The Playdate Trio in Concert
Church of the Holy Spirit
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026th at 7:00 p.m.
$25 suggested donation

The Playdate Trio weaves together mandolin, fiddle, and bouzouki into something greater than the sum of its parts—locked-in, interwoven, and full of joyful mischief. Marla's mandolin and mandola, Rebecca's fiddle and concertina, and Lewis's artful bouzouki and guitar, create a sound built on deep listening and shared musical intuition. Rooted in Irish traditional music, they also bring life to original tunes from Marla and their tunesmith friends, along with threads from other traditional styles.

All three are accomplished musicians in their own right.

A San Francisco native, Marla is one of the prominent voices of the mandolin in Irish music. She brings a deep and distinctive sensibility to the tradition on of the lesser-heard instruments. She is a dynamic performer and a sought-after teacher. Her playing is featured on her 2020 release The Bright Hollow Fog, on the 2017 Noctambule release A Sweetish Tune, on the eponymous Three Mile Stone recording with San Francisco favorites, fiddler Erin Shrader and guitarist Richard Mandel, and on The Morning Star, a duo CD with legendary Irish singer and bouzouki player Jimmy Crowley released in 2011 — an all instrumental project that features Irish music on an array of mandolin-family instruments: mandolin, mandola, mandocello, and bouzouki. She has performed and taught nationally and in Ireland and was a featured performer at the 2018 Masters of Tradition festival in Bantry, Co. Cork.

Rebecca draws on her music studies at Mills College and years of teaching experience. Lewis is a master luthier who has been building and repairing acoustic instruments since 1986, and has played in traditional Irish bands for decades.

The trio grew out of Marla and Rebecca's 2025 duo album, Playdate, which featured Lewis's bouzouki. What began as a guest appearance revealed a musical chemistry too good to leave in the studio—and the Playdate Trio was born.

"…absorbing and rewarding…played with a lightness of touch and a togetherness which is a joy to hear." — Alex Monaghan, Irish Music Magazine