Dahlonega is usually thought of as a quiet mountain town with a golden history, but two Dahlonega residents are trying to change how people view the town.

Spencer Durham and Birdie James have teamed up with the Holly Theater to put together Speakeasy Wednesdays as part of the Holly Underground.

The program, which combines visual arts with the sounds of local musicians, began Jan. 11. Due to some cancellations, Speakeasy Wednesdays will be put on hold until Feb. 1, when Roswell-area band Graham’s Number takes the stage at 9 p.m.

“It’s really an art showcase. We’ll feature visual artists and art of different forms, from galleries to film to paint. And there will always be a headline musician,” Durham said.

“We really want to change it up every week. We’ll try and have different themes to match with what’s on display that week.”

“Our next show will be drastically different than the first. It will be more of a reggae sound, and the visual arts will be in line with that. It’ll be a lot of colors, greens and reds, with plenty of like Day of The Dead sort of decorations,” James said.

Durham, who is the sound person for the Holly, said he and Birdie James were talking about what they’d like to see in Dahlonega when they came up with the idea. 

“Basically, we’d been talking about it for a few weeks. I’ve been downstairs at the Holly, and I really fell in love with it. We thought we could do something really different with the town,” Durham said.

“It’s exciting to see there is such a strong artistic community here. There is a lot of talk going around the art circles. We’re getting a lot of suggestions, for both musicians and visual artists. We really want to get the (North Georgia College & State University) student community involved. We want to give people a taste of the community.”

“We’re doing something different. I want people to walk out of there wondering what just happened. You never know what you’re walking into when you come to the shows,” James said.

Speakeasy Wednesdays returns to the Holly Theater on Feb. 1. Tickets are available for $7, and can be purchased by calling the Holly box office at 706-864-3759, or online at www.hollytheater.com.