Two new shows have been announced for downtown Reading’s Santander venues: Koe Wetzel will bring his “Damn Near Normal Tour” to Santander Arena on Aug. 31, and Beat will perform the music of ’80s King Crimson on Oct. 23 at the Santander Performing Arts Center. Tickets are on sale at santander-arena.com.
Country-meets-grunge singer-songwriter Wetzel has tallied over 1.3 billion streams and three RIAA gold-certified singles: “Feb. 28, 2016,” “Something To Talk About” and “Drunk Driving.” The tour is named for the Texan’s latest single, which dropped last month. Joining him on tour will be fellow purveyors of Texas country-rock, Treaty Oak Revival.
Beat features former King Crimson members Adrian Belew and Tony Levin banding together with guitar virtuoso Steve Vai and explosive Tool drummer Danny Carey to reinterpret three iconic ’80s King Crimson albums: “Discipline,” “Beat” and “Three of a Perfect Pair.”
Theater
The Reading Theater Project has announced the cast and performance details for “Holy Orders” by Susan E. Sneeringer, the first staged reading in the Play Reading Series: Wonder. The reading will take place Thursday at 7 p.m. at GoggleWorks Center for the Arts’ Boscov Theatre, 200 Washington St., Reading. Free parking is available behind the building.
Jody Reppert directs Sneeringer’s play about Margaret Delany, a 65-year-old nun who is suspended from her order after serving Mass for a needy Louisiana parish. The diocese has ignored multiple requests for a priest to perform the ritual and Margaret rises to the task, prepared to suffer the consequences for breaking with her order and her church. She has to wonder: Was this rebellious act in response to an urgent need or was this urgent need a chance to ascend to her true vocation, the life of a Catholic priest?
The cast features Tama McConnell as Margaret Delany, and also includes Richard Bradbury, Deb Brubaker, John Gancar, Vicki Haller Graff, Emily Hershey, Andrea Keck, Karyn Reppert and Kevin Wade.
This spring’s Play Reading Series will connect to the season’s theme of “Wonder” and will feature four plays by local and regional playwrights. Each is performed as a staged reading followed by a facilitated talkback with the playwright, director and actors.
Other Play Reading Series dates are as follows:
● April 25 at 7 p.m.: “Prospect Hill” by Bruce Walsh, directed by Kimberly Patterson.
● May 9 at 7 p.m.: “Banshee” by Adam Richter, directed by Sean Sassaman.
● May 16 at 7 p.m.: “Arachnothology (A Study of Spiders)” by Kimberly Patterson, directed by Andrea Kennedy Hart.
The readings are pay what you will, with a recommended price of $10. More information and tickets are available at readingtheaterproject.org.
Art
New Arts Program, Kutztown, will hold an opening reception Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. for “The Final Years 2000-2024,” with an introduction by James F.L. Carroll at 7:30 p.m. Guests will receive a complimentary vintage catalog, “James F.L. Carroll Writings.” The exhibition continues through June 23.
The exhibition is part of NAP’s 50th Season Celebration.
Featured artists representing 2000-2024 are Margery Amdur, Barry Assad, Stefan Balog, Betty Beaumont, Joe Beddall, Sylvia Benitez, John Cage, James F.L. Carroll, Tom Doyle, Tulio Desantis, Lisa Eshleman Murray, Ray Fowler, Philip Glass, Lauren Gohara, Patricia Goodrich, Paul Harryn, Maxan Jean-Louis, Akiko Kotani, Robert Murray, Terry Niedzialek, Ted Ormai, Liz Whitney Quisgard, Norman Sarachek, Ron Schira, Gwen Thomas, Don Voisine, Dan Welden, Michael Winkler and Douglas Zucco.
Exhibited works are from the NAP collection. Exhibition funding is in part through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the generosity of local businesses.
New Arts Program is located at 173 W. Main St., Kutztown. Gallery hours are Fridays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and by appointment seven days a week. Call 610 683-6440 to schedule a time.
Music
In recognition of April being Jazz Appreciation Month, The Music Performance Trust Fund, as administered through the American Federation of Musicians, Local 135-211 of Reading, PA, is sponsoring many free events throughout the month, as follows:
• Monday, 7 to 8 p.m.: Paul Colombo Group (Livestream at https://www.facebook.com/the.mptf/live)
• Wednesday, 3 to 4 p.m.: Kevin MacConnell Group (Livestream at https://www.facebook.com/the.mptf/live)
• Wednesday, 6 to 9 p.m.: AFM Reading Local 135-211 Annual Jazz Jam at the Reading Liederkranz
143 Spook Lane. Reservations: https://tables.toasttab.com/restaurants/ba83e0dd-3dd8-4036-a72d-7c6b46e4e165/findTime
• April 15, 7 to 8 p.m.: Skip Moyer Group’s Dexter Gordon Tribute (Livestream at https://www.facebook.com/the.mptf/live)
• Tuesday, April 16, 8 p.m.: Reading Pops Big Band at Muhlenberg Jr. High School
• April 20, 4 to 6 p.m.: Skip Moyer Group at the Earth Day celebration at Reading City Park
• April 22, noon: Julie Beth Drey & Robin Lilarose perform jazz and classical duets on clarinet and flute (Livestream at https://www.facebook.com/the.mptf/live)
• April 23, 6 to 7 p.m.: Chip Breaux & the Jazz Katz (Livestream at https://www.facebook.com/the.mptf/live)
• April 24, 6 to 8:30 p.m.: Hesse’s Hot Jazz performing traditional jazz/New Orleans music, Jimmie Kramer’s Peanut Bar, 332 Penn St. Call 610-376-8500 for reservations.
• April 28, 4:30 to 6 p.m.: Reading Pops Big Band at Reformation Lutheran Church, 3670 Perkiomen Ave., Exeter Township.
• April 30, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.: Bob Kreitz Duo at the Highlands at Wyomissing.
•••
Shillington native Erich Cawalla will reorganize his All-Star Big Band for a special fundraiser show, “A Celebration of Governor Mifflin Music,” on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the newly renovated Gov. Mifflin Senior High Auditorium.
The concert will also feature three Gov. Mifflin student groups: The High School Statesmen Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Andrew Cusano, The High School Governors under the direction of Greg Hill and
The Middle School Diplomats Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Stephanie Carter, assisted by Travis Williamson.
Cawalla and his All-Star Big Band will be joined by special guest vocalist Amy Banks. Banks has spent over two decades as a professional singer, actress and TV personality. A Minnesota native, she has appeared all over the world but now calls Lancaster home after relocating there to perform at The American Music Theatre. Since then, she has produced five albums, her third reaching Chartbound status at Jazz Week.
The concert came about after the Governor Mifflin Music Association approached Cawalla about organizing a fundraiser to raise funds for their organization as a bulk of their yearly revenue decreased due to not being able to have their annual “Strike Up the Bands” Marching Band competition.
Cawalla is a multi-instrumentalist and leader of The Uptown Band since 2006. He has released two full-length albums that received critical acclaim and charted on numerous national radio charts. His dream became a reality in March 2022 when he celebrated the release of the album “Erich Cawalla — The Great American Songbook” with his All-Star Big Band in front of almost 700 people at his alma mater, Gov. Mifflin.
Tickets for Thursday’s concert cost $20 in advance and $25 at the door and can be purchased at www.gmmusic.org, www.erichcawalla.com or by calling 610-781-8312.
