Arts & Culture

The German-inspired holiday market opened on Friday, Nov. 16 at ArtsQuest's SteelStacks campus.

The Lehigh Valley IronPigs flipped the switch on Illumination during a preview event Thursday. Getting to Opening Day involved significant staff efforts, with 12-15 part-time staff and 30-40 people on peak days over a four-week period.

The announcements continue a trend at Musikfest Cafe to book tribute acts and cover bands. In June, ArtsQuest announced more than a dozen shows for the venue's lineup.

The Lehigh Valley IronPigs will host the Tri-City Chili Peppers, a college summer team from Colonial Heights, Virginia, that plays in the Coastal Plain League, on May 17 at Coca-Cola Park.

Aaron Lewis, who with Staind sold 10 million copies of the group's first five albums, three of which hit No. 1, will perform with his solo band The Stateliners, at 8 p.m. April 10.

The Symphony is looking for volunteers for its March performances of Vaughn Williams' "Dona Nobis Pacem."

The Lehigh Valley Phantoms Youth U8 Development Program will present free games Nov. 23 and Penguin Figure Skating Club will presents a holiday-themed skating show Nov. 24 at ArtsQuest's Ice Rink at SteelStacks.

Lewis Black, who is known for his angry-face comedic style and also is an author, playwright, social critic and actor, will bring his Goodbye Yeller Brick Road tour to the venue at 8 p.m. Oct. 10.

Roberts was coached by guest mentor Jennifer Hudson and Michael Bublé on "The Voice" Knockout Rounds on Tuesday, Nov. 12.

A sale is scheduled to close in the coming months to Wilkes-Barre-based D&D Realty Group, which has plans for the holiday lights to continue, albeit in a new fashion.

The PA Shakespeare Festival, celebrating its 34th season, will hold its Play On! community tour beginning on Friday, May 30, at Emmaus Public Library. The free show will also take place at the National Museum of Industrial History and the Allentown Public Library.

Shaun Cassidy, known for 1970s chart-topping gold pop hits "That's Rock 'n' Roll," "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Hey Deanie," will perform at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 26.

The Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Regional Music Awards, a new organization, will hold its inaugural presentation Dec. 7 at Emmaus Theatre.

Start Making Sense, a Talking Heads tribute band with singer Jon Braun assuming the role of frontman David Byrne, will perform the first day of Garlic Fest, set for Oct. 4-5 in Downtown Easton.

The arts and music extravaganza will run from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday, May 24, and Sunday, May 25. New attractions this year include a drone show on Sunday night.

Nazareth Area High School's production won five Freddy Awards — including Outstanding Overall Production of a Musical — at the ceremony Thursday night at Easton's State Theatre.

The ninth annual Good Neighbor Awards recipients were Darian Colbert and Yolanda Colbert, Ilene Hochberg Wood and Judith A. Harris. The ceremony was held at the Univest Public Media Center, home to Lehigh Valley Public Media, which consists of PBS39, 91.3 WLVR Radio and LehighValleyNews.com.

ArtsQuest has announced the lineup for its free festival that celebrates the musical genre founded in Jamaica, which will return to the SteelStacks campus for a fourth year, from noon to midnight July 5.

Jerry Cantrell, who founded the band Alice in Chains, will perform a solo concert at 7 p.m. Sept. 2 at Archer Music Hall.

ArtsQuest, in partnership with the city, announced ArtsQuest’s Friday Concerts at Union Terrace Amphitheater.

The fair on Monday announced the free-with-admission lineup for its 173rd edition, which will run Aug. 27 through Labor Day Monday, Sept. 1, at Allentown Fairgrounds.

About 9,000 fans watched Cosmic Baseball at Coca-Cola Park on Friday night. The game pitted Tri-City Chili Peppers and GloMojis wearing glow-in-the-dark uniforms and caps illuminated by UV light.