Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
FILL YOUR WEEKEND WITH MUSIC, THEATER, COMEDY AND WILD LIGHTS
The following events are planned for this weekend and beyond throughout the region: • The Santander Performing Arts Center, Reading, presents the Queen tribute band Almost Queen on Friday at 8 p.m., and acclaimed blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Donning genuine costumes, Almost Queen recaptures the live energy and precision of the originals, including four-part harmonies and intricate musical interludes. Bonamassa continues to blaze a remarkably versatile artistic trail and amass an authentic, innovative and soulful body of work. His career began onstage opening for B.B. King in 1989 when he was only 12 years old. Today, he is hailed worldwide as one of the greatest guitar players of his generation and is an ever-evolving singersongwriter with over 40 albums to date all under his own label, J&R Adventures. In addition to his music and shows, Bonamassa continues
Comedian Derek Gaines performs Friday at SoulJoel’s. to crank out weekly programming for his radio show, “Different Shades Of Blue,” for Sirius XM’s Bluesville channel. He’s touring in support of his brandnew studio album, “Time Clocks,” which is a testament to his credentials and a toast to his longtime fans. His new sound has a raw and vital flavor, combined with a resolute skill that can only be gained through years of perseverance and unyielding dedication. For concert tickets, visit santander-arena.com. • Hedgerow Theatre, Rose
Valley, is staging “A Christmas Carol,” Nagle Jackson’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’ timeless tale exploring what Christmas can mean to each of us differently, and how it can inspire and speak to us throughout the years. The holiday classic features returning artist Brian McCann as Ebeneezer Scrooge, and will be directed by Penelope Reed, former longtime executive artistic director of Hedgerow Theatre and recent recipient of the Barrymore Lifetime Achievement Award. The cast includes resident company members Adam Altman, Thane Madsen, Michael McInerney and Susan Wefel, who are joined by “A Christmas Carol” veterans Stacy Skinner and Zoran Kovcic. The production runs through Dec. 24. For show times, tickets and more information, visit www. hedgerowtheatre.org or call 610-565-4211. • Elmwood Park Zoo, Norristown, has announced the return of its holiday lights event, Wild Lights, for its fourth consecutive year. Wild Lights transforms the zoo into a dazzling holiday wonderland, with thousands of lights adorning the trees, exhibits and buildings throughout the zoo’s 16acres. Most nights of Wild Lights will also feature wild animal encounters, live performances, live DJs, photos with Santa, carousel rides and more. New events scheduled to be held during this year’s Wild Lights include Dog Nights, when guests can visit with their four-legged friends; Wild Lights Just For You, when guests with sensory sensitivities will enjoy smaller crowds and lower volumes; and Montco Makers Tasting Nights, when The Zoo Brew Bar and Beer Garden will host local breweries, distilleries and wineries sampling their finest creations. Wild Lights runs from 5 to 9 p.m. on select dates through Dec. 30, and admission is $14.95 for adults and children. Tickets can be purchased in person or online at epzwildlights.com.
• Act II Playhouse, Ambler, kicks off its 2021-22 mainstage season with the variety show “Really Good Tidings,” with previews Nov. 30 through Dec. 2, and then running Dec. 3-30. “We wanted to open with a new variety show that we think our audiences deserve this holiday season,” said artistic director Tony Braithwaite. “We’re writing and will be performing as an ensemble, so we’re all gearing up for festive hilarity, songs, sketches and improv. Every performance will be unique!” For show times, tickets and more information, call 215654-0200 or visit act2.org.
• The Greater Philadelphia Expo Center at Oaks plays host to the Not Just Rock Record Show on Friday from noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The record show features dealers from across the U.S., Canada and Europe, offering a large selection of new and used, rare, collectible and common records, CDs, DVDs, tapes, 45’s, 12″ Singles, posters, T-shirts, books and memorabilia in all types of music. Admission is $5each day; pre-show admission costs $15 on Friday from 10:30 a.m. to noon and
Saturday from 8:30 to 10 a.m. For more information, see notjustrockexpo.com.
• The Colonial Theatre, Phoenixville, presents the Fanci Fridays Holiday Extravaganza drag show on Friday at 9 p.m., and an exclusive author engagement with Neal Stephenson on Saturday at 7p.m. Stephenson is a science-fiction living legend, will discuss his 2021 novel “Termination Shock,” which transports readers to a near-future world in which the greenhouse effect has inexorably resulted in a whirling-dervish troposphere of superstorms, rising sea levels, global flooding, merciless heat waves and virulent, deadly pandemics. Tickets for Fanci Friday range from $25 to $35. Tickets for Stephenson cost $42for one ticket and one free copy of Stephenson’s book, or $47 for two tickets and one free copy of Stephenson’s book.
• Sellersville Theater kicks off its weekend in the holiday spirit on Friday at 8 p.m. with Gary Ho Ho Hoey performing songs from his popular “Ho Ho Hoey Complete Collection,” which combines three volumes of albums full of holiday classics. Ben Brandt & The Soul Miners Union will open. Beatlemania Now takes the stage on Saturday for shows at 3 and 8 p.m., and the Americana/bluegrass band Nefesh Mountain performs on Wednesday at 8p.m. For tickets and more information, visit st94.com.
• The Keswick Theatre, Glenside, welcomes a couple of tribute band this weekend. The Machine performs
Pink Floyd on Friday at 8 p.m., and the Musical Box performs “A Genesis Extravaganza Volume 2” on Saturday at 6:30 and 10 p.m. The Machine, a New York-based quartet, performs a diverse mix of Pink Floyd’s extensive 16-album repertoire, complete with faithful renditions of popular hits as well as obscure gems. The Musical Box, the only band ever licensed and supported by Genesis and Peter Gabriel, will present a new, never performed show featuring the music of “Trespass,” “Nursery Cryme,” “Foxtrot,” “Selling England by the Pound,” “A Trick of the Tail,” “Wind & Wuthering” and “And Then They Were Three.” For tickets and more information, see keswicktheatre.com. •
Ardmore Music Hall presents Cabinet with the Dirty Grass Players
on Friday at 8 p.m. and A Grateful Gathering with Steve Kimock & Friends on Saturday at 8 p.m., with special guests Tim Carbone of Railroad Earth and Ron Holloway of the Warren Haynes Band. Cabinet honors the canon of roots, rock, reggae, psychedelia, blues, bluegrass, country
and folk, weaving these sounds into a patchwork Americana quilt. Kimock is regarded as one of the great guitar improvisers of his generation, inspiring music fans with his signature sound voiced through electric, acoustic, lap and pedal steel guitars for over four decades. For tickets and more information, visit ardmoremusichall.com. •
SoulJoel’s Comedy Club presents Derek Gaines
on Friday at 7 p.m. and Judy Gold on Saturday at 7 p.m. at its new pop-up location at Westover Golf Club, Jeffersonville. Gaines was born in California, but found his comedy chops while growing up in Philadelphia. He currently resides in New York City, where he regularly performs and brings a unique perspective to growing up African American in the suburbs. He recently had a break out role on the NBC hit “Will & Grace.” Gold has had stand-up specials on HBO, Comedy Central and LOGO. She has written and starred in two critically acclaimed off-Broadway hit shows: “The Judy Show — My Life as a Sitcom” and “25 Questions for a Jewish Mother.” For tickets and more information, visit souljoels.com.