Arts Picks: StageFest at Civic, Downtown@Dusk, Blossom Festival concerts, 'Ain't Too Proud'

Kerry Clawson, Akron Beacon Journal
·4 min read
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Summit StageFest

The free Summit StageFest, founded in 2017 by the former Partners for Theater, will move indoors and be presented by the Akron Civic Theatre this year, from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday.

Thirteen performance groups or artists will perform 30- to 45-minute showcases of their recent works and/or medleys. They are Tower Eighty Players at noon on the Civic stage, Luminescent Moon Theatre at noon on the Knight Stage, Phoenix Performing Arts at 1 p.m. on the Civic stage, Boom! Theater's Steven Scionti at 1 p.m. on the Knight Stage, Just Go With It Improv at 1 p.m. at Wild Oscar's, Western Reserve Playhouse at 2 p.m. on the Civic stage, Gum Dip Theatre at 2 p.m. at Wild Oscar's, Hearts for Music at 3 p.m. on the Civic Stage, Millennial Theater Project at 3 p.m. on the Knight Stage, Point of No Return Improv at 3 p.m. at Wild Oscar's, Miller South at 4 p.m. on the Civic stage, Boom! Theater at 4 p.m. on the Knight Stage and ETC All American Youth Show Choir at 5 p.m. on the Civic stage,

For more information, see www.akroncivic.com.

Downtown at Dusk

The Akron Art Museum will kick off its free Downtown@Dusk concert series for the 38th season with singer-songwriter Anne E. DeChant 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the Bud and Susie Rogers Garden. Gallery admission is also free.

The museum also will host a Members Appreciation Night at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, including a custom AAM Centennial ice cream flavor, cake, drinks and a commemorative centennial collectible.

Downtown@ Dusk concerts will run rain or shine through July, featuring saxophonist Chris Coles and his group Gleam July 14, The Numbers band July 21 and reggae band Umojah Nation July 28. See https://akronartmuseum.org/ for more information.

Anne E. DeChant
Anne E. DeChant

'Scheherazade' at Blossom with Cleveland Orchestra 

Elim Chan will conduct the Cleveland Orchestra in a program featuring Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade," which will bring "Arabian Nights" to life at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Blossom Music Festival at Blossom Music Center. Also on the program are Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1, performed by Benjamin Grosvenor, and Weber's Overture to "Der Freischütz."

For tickets, which run from $25 to $99, see clevelandorchestra.com.

More: Cleveland Orchestra announces Blossom season with return of films, some lesser-known gems

Hong Kong conductor Elim Chan will make her Cleveland Orchestra debut with the "Scheherazade" program Saturday at the Blossom Music Festival.
Hong Kong conductor Elim Chan will make her Cleveland Orchestra debut with the "Scheherazade" program Saturday at the Blossom Music Festival.
British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor will perform Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 Saturday at the Blossom Music Festival.
British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor will perform Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 Saturday at the Blossom Music Festival.

Music of Paul Simon with Cleveland Orchestra

The Cleveland Orchestra and pop/rock vocalists will perform the songbook of multi-Grammy-winning legend Paul Simon at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Blossom Music Festival at Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls. Hits from the singer/songwriter’s years with Simon and Garfunkel and as a solo artist will include “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Graceland” and “The Sound of Silence.” Jeff Tyzik will conduct in his Cleveland Orchestra debut.

Cost is $25-$99. See clevelandorchestra.com.

More: Blossom Music Festival to kick off with holiday weekend concerts. What you need to know

'Ain't Too Proud' at Playhouse Square

The musical "Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations" makes its Northeast Ohio touring premiere Tuesday through July 31 at the State Theatre at Playhouse Square. The new tour, which began in December in Durham, North Carolina, features Baldwin Wallace University graduates Shayla Brielle G, a Cincinnati native, as Mama Rose/Florence Ballard/Tammi Terrell and Maple Heights native Antwaun Holley as a swing. Costumes are by Akron native and Tony Award winner Paul Tazewell.

The jukebox musical follows The Temptations’ journey from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, featuring their signature dance moves and silky-smooth harmonies. The story of the legendary quintet is set to their greatest hits, including “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination,” “Get Ready,” “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” and more. It was nominated for 12 Tonys in 2019 and won for best choreography by Sergio Trujillo.

More: Playhouse Square announces 2021-22 Broadway series, including ‘Pretty Woman,’ ‘Frozen,’ ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’

Cost is $10-$119, with shows running 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays, 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays. See playhousesquare.org or call 216-241-6000.

More: Hot shows from 'Hadestown' to 'Six' part of seven-show Playhouse Square lineup for '22-'23

Baldwin Wallace University graduate and Cincinnati native Shayla Brielle G., far right, performs as Florence Ballard of the Supremes with Traci Elaine Lee, left, and Deri’Andra Tucker in the national tour of "Ain’t Too Proud," at Playhouse Square July 12 to 31.
Baldwin Wallace University graduate and Cincinnati native Shayla Brielle G., far right, performs as Florence Ballard of the Supremes with Traci Elaine Lee, left, and Deri’Andra Tucker in the national tour of "Ain’t Too Proud," at Playhouse Square July 12 to 31.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Arts picks: StageFest at Civic, Downtown@Dusk, Blossom Music Festival