Arts & Culture

The Box Tops will be the opening act for another 1960s act, Herman's Hermits with Peter Noone, at Easton's State Theatre.Tickets, at $70-$90, remain available.

The new state-of-the-art system replaces a public address system developed 25 years ago. It will "deliver improved sound quality, broader coverage and an enhanced experience overall for performers and audiences," ArtsQuest said.

CountryFest, a free festival set for Aug. 21-22, "will bring the heart and soul of country music to the Lehigh Valley with two full days of live performances, great food and high-energy fun," ArtsQuest said in a release.

The fourth annual No Planet B Jamboree, a free festival featuring music, sustainable vendors and more, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 25, at the Town Square Community Stage outside ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem.

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Patty Griffin and Canadian singer Kathleen Edwards will perform a show July 16 at Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center in Bethlehem. Tickets fo on sale at noon Friday, April 17.

Now that Musikfest has completed the announcements of the headliners on its main Steel Stage, the festival still has to reveal the wide offerings on the festival's 15 free stages.

The Struts, whose style recalls bands such as The Rolling Stones and Queen and who has had the hits “Could Have Been Me” and “Kiss This,” will perform at 7 p.m. June 28 at Archer Music Hall, it was announced Monday.

Jesse Royal, a Jamaican who blends traditional roots reggae with modern influences and socially conscious lyrics, will perform at the July 11 festival on the SteelStacks campus. Royal will be among more than a dozen acts across three stages scheduled for the festival, set for noon-1:30 a.m.

Brian Regan, who has starred in several Comedy Central specials and refrains from profanity and off-color humor, will play State Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 25, the venue announced. And Lewis Black, known for his cantankerous comedic style and also as an author, playwright, social critic and actor, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 9.

Jessica Simpson, known for her 1999 platinum single "I Wanna Love You Forever," as well as for starring in the MTV reality show "Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica" with her husband, singer Nick Lachey, will perform at 8 p.m. June 11.

Looking at what has transpired at The Archer since it opened, Live Nation Head of Clubs Programming Molly Warren said, "We had an amazing first year."

Wilco, whose songs "I Might" and "Speak Into the Rose" hit the Top 5 on Billboard's Singles chart in 2011, will play "An Evening With Wilco" show at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks at 8 p.m. June 17.

T.I., best known for his eight-times- platinum hits "Whatever You Like" in 2008 and "Live Your Life (featuring Rihanna)," will perform at 6 p.m. Aug. 6.

James McMurtry, who in 1989 had the hit "Painting By Numbers," will perform with his band The Marshall Law Review at 7 p.m. June 21, it was announced.

The venue will hold its Archerversary at 8 p.m. March 7 in its smaller, 500-capacity Arrow room, with DJ sets from Leek and Vndtta, it said in a release.

Broadway's "Rock of Ages" Band features the musician case of the Broadway show playing what it calls playing "the greatest rock hits from the glam metal bands of the '80s."

Comedian/actor Steve Martin and funnyman Martin Short, who together have starred in successful film comedies, will perform The Best of Steve Martin and Martin Short on Friday, Nov. 6.

The Idobi Radio Summer School Tour will undertake its "junior" (as in third year of high school) year with performances by five "independent artists and bands on the verge of breaking out," the tour said in a release.

Steve Earle, best known for his 1998 Top 10 Mainstream Rock hit "Copperhead Road," will perform a show titled "51 Years of Songs & Stories" Friday, Aug. 21, at Musikfest Cafe.

Let Freedom Sing will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, at Allentown’s Coca-Cola Park. The IronPigs also will bring together adult, community and school choirs from the Lehigh Valley and surrounding counties.

Fiesta on Hamilton will return to take over Hamilton Street from 1 to 7 p.m. Sunday, May 17, the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce announced.

Don McLean, whose 1971 song “American Pie” was No. 1 for four weeks and was chosen No. 5 on the RIAA's list of Songs of the Century, will perform at Saturday, May 30.