Arts & Culture

While headliners make headlines, Musikfest continues to give big opportunities to local musicians from the greater Lehigh Valley, fueling about a third of the festival's performances.

A whole lot of fans of the Nickelodeon show came to see Big Time Rush in its new era as the weather finally broke at Musikfest.

Welcome to LehighValleyNews.com's Fest in Show, a daily offering of some of the can't-miss acts on the free stages of Bethlehem's Musikfest festival.

Originally from Norfolk, Virginia, Jason Benning never thought he'd find himself in the Lehigh Valley, let alone at a "music festival he's never heard of." Yet, it would lead to him meeting the love of his life

The six-time Grammy winners performed a medley of their hits at the main Steel Stage as the rain poured down on Thursday, August 8.

Chicago, which is among the Top 30 bestselling music acts of all time, with more than 120 million copies of its 46 albums sold worldwide, will play at 8 p.m. Oct. 25. And Engelbert Humperdinck, known for his hits "Release Me," "There Goes My Everything" and "A Man Without Love," will perform at 8 p.m. Dec. 7.

Welcome to LehighValleyNews.com's Fest in Show, a daily offering of some of the can't-miss acts on the free stages of Bethlehem's Musikfest festival.

Performances of eVenti Verticali SPHERE will take place at 7, 9 and 11 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 10, and 5, 7 and 9 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 11, on Lehigh Valley Public Media's plaza and ArtsQuest's Town Square.

In an hour-and 22-minute set at Musikfest's main Steel Stage on Wednesday, Lynyrd Skynyrd played 13 songs — all the hits, but also deeper tunes — spanning the band's career.

Bethlehem's Austin Shaffer downed five ears of corn in just over four and half minutes to win the Aw Shucks Corn Eating Contest at Musikfest on Wednesday night.

An opening reception will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, with a gallery talk on Wyso's Christmas collection by the exhibition's curator, Steven J. Lichak.

Hundreds of animated shorts from cartoons to Polish and Iranian stories will come alive onscreen at the historic movie theater through Sunday, Nov. 9.

The show runs at 7 p.m. today, Nov. 7, and at the same time Saturday in Emmaus High School’s auditorium. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.

Filmmaker-turned-showrunner Jiah Peck debuts the entire first season of an original comedy series at the Emmaus Theatre at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The baby alpaca was born Oct. 23. The zoo is taking suggestions for a name.

Journey, perhaps best known for its 1981 hit "Don't Stop Believin'," will perform at 7 p.m. June 11 at Allentown's PPL Center, the event center announced.

Bethlehem Area Public Library's annual 11Fest fundraising concert, which seeks to turn up the volume — and donations — to 11, is set for 5-11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11 (11/11).

The Christmas tree for Bethlehem's annual display was delivered to Payrow Plaza on Wednesday. The 43-foot-tall spruce was donated by the Simoes family of Bethlehem Township.

Pop-punk singer Taylor Acorn, who attended Kutztown University, plays Allentown's Archer Music Hall on Saturday, Nov. 8. Tickets, at $33 each, remain available.

The Vegan Chef challenge was organized by Vegan Outreach and Animal Defenders Greater Lehigh Valley, and the challenge drew more than 400 community reviews between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15. Winners were honored at an awards ceremony Tuesday, Nov. 4, inside Swift at the Wilbur Mansion.

The My Generation Tour, led by The Lovin' Spoonful, will perform at 7:30 p.m. March 13 at Easton's State Theatre. Also on the bill are Gary Lewis and The Playboys — best known for its 1965 chart-topping hit "This Diamond Ring" — and The Hollies Greatest Hits starring Hollies guitarist Terry Sylvester.

Tickets for the 17th PeepsFest, at $5 per person, will go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 7 at the ArtsQuest website or the box office at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks, 101 Founder Way, Bethlehem.