Arts & Culture

The Allentown Film Festival is now in its second year and will feature short films and Q&A sessions with filmmakers.

The event's theme this year is "All Jazzed Up," and students shared what they're excited — or jazzed up — about in their own lives.

Actor/comedian Patrick Roach, who plays the character Randy on “Trailer Park Boys,” will bring Randy's Cheeseburger Picnic to Maingate Nightclub on Saturday, June 1.

Violinist Diane Monroe and New Jersey-based dance group Nimbus are among the scheduled performers set for April at Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University.

Megan Campbell and her son Finley have just released their first storybook, "Home is Where the Heart is," which features some of the young man's favorite spots in Easton.

Blues Traveler, which also in the 1990s had five gold and platinum albums and whose 1990 hit "Run-Around" spent 49 weeks on the Top 100, will perform Aug. 24. Also on the show will be Big Head Todd and The Monsters, who had the Top 15 hits “Bittersweet,” “Broken Hearted Savior” and “Resignation Superman.”

A $900,000 grant to ArtsQuest and the City of Bethlehem will improve pedestrian infrastructure around the nonprofit's Banana Factory complex on Third Street.

A new event, Steel City Smokeout, will be held Saturday, July 20, on PNC Plaza on the SteelStacks campus in conjunction with Bethlehem restaurant Nick’s BBQ.

Moravian University students wrote and directed the productions as part of their Master of Fine Arts thesis projects. Their performances at Touchstone Theatre — spread out through April and starting this week — will explore disability, self-worth and creativity.

Heavyweight developer City Center plans to open its new music venue, The Archer, in the 900 block of Hamilton Street in Allentown later this fall. Construction is underway.

On Saturday, thousands of Eagles fans descended upon Coca-Cola Park to watch the 3rd annual DeVonta Smith & Friends Celebrity Softball Game, where proceeds benefitted St. Luke's and IronPigs charities

The Thunderhawk, one of 10 wooden roller coasters still operating, was built in 1924.

Fans came together at Fairview Cemetery on Saturday to pay homage to actress Jayne Mansfield, star of stage, page, and screen.

Brooks & Dunn, the country music Hall of Fame duo who, after retiring in 2010 has reunited for a tour of 20 venues, made a stop Friday at Allentown's PPL Center.

The free performance will take place starting at 5 p.m. Saturday, June 29 at the Rose Garden.

Tony Trischka’s EarlJam: A Tribute to Earl Scruggs, featuring Michael Daves, Jared Engel and Duncan Wickel, will be at 7 p.m. Sunday, June 30, Godfrey Daniels, 7 E. 4th St., Bethlehem.

Pablo Batista, Hector Rosado and Luisito Rosario will headline ArtsQuest's ¡Sabor! Latin Festival on Saturday, June 29.

The Pointer Sisters, known for the gold hits "Fire" and "He's So Shy" and "Slow Hand," will perform a dual-headline show with Billy Ocean, best known for his hits "Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)," "Loverboy" and "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)," at 8 p.m. Oct. 24.

David Archuleta, who at 17 finished second behind David Cook on the seventh season of "American Idol" in 2008, will be the supporting act at the show, at 7 p.m. Aug. 31.

Singer Tom Jones, who has had more than two dozen Top 30 hits on pop, rock, R&B, country and dance charts, will perform at 8 p.m. Sept. 13 at Wind Creek Event Center in Bethehem.

B Social, a state-of-the-art, multi-entertainment center and event venue, will hold its grand opening on July 15 at Saucon Square shopping center on Route 378 in Lower Saucon Township.

James Bartolacci, an Easton-area artist and grant-winner, is working on new pieces intended for an art exhibition in Germany.