Amarillo entertainment briefs for the week of Oct. 2, 2022
WT Theatre hopes to spell its way to S-U-C-C-E-S-S with new musical
CANYON — Laundry. Restaurant. Surpass. These are the words that still haunt the director and cast members of West Texas A&M University Theatre’s upcoming production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” a musical comedy celebrating the intense, awkward and adorably odd competitors of the titular bee.
The musical, by William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin, will be staged at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 2 in the Happy State Bank Studio Theatre inside the Sybil B. Harrington Fine Arts Complex.
In the show, six quirky preteens — under the watchful eyes of three equally idiosyncratic adults — are battling for the trophy, singing songs that illuminate their peculiarities, their challenging home lives and their sometimes-bizarre methods of correctly spelling, for example, “capybara” or “cystitis.”
Tickets are $16 for adults, $12 for seniors and non-WT students, and free for WT students, faculty and staff with a Buff Gold Card.
Cooper returns to Starlight Ranch stage
Kolby Cooper makes his way back to Starlight Ranch in Amarillo at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, for an outdoor show.
Only three years out of high school, still living in his small East Texas hometown, Cooper started selling out shows and clocking millions of streams using only his songs as muscle, earning streaming numbers typically reserved for household names.
Amassing more than 113.5 million on demand streams to date, the prolific songwriter has an uncanny ability to turn his and his friends’ life stories into relatable songs his rabidly zealous fanbase can’t get enough of. With new music on the horizon, Kolby headlined sold-out shows all over the country during his 2021 tour, bringing with him his signature blend of Lonestar State roots, rough-hewn vocals and wailing electric guitar.
Tickets for this concert range from $15 to $40 (plus taxes and fees) depending on VIP features.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.bigtexan.com/starlight-ranch-event-center/
Casting Crowns set to perform Oct. 8
Christian music group Casting Crowns brings its The Healer Tour to the Amarillo Civic Center Coliseum at 7 p.m. on Oct. 8.
The prolific and chart-topping CCM group has achieved sales milestones with more than 12 million albums sold. Additionally, they have received numerous RIAA certifications: one RIAA 2x multi-Platinum® album, five RIAA Platinum albums, two RIAA Platinum DVDs, seven RIAA Gold® albums, four Gold DVDs, six RIAA Platinum singles, and 12 RIAA Gold digital singles. Casting Crowns has also been honored with four American Music Awards (out of seven total nominations), a GRAMMY Award® for their 2005 album Lifesong, and eight additional GRAMMY Award nominations. In addition, the group has garnered 18 GMA Dove Awards, two Billboard Music Awards, and 13 total Billboard Music Award nominations.
The band's 2018 release, "Only Jesus", was met with astonishing success and response. Casting Crowns received its newest RIAA Gold Certification for their No. 1 song "Only Jesus" and RIAA Platinum Certification for the song "Nobody." This album also produced two No. 1 radio singles including the group's 15th career No. 1, a GRAMMY nomination, a 2019 Dove Award, two 2020 Dove Award nominations, and two Billboard Music Awards nominations for "Top Christian Album" and "Top Christian Song" ("Nobody" ft. Matthew West). The impact of this album three years later includes more than 480 million streams life to date. The band’s newest album, Healer, released early this year and has already yielded radio hits “Scars In Heaven” and “Crazy People.” For more information, visit CastingCrowns.com.
Tickets for this concert range from $30 to $125 (plus taxes and fees) depending on seating and are available for purchase online at panhandletickets.com
Amarillo Opera presents 'Barber of Seville'
Amarillo Opera presents Rossini's comedy "The Barber of Seville" on Saturday, Oct. 8, at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts.
Enjoy Figaro's mischievous escapades as he assists Count Almaviva in prising the beautiful Rosina away from her lecherous guardian, Bartollo. The performance will be in Italian with English surtitles.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit https://www.amarilloopera.org/ or panhandletickets.com .
Amarillo Symphony presents Dvorak
The Amarillo Symphony presents Dvorak's Cello Concerto at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 14 and 15, at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts.
The orchestra performs Dvořák’s lush cello concerto with superbly talented artist, Oliver Herbert, rising composer Jessie Montgomery’s joyous Strum, and Beethoven’s grand and uplifting Symphony No. 2.
