WAUPUN—Bring your lawn chairs and put on your dancing shoes. Waupun Fine Arts is hosting the summer Concerts in the Park series Thursdays in July.

This free event will include four performances, each starting at 7 p.m. in Dodge Park on South Madison Street in Waupun.

The schedule is as follows:

-- July 9 Drowsy Maggies, Irish/Celtic music

-- July 16 Shady Grove, Bluegrass music

-- July 23 Syl Groeschl Band, Old Time/Polka/Waltz music

-- July 30 The Little Big Band, Swing/Dixie music

The concert series is sponsored by area business donations. In May Waupun Fine Arts became tax exempt and any donations are tax deductible.

Waupun Fine Arts will pass around an offering bucket during a brief intermission at each performance. Any donations will be divided among the Waupun Area School District and Central Wisconsin Christian School art programs.

In case of rain, the concerts will be moved to the Waupun City Hall auditorium.

Drowsy Maggies

No strangers to Waupun, Drowsy Maggies have traveled from the Fond du Lac area for concerts for many years. They take their name from a well-known Irish fiddle tune and the band performs Irish, Celtic and folk music.

The band consists of Carol Blain on guitar and whistle; Gloria Schroeder on fiddle, Teresa Emery on whistle, flute and bodhran, a shallow hand-held Irish drum; Michael Keyes on banjo and mandolin; Matthew Harvey on guitar, fiddle and banjo; and Paula Settle on Celtic harp.

Shady Grove

The four-piece acoustic band, founded in 1997, performs bluegrass, folk, cowboy, 1960s, 1970s and popular works. They also work in some of their original songs.

Band members include Bob Berger on guitar and mandolin, Bruce Hahn on guitar and mandolin, John Vande Zande on banjo and dobro and Dennis Krempin on bass.

Syl Groeschl Band

The Syl Groeschl Band of Calumetville was formed by Syl in 1961 after his dad, who previously ran the band, died. Although Syl passed away in 2003, the band still performs polkas, waltzes, German music, big band, country and soft rock at festivals and parades.

The band includes Roger Gerner, 49-year member, on saxophone, clarinet and vocals; Mike Ludwig, 26-year member, on bass horn; Shirley Patin, three-year member, on accordion; Valeria Buechel, five-year member and Syl's sister, on vocals; Matt Lavey, five-year member, on trumpet and vocals; and Dale Mueller, eight-year member, on drums.

The Little Big Band

Starting out small, The Little Big Band is now full sized with up to 20 performers. Getting their start in 2001, members come from as far as Madison and Fond du Lac to perform with the Beaver Dam-based band.

The band is made up of 16 regular performers, including four saxophones: Danielle Torason, Cheryl Zeman, Don Kruse and Julie Saniter; four trombones: Micah Brooks, Tom Patterson, Steve Schultz and Jeff Kasparek; three trumpets: tom Doughty, Phil Heyer and Kendrick Henes; Mary Irwin on piano, Jeff Mroz on bass, Laura Jones on vocals, David Saniter on drums and Randy Benway on guitar.

The band performs mostly standard swing songs from the 30's and 40's, including music by Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Brian Setzer and the Cherry Poppin Daddies.