Entertainment around the area
Plenty of star power will hit local and regional venues over the next couple of weeks.
Locally, country singer Chris Cagle will play the Peak, while country-rock band Reckless Kelly will perform at Mauch Chunk Opera House.
Over in Bethlehem, legendary diva Diana Ross will return to the Wind Creek Event Center. The latter will also host comedian Gabriel Iglesias, rocker Alice Cooper and new-wave act Culture Club. Meanwhile, The Piano Guys will bring its brand of classical-crossover music to Easton’s State Theatre.
PENN’S PEAK
325 Maury Road, Jim Thorpe
866-605-7325, pennspeak.com
• Chris Cagle, 8 p.m. Sept. 9. Born in DeRidder, Louisiana, and raised in Texas, Cagle co-wrote album tracks for David Kersh before releasing his debut album “Play It Loud” in 2000.
MAUCH CHUNK OPERA HOUSE
14 W. Broadway, Jim Thorpe
570-325-0249, mcohjt.com
• 33 1/3 Killer Queen Experience, 8 p.m. Sept. 2-3. The group, featuring drummer and founder Jim Drnecof, enlists a rotating cast of Delaware Valley musicians. The act’s Killer Queen Experience performs Queen’s hits, as well as the album “A Night At The Opera” in its entirety.
• Reckless Kelly, 8 p.m. Sept. 9. Based in Austin, Texas, since the late 1990s, the country-rock band features brothers Willy and Cody Braun, plus Jay “Nazziola” Nazz, Joe Miller and Ryan Engleman.
• Broken Arrow: A Tribute to Neil Young, 8 p.m. Sept. 10. The group performs the music of Neil Young, featuring both the electric Crazy Horse tunes and the more acoustic, pedal-steel-driven country-rock material. The tribute band, which takes its name from Young’s 1996 album of the same name, consists of Joe Mass, Marty Cohl, Dan Gold and Larry Freedman.
THE STITCH AT TAMAQUA
COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER
125 Pine St., Tamaqua
570-668-1192, tamaquaarts.org
• Sons Of Skynyrd: Tribute to Skynyrd and More, 7 p.m. Sept. 10. Based in Farmingdale, New York, the act, playing northeast venues for 16-plus years, performs the hits of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Upon request, the group also plays hits by southern rock bands such as Molly Hatchet, Allman Brothers Band, ZZ Top and Marshall Tucker Band. Sons of Skynyrd members have played with Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle.
THE MAHONING DRIVE-IN
THEATER
635 Seneca Road, Lehighton
610-683-7243, mahoningdit.com
• Camp Blood VIII, Sept. 2-4. Exhumed Films and the Mahoning Drive-In Theater will present this event, set to include 10 killer thrillers on 35mm. Camp Blood will also feature guests, games, raffles, prizes, photo-ops, limited-edition merchandise and more. On opening night, the theater will screen 1984’s “The Mutilator,” with stars Matt “Ed Jr.” Mitler, Ruth “Pam” Martinez and Bill “Ralph” Hitchcock in attendance. Gates open at 6 p.m. Showtime at sundown.
WIND CREEK EVENT CENTER
77 Wind Creek Blvd., Bethlehem
610-297-7414,
windcreekeventcenter.com
• Gabriel Iglesias, 7 and 10 p.m. Sept. 2. Born and raised in California, Iglesias has multiple stand-up-comedy specials to his credit. Nicknamed “Fluffy,” his film credits include the two “Magic Mike” films, 2014’s “A Haunted House 2” and voice roles in films such as 2017’s “Coco” and 2021’s “Space Jam: A New Legacy.”
• An Evening with Alice Cooper, 8 p.m. Sept. 7. Born in Detroit, Cooper, known for his dark and horror-themed theatrics, released his first album with the Alice Cooper Band in 1969. After seven band albums, he released the first of his 21 solo sets in 1975.
• Diana Ross, 8 p.m. Sept. 10. Born in Detroit, Ross scored major success as lead singer of The Supremes from 1963 to 1970. The group scored 12 No. 1 hits on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, including “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Stop! In the Name of Love” and “You Keep Me Hangin’ On.”
• Boy George & Culture Club, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 11. Formed in 1981 in London, Culture Club features Boy George, Roy Hay and Mikey Craig. The new-wave act released four studio albums between 1982 and 1986, with hit singles including “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me,” “Time (Clock of the Heart)” and “Karma Chameleon.”
STATE THEATRE
453 Northampton St., Easton
800-999-7828, statetheatre.org
• The Piano Guys, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15. The quartet, which started out in a southern Utah piano shop, features Jon Schmidt, Steven Sharp Nelson, Paul Anderson and Al van der Beek. The act gained popularity via YouTube, where in 2011, it began posting piano and cello compositions combining classical, pop, film score and original music.
SHERMAN THEATER
524 Main St., Stroudsburg
570-420-2808, shermantheater.com
• Stroud Fest 2022, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 3. The event will feature multiple vendors on Main Street from Fifth to Ninth streets, a food court in the courthouse square and family activities.
• 1964: The Tribute, 8 p.m. Sept. 9. For 30-plus years, 1964 has paid tribute to The Beatles. The current lineup features co-founder Mark Benson as John Lennon, Mac Ruffing as Paul McCartney, Tom Work as George Harrison and Robert Potter as Ringo Starr.
• Victim of Vengeance, 8 p.m. Sept. 10. Formed in 2020, Victim of Vengeance performs the music of Judas Priest. Rock bands Crooked Ways, based in Bethlehem, and HoriZontal, based in Easton, will also perform.
MOUNT AIRY CASINO RESORT
312 Woodland Road, Mount Pocono
877-682-4791, mountairycasino.com
• Kool & the Gang, 7 p.m. Sept. 3, Outdoor Summer Stage. Formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964, the group features original members Robert “Kool” Bell and George “Funky” Brown. Kool & the Gang, which has undergone numerous personnel changes, has explored styles such as jazz, soul, funk, rock and pop. The act, which released the first of its two-dozen or so studio albums in 1969, scored 12 top 10 hits on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, including “Jungle Boogie,” “Too Hot” and “Celebration.”
• The Cameos: Musical Tribute to Doo Wop, 3:30 p.m. Sept. 12, Event Center. The Cameos, a doo-wop group from New Jersey, performs the hits of acts such as The Drifters, Dion, The Four Seasons and more.
SHAWNEE PLAYHOUSE
552 River Road, Shawnee-on-Delaware
570-421-5093, shawneeplayhouse.org
• “Swimming Upstream,” 2 and 8 p.m. Sept. 3 and 10, 2 p.m. Sept. 4 and 11. Rich Rubin’s work, the Full-Length winner of the 2021 Shawnee Original Playwright Series Festival, will have its world premiere. In the play, climate change is affecting the world’s salmon, though marine biologist Jen’s boss won’t let her report her findings. On top of that, Jen’s super-hero-aficionado boyfriend thinks the salmon’s life-story is eerily similar to Superman’s.