Log In


Reset Password

Entertainment around the area

Journey’s Final Frontier Tour, the name taking a cue from the rock band’s 1983 album “Frontiers,” leads the entertainment events coming to local and regional venues over the next two weeks.

The show, billed as Journey’s farewell tour, plays the PPL Center. The 2017 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s 1981 single “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” and 1988 album “Greatest Hits” each have topped 18 million in sales units, per Recording Industry Association of America certifications.

Among other nostalgia-fueled events, the Happy Together Tour returns to Penn’s Peak. Meanwhile, Wind Creek Event Center welcomes Kansas, Don McLean and a Temptations/Four Tops double bill, while “Drew Carey Show” star Craig Ferguson brings his brand of comedy to the Sherman Theater.

PENN’S PEAK

325 Maury Road, Jim Thorpe

866-605-7325, pennspeak.com

• The Fresh Kids of Bel-Air, 8 p.m. Friday. The act, performing music from the 1990s and 2000s, takes part of its name from NBC sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” which ran from 1990 to 1996.

• Happy Together Tour, 8 p.m. June 4. The showcase of 1960s and 1970s hits takes its name from rock band The Turtles’ same-titled 1967 hit. Singer Ron Dante, whose hits include The Cuff Links’ “Tracy” and fictional band The Archies’ “Sugar, Sugar,” will perform Turtles music. The Association (“Cherish”), The Troggs (“Wild Thing”), Gary Puckett (“Young Girl”) and others will also perform.

• Hey Nineteen, 8 p.m. June 5. The group performs the music of rock band Steely Dan, taking its name from the same-titled 1980 Steely Dan single.

TAMAQUA COMMUNITY

ARTS CENTER

125 Pine St., Tamaqua

570-668-1192, tamaquaarts.org

• “Something Rotten! The Musical,” 7 p.m. today through Saturday, The Stitch. Center Stage Community Theatre presents the musical comedy, set in the 1590s. Two struggling playwright brothers, desperate to outshine the wildly popular William Shakespeare, turn to a soothsayer who predicts the future of theater … and accidentally invents the world’s first musical.

• Opening Reception/Artist Meet & Greet: “Wanamaker Chalk About It,” 5:30 p.m. June 4. LD Wanamaker, a self-taught chalk pastel artist based in Kutztown, appreciates the natural world. She focuses on capturing the character, presence and emotion of each subject.

• We May Be Right, 7 p.m. June 6, The Stitch. The act performs the music of singer-songwriter Billy Joel, taking inspiration for its name from Joel’s 1980 single “You May Be Right.”

VIC’S JAZZ LOFT

AT THE STABIN MUSEUM

268 W. Broadway, Jim Thorpe

570-325-5588, vicsjazzloft.com

• Mike Lorenz Trio, 7 p.m. Friday. Lorenz, a guitarist/composer/educator, hails from Bethlehem. The musician, an artist-lecturer at Moravian University, has recorded with a variety of groups. The Allentown Symphony Organization has premiered several of Lorenz’s works for string quartet.

• Celebration of Life: Paul Kendall, 2 p.m. Saturday. Rudy Petschauer hosts the event, which honors the life and legacy of musician/educator Paul Kendall. Fellow musicians, former students, friends and family will share in an afternoon of remembrance, stories and jazz.

MAUCH CHUNK OPERA HOUSE

14 W. Broadway, Jim Thorpe

570-325-0249, mcohjt.com

• Boat House Row, 8 p.m. Saturday. The Philadelphia group performs yacht rock, a polished brand of soft rock that emanated from Southern California between 1976 and 1984.

• Willy Porter, 7:30 p.m. June 4. Born in Mequon, Wisconsin, the singer-songwriter/musician released his first album in the late 1980s. Porter’s 13th full-length album “The Ravine” arrived in 2023.