Tickets for this performance range from $21 to $71 (plus taxes and fees) depending on seating and are available for purchase online at panhandletickets.com.
Muscadine Bloodline to perform Oct. 14 at Starlight Ranch
Muscadine Bloodline brings its Country Band Contraband Tour to the Starlight Ranch at 8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14, for an outdoor show.
On their Country Band Contraband Tour, Muscadine Bloodline take the stage across the country. They find their true voice on their upcoming new album, "Dispatch to 16th Ave."
Band members and friends Charlie Muncaster and Gary Stanton grew up in Mobile, Alabama, but didn’t cross paths until they each started to pursue their musical dreams. In 2012, they forged a friendship when Stanton opened a show for Muncaster’s band at Soul Kitchen in Mobile. Charlie’s contemporary vocals complimented by Gary’s harmonies and masterful guitar licks showcase a powerfully refreshing mix of talent, passion and unfiltered authenticity.
Since naming themselves Muscadine Bloodline in 2015, they’ve had two Billboard-charting critically-acclaimed EP’s, have sold out shows across the country, opened concerts for hundreds of artists and earned a standing ovation at their Grand Ole Opry debut in 2018. The guys’ Southern roots carry over to their band name as well: Muscadine grapes grow in the South while Bloodline represents their heritage.
Tickets for this concert range from $20 to $125 (plus taxes and fees) depending on VIP features.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.bigtexan.com/starlight-ranch-event-center/ .
'Menopause the Musical' set for Oct. 18
GFour Productions, winners of 56 Drama Desk and 44 Tony Awards, are bringing the international hit show "Menopause The Musical" to Amarillo. The national touring production will be at the Amarillo Civic Center Complex Auditorium for just one performance on Oct. 18.
"Menopause The Musical" is a groundbreaking celebration of women who are on the brink of, in the middle of, or have survived “The Change.” Tickets went on sale July 22 and are available online at PanhandleTickets.com, at the Civic Center Box Office, by phone at 806-378-3096 and area United Supermarkets.
Now celebrating 20 years of female empowerment through hilarious musical comedy, "Menopause The Musical" has evolved as a "grassroots" movement of women who deal with life adjustments after 40 by embracing each other and the road ahead. Set in a department store, four women meet while shopping for a black lace bra at a lingerie sale. After noticing similarities among one another, the cast jokes about their woeful hot flashes, mood swings, wrinkles, weight gain and much more. These women form a sisterhood and unique bond with the entire audience as they rejoice in celebrating that menopause is no longer “The Silent Passage.” Inspired by a hot flash and a bottle of wine, "Menopause The Musical," a laughter-filled 90-minute production, gets audience members out of their seats and singing along to parodies from classic pop songs of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.
"Menopause The Musical" is now in its 20th year and 15th as the longest-running musical in Las Vegas history, performing nightly at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Seen by more than 15 million, it has played every state in the continental U.S. and more than 500 cities worldwide, and has been translated into ninelanguages. For more information, visit www.MenopauseTheMusical.com.
"Menopause The Musical" is welcomed in Amarillo as a season add-on, followed shortly by Mannheim Steamroller Christmas and the 2022-2023 Broadway Spotlight Series which includes "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Legally Blonde," "Anastasia," and "Fiddler on the Roof." For more information on the season and season tickets, visit www.celebrityattractions.com/Amarillo.
Get social with the Broadway Spotlight Series by becoming a fan on Facebook.com/BwayAmarillo and Instagram.com/BwayAmarillo .
Party in the Panhandle set for Oct. 21
Randall King and Kevin Fowler make their return to the Panhandle for Party in the Panhandle at 8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, for an outdoor show at Starlight Ranch.
With a sound steeped in the timeless beauty of the endless plains of West Texas, both gritty and graceful at the same time, King creates a sound like no other with his modern traditionalist take on country music. He grew up singing in the back of a ‘93 Chevy Suburban, mimicking the pure-country vocals of stars like Keith Whitley, George Strait, Alan Jackson and John Anderson and over the years became drawn to the electrifying energy of modern stars like Eric Church, Dierks Bentley and Jason Aldean. With over 120+ million career streams to his name, Randall King is looking to the anywhere-and-everywhere future with music that captures the essence of a Western poet who’s never been afraid to be himself.
