and music worthy of a listen.
From Wednesday through Sunday, guests can hear the American Songbook series during brunch and dinner. This series features local musicians, plus Boutros herself joining in on the fun at times.
If a casual drink is more your speed, the Historic Davenport's Terrace features local musicians on Friday and Saturday nights from 7 to 10. Local names like Sean Kavanaugh and Don Goodwin show up from time to time.
And, later this year, Sacha's Supper Club hosts an event called Party Like It's 1933 on Nov. 11, commemorating the 90th anniversary of Prohibition's end.
"Not only am I excited to be a part of this programming, but so are the other musicians," Boutros says. "We've created this really healthy and loving program that connects people. The medium of music is more powerful than most people think."
The next time you find yourself passing the Historic Davenport, step inside, pull up a chair and see what music you can hear wafting from the ornate halls of one of Spokane's most beloved buildings. ♦
Candlelight Concert with Susanna Poretsky • Sat, Aug. 19 at 5:30 pm • $75-$125 • The Historic Davenport Hotel • 10 S. Post St. • davenporthotelcollection.com
