Aretha Franklin News

Just back from a three-week concert tour of Austria and Italy, Electric Youth (EY) will perform free outdoor summer concerts on Wednesday, July 30, from 6-8 p.m. on Franklin Town Common and on Thursday, July 31 from 6:30-8 p.m. on Norfolk Town Hill.

Sultry, sweet sounds of saxophone superstar Kenny G mellifluously meld with the full orchestra, when Pacific Symphony delivers a jazz-infused summer evening of music, led by guest conductor Albert-George Schram. In a recording career that spans three decades and 23 albums, the Grammy Award-winning Kenny G has sold more than 75 million records worldwide (45 million in the U.S. alone) and enjoyed more than a dozen climbs to the top of Billboard's contemporary jazz chart.

Back by popular demand, the Divas! of the Lehigh Valley will offer an encore performance of their high-energy show which pays tribute to musical divas throughout the decades.

Acclaimed blues singer MARY BRIDGET DAVIES--nominated for a Tony this year in the 'Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical' category for her Broadway lead in 'A Night With Janis Joplin'--will return to The Pasadena Playhouse for four nights today, July 17-20. She first wowed Pasadena, CA crowds in 2013 with the Janis Joplin role, marking The Playhouse's highest-grossing production in its history.

N'Kenge (Motown: The Musical, Sondheim on Sondheim), reunites with Pops Conductor Jack Everly to perform as a soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony in a new concert CLASSIC FM: RADIO HITS FROM THE DECADES. The Orchestra will take audiences on a musical journey through four decades of hits up and down the FM dial - from Elton John and Billy Joel to Aretha Franklin, Chicago and more! The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra presents its 33rd annual Marsh Symphony on the Prairie summer season at Conner Prairie Interactive History Park.

On the heels of her exciting recent performances at Brooklyn's Shape Shifter Lab and Manhattan's Metropolitan Room, powerhouse vocalist Sari Schorr will next appear at The Cutting Room (44 E. 32nd Street, NYC) on Thursday, July 31 at 7 pm. Supporting Schorr will be her all-star band The Engine Room, featuring Rob Paparozzi on harmonica and vocals, Pete Levin on keyboards, Jerry Marotta on drums, John Cariddi on guitar, and Sue Williams on bass. With a distinctive sound and a 5-octave range that draws from her roots in blues, rock and jazz, Schorr will debut a selection of explosive songs from her upcoming CD. The Cutting Room show will also feature drumming and recording legend Bernard 'Pretty' Purdie, who with his indelible sound will revisit some classic moments in funk drumming history, while also offering up some fat new grooves on songs written by Schorr.

Boulder Theater presents Ms Lauryn Hill to the Boulder Theater tonight, July 12, 2014.

Centenary Stage Company's (CSC) Summer Jamfest Series will keep Hackettstown buzzing with a diverse lineup of fun-for-the-whole-family events. Running July 12th through August 9th, audiences can reminisce with their favorite songs of yesterday and today at the Sitnik Theatre in the David and Carol Lackland Center with an array of talented musicians.

Casting a well-deserved spotlight on artists who typically do not take center stage (but clearly should do so more often), Muscle Shoals Live: The River That Sings returns to Park City for an encore performance August 3. Inspired by two remarkable 2013 Sundance films, "Muscle Shoals Live" and "Twenty Feet From Stardom," Park City Institute's Teri Orr teamed up with Muscle Shoals' Jesse Boyce to curate a concert featuring an outstanding collection of under-sung musicians hailing from a hotbed of talent and stardom known as the "Singing River;" Grammy winner Lisa Fischer (think jaw-dropping "Gimme Shelter" duet with Mick Jagger) tops the billing. This signature St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights concert starts at 7 p.m.; gates open at 5:30 p.m. at Deer Valley Resort's Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater. Lawn and reserved seating tickets are available.

This week's SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE had a very Broadway feel to it with Josh Bergasse, the choreographer of the upcoming ON THE TOWN revival, staging a Top-20 routine to the show's anthem 'New York, New York' (the one by Bernstein, Comden, and Green, not Kander and Ebb). As we learned last week, this season's winner will earn a spot in the musical's ensemble. While some people, including @Actor_Friend, don't like this idea, remember, the last network show to give away roles on Broadway brought us Laura Osnes, so let's reserve judgment, just in case a reality show brings us more Broadway royalty this time.

Tickets are on sale for the Australian premiere of Broadway rock musical High Fidelity, which will debut at Chapel Off Chapel later from September 11th this year.

Back by popular demand, the Divas! of the Lehigh Valley will offer an encore performance of their high-energy show which pays tribute to musical divas throughout the decades.

Acclaimed blues singer MARY BRIDGET DAVIES--nominated for a Tony this year in the “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical” category for her Broadway lead in “A Night With Janis Joplin”--will return to The Pasadena Playhouse for four nights July 17-20. She first wowed Pasadena, CA crowds in 2013 with the Janis Joplin role, marking The Playhouse's highest-grossing production in its history.

With a star-studded concert series at Centenary Stage Company this summer, it is no surprise that they should now be celebrating the birth of a new Diva, Alice Tan Ridley. Audiences can spend an unforgettable evening with the singing sensation that People Magazine calls an 'Amazing Vocalist" on Saturday, July 19th at 8 pm at The Lackland Center. Ridley embodies a rare combination of raw power, charm, sensuality, spirituality and funk. Like Aretha Franklin, Etta James, and Tina Turner, Ridley is a long lasting Goddess of Soul, with enough personality, talent, and funk to become an enduring performer.

ABC has renewed its commitment to air the two-hour MDA Show of Strength Telethon on their stations across the country. As in the past, the entertainment event will raise funds and awareness and acknowledge partners who support MDA's mission

In his own words, the late hit-making funk rocker reveals all in an honest chronicle of his life of sex, drugs, and masterful music

Performance Artist and lover of tight jeans, James Jackson, Jr. has teamed with long time friend and hair-changing Diva-About-Town, LaDonna Burns (Rent Nat'l Tour, Seussical Nat'l Tour) for a show they've written based on the early years of their friendship and careers singing behind several New York City acts.

Canoc Productions today announced that international songwriter and musician, Kenny G will be performing in South Africa at 8pm on Thursday, 20 November 2014 at the Coca-Cola Dome, Johannesburg. Tickets go on sale at Computicket tomorrow, Thursday, 03 July.

The music, humor, warmth and life of Marvin Hamlisch will once again grace the Heinz Hall stage when "Play It Again, Marvin! A Marvin Hamlisch Celebration" makes its world premiere with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on June 28 at 8 p.m.

The music, humor, warmth and life of Marvin Hamlisch will once again grace the Heinz Hall stage when "Play It Again, Marvin! A Marvin Hamlisch Celebration" makes its world premiere with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on June 28 at 8 p.m.