Texas country mainstay Fowler has a found way to live the dream - by earning it. It’s never been an easy or short road, but it’s a path he wouldn’t trade and has positioned him as one of the most consistent artists, in any genre, of the last two decades. Kevin Fowler rolled out his long-awaited studio album, "Barstool Stories", in August of 2019. "Barstool Stories" confirms the dream Fowler keeps living – repeatedly making great music, having a lot of fun doing it and inviting the audience to do the same and this album proudly claims its place as his current “snapshot in time.”
Tickets for this concert range from $25 to $65 (plus taxes and fees) depending on VIP features.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.bigtexan.com/starlight-ranch-event-center/
Johnson bringing country sound to Civic Center
Eleven-time Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jamey Johnson is scheduled to perform at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, at the Amarillo Civic Center.
Johnson is one of only a few people in the history of country music to win two Song of the Year Awards from both the CMA and ACMs. His 2008 album, "That Lonesome Song", was certified platinum for 1 million in sales, and his 2010 ambitious double album, The Guitar Song, received a gold certification.
In addition, he won two Song of the Year Trophies, for “Give It Away” and “In Color,” both from the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association.
In 2012, the Alabama native released his fifth studio album, a tribute project to late songwriter Hank Cochran. The Grammy-nominated "Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran" paired him with Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Ray Price, Elvis Costello, George Strait, Vince Gill and Merle Haggard.
In 2013, the Nashville Scene’s 13th annual Country Music Critics’ Poll named it the year’s best album. (Two years earlier, the same poll named Johnson’s The Guitar Song as the year's best album, and Johnson himself as best male vocalist, best songwriter and artist of the year.)
Tickets for this concert range from $45 to $65 (plus taxes and fees) depending on seating.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com
Intocable coming to Civic Center
After 27 years of artist trajectory, Intocable returns to Amarillo with its new tour "Modus Operandi" for one night only, at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, at the Amarillo Civic Center.
Intocable is one of the most influential groups in the Tejano/Norteño music scene today. Their road to success began over twenty five years ago in Zapata, Texas, when friends Ricky Muñoz and René Martínez dreamed of bringing their songs to the world as they crafted a unique and extraordinary style of music which expertly fuses Tejano conjunto music, Norteño folk rhythms, pop ballads and rock.
Don't miss one night with Intocable, playing their classic hits and a few new songs from their new album "Modus Operandi".
Tickets for this concert range from $50 to $100 (plus taxes and fees) depending on seating.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com
R-Rated Magic Show set for Nov. 4
This is not your grandfather's magic show…
An R-Rated Magic Show is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts.
Side-splitting comedy and mind-blowing magic are brought into the spotlight as comedy magician Grant Freeman brings his unique, raunchy show full of surprises to Amarillo.
This show is recommended for those ages 18 and older.
Tickets range from $28 to $44 (plus taxes and fees) and are available online at panhandletickets.com.
USO Variety Show raises funds for local arts
WOWW USO Variety Show is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, in the Grand Plaza, 401 S. Buchanan St.
The WOWW USO Variety Show will highlight history from the WWII time era and the glory of the United States military as well as the strength of America’s courage.
Fabulous swing music from this genre will be performed by Patrick Swindell and the Esquire Band, as well as spotlighting the Andrews Sisters and Ed Montana in a musical tribute to the Greatest Generation.
The evening wouldn’t be complete without tap dancing, swing & Jitterbug dancing, and a finale the Panhandle will not soon forget.
The WOWW Factor celebrates art and music from one generation to the next, don’t miss this musical extravaganza performed by incredible local talent. If you have a love for children and a heart for education, you will want to support this event by participating in a dinner theater style fundraiser for WOWW.
Fundraiser Tickets Include: Cash Bar, Dinner, and 1940’s USO Variety Show, salute to United states Veterans, and swing dancing until midnight.
Tickets range from $100 to $150 and are on sale now at PanhandleTickets.com
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo entertainment briefs for Oct. 2, 2022
