Arts & Culture

The broad range of shows coming to Allentown's new Archer Music Hall includes an all-star revue of New Orleans musicians that headlined Musikfest's main stage, an iconic original punk band and an early 2000s teen chart-topper.

The new exhibits feature artwork by well-known creatives and former residents of the New Arts Program, plus pieces by local artists Rain Black and Mallory Zondag.

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers tribute band Damn the Torpedoes will perform Friday, Jan. 17, at Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem.

A top-priced $99 ticket for country star Darius Rucker at Musikfest on Aug. 3 normally would come with a $10 service fee, a $8.50 Musikfest venue fee and a $1 ticket vendor fee. So normally, you'd pay $19.50 in fees (a 19.7% upcharge) per ticket. But not today.

The fledgling cultural center on Church Road in Martins Creek is at the former Good Shepherd Church, built in 1864. The center offers monthly lunches for seniors, free classes for children, monthly movie nights, book clubs and gardening.

The 109th PA Farm Show is in full swing and continues through Saturday in Harrisburg. Find out how Lehigh Valley competitors placed in the Family Living and Commodities competitions.

Ahead of the Civic Theatre's staging of "Jesus Christ Superstar," Ted Neeley, star of the 1973 film, will visit Allentown for a special appearance.

The Lehigh Valley Arts and Culture Alliance is offering grants to individual artists and nonprofits to help revamp parts of downtown Allentown. LVACA also seeks artists to paint a mural on the Spiral parking garage on Linden St.

ArtsQuest's annual celebration of Three Kings Day brought hundreds of families to SteelStacks Sunday. The festivities celebrate not only the holiday, but the cultures that observe it.

In the last year and a half, Allentown School District spent more than $1.4 million on new instruments and hired 34 educators to teach the related arts, which include band, choir and orchestra, among others.

“Weird Al” Yankovic, best known for turning Michael Jackson’s 1984 hit “Beat It” into the parody “Eat It” for a Top 15 hit that was certified gold, will perform at Musikfest 2026, it was announced.

Bailey Zimmerman, best known for his multi-platinum hits "Fall in Love," "Rock and a Hard Place" and "Religiously," will perform at 7 p.m. Aug. 6, ArtsQuest revealed Monday.

Next month, Wind Creek Event Center owner Jeff Trainer plans to open The Broken Record, a restaurant in Lower Macungie Township that will combine a broad range of food offerings with a music theme — and perhaps more.

Crayola has announced the lineup for Crayola Creativity Week 2026, with special guests like Kate Micucci — a Nazareth native — and Questlove.

Just like the former Bethlehem shop, the store sells gently worn women’s, men’s, and kids’ clothing — all donated by members of the Barkley family.

Christmas City Village will run from Nov. 14 through Dec. 21, operating from noon to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Christkindlmarkt will run Fridays-Sundays through Nov. 30. It then will open Thursdays-Sundays, Dec. 4 though Dec. 21.

Illumination is back at Coca-Cola Park for the holiday season with more experiences and more lights. For its second year, the seasonal event returned with about 1.5 million lights and more chances to warm up and embrace the holiday spirit.

Holiday lights will illuminate the Lehigh Valley Zoo and Coca-Cola Park while Christmas City decks the hall with Moravian traditions this holiday season.

Circle Jerks, whose 1980 album "Group Sex" is considered to be a landmark in hardcore punk, will perform at 7 p.m. March 31 at Allentown's Archer Music Hall. Gorilla Biscuits and Negative Approach, two other hardcore band from the 1980s, will open the show.

"The Vault" is Lehigh Valley Public Media’s collection of original PBS39 programming through the years, plus community content made in the Lehigh Valley. Several programs are in PBS39's Friday night lineup through the end of the year.

Sabrina Carpenter, a Lower Milford Township native, is nominated for six Grammys this year.