THE MAHONING DRIVE-IN

635 Seneca Road, Lehighton

484-613-1314, mahoningdit.com

• “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” Book Launch Event, 6 p.m. Sunday. The theater will screen John Hughes’ 1986 teen comedy film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” starring Matthew Broderick, Jennifer Grey and Charlie Sheen, among others. The event serves as a release party for Jason Klamm’s new book “Ferris Bueller … You’re My Hero: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Day Off.” Showtime at sundown.

• “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” Fan Event, 5 p.m. June 5 and 6. The theater will screen 1990’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and 1991’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.” The event also includes the annual Big Kid Toy Show, with Big Kid Store and other themed vendors, comic artist Chris Allan, a pre-show DJ set, themed eats and a raffle. Showtime at sundown.

BECKY’S DRIVE-IN

4548 Lehigh Drive, Walnutport

610-767-2249, beckysdi.com

• 80th Anniversary Celebration, 5 p.m. June 6. The event includes a ribbon cutting ceremony, music, movie characters, twist balloons, face painting, magic, a moon bounce, and trackless train and fire engine rides. Fireworks at approximately 9:30 p.m.; a double feature follows. Rain date of June 13.

PPL CENTER

701 Hamilton St., Allentown

610-224-4625, pplcenter.com

• Journey, 7:30 p.m. June 11. Formed in 1973 in San Francisco, the rock band features co-founder Neal Schon and longtime member Jonathan Cain. Journey has released 15 studio albums, scoring hit singles such as “Any Way You Want It,” “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Open Arms,” “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” and “Faithfully.” Arnel Pinada has served as lead singer since 2007.

WIND CREEK EVENT CENTER

77 Wind Creek Blvd., Bethlehem

610-224-4625, windcreekeventcenter.com

• Kansas, 8 p.m. Friday. Formed in 1973 in Topeka, Kansas, the rock band released its 16th studio album in 2020. Kansas’ hit singles include “Carry On Wayward Son,” “Point of Know Return” and “Dust in the Wind.” Original members Rich Williams and Phil Ehart, still with the band, have stepped back from regular touring as result of health issues.

• Don McLean, 8 p.m. Saturday. Born in New Rochelle, New York, the singer-songwriter released his 22nd studio album in 2024. McLean’s hits include the eight-minute-plus Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single “American Pie,” plus ‘Vincent,” “Dreidel,” “Castles in the Air” and a cover of Roy Orbison’s “Crying.”

• The Temptations and The Four Tops, 8 p.m. June 6. The groups, formed in Detroit, helped define the 1960s Motown sound with hits such as “My Girl,” “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone,” “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” and “Reach Out I’ll Be There.” Between the two groups, just one surviving original member remains: The Temptations’ Otis William.

SHERMAN THEATER

524 Main St., Stroudsburg

570-420-2808, shermantheater.com

• “Taylor Simon King: Celebrating Three American Troubadours,” 8 p.m. Saturday. The show pays tribute to singer-songwriters James Taylor, Carly Simon and Carole King.

• “Planet KPop,” 8 p.m. June 4. The show includes tributes to the music of “KPop Demon Hunters,” BTS, Huntr/x, Blackpink, Kateseye, Seventeen, Stray Kids and Twice.

• Patent Pending, 7:30 p.m. June 5. The pop punk/rock band, hailing from Long Island, New York, formed in 2001. Patent Pending, with six studio albums to its credit, will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its 2006 debut effort “Save Each Other, the Whales are Doing Fine.”

• Craig Ferguson, 8 p.m. June 6. The Scottish stand-up comedian, actor and writer played maligned English boss Nigel Wick on the ABC sitcom “The Drew Carey Show” from 1995 to 2004. Ferguson, who hosted CBS’ “The Late Late Show” from 2005 to 2014, has numerous other film and TV credits. Among them: voice work in the 2010-19 “How to Train Your Dragon” film trilogy and 2011’s “Winnie the Pooh,” and hosting game shows such as “Celebrity Name Game” and “Scrabble.”

Scottish stand-up comedian, actor and writer Craig Ferguson comes to the Sherman Theater on June 6. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
None