Time flies….

Yes, there are many wonderful arts and music events going on this weekend and in May. The Allentown Jazz Fest starts tonight, April 29, 2016, the Allentown Cherry Blossom Festival is Saturday, the last day in April, Will Kimbrough is performing a Landhaven House Concert Saturday night, April 30th….

But we just finished putting together the performance schedule for Make Music Upper Perk 2016, and sent it off to our volunteer graphic designer Jyss at 3:15 p.m. today. So between Make Music Upper Perk and some major email and ISP issues, this blog will have to wait until later this evening or tomorrow morning for more comprehensive posts and updating on the music, arts, and theater pages – but be sure to check back because there are some wonderful things happening in the Upper Perkiomen Valley and nearby in the month of May!

Starting tonight – weekend highlights

Irish music is in the air and in our area this weekend, starting tonight.

Charlie Zahm returns for the 4th annual Celtic Night on Friday, April 22, 2016.Tickets will be available at the door tonight, which opens at 6:30 p.m. for the 7 p.m. Celtic concert at the Pottstown Public Library, 500 E. High Street. Proceeds benefit the Pottstown Regional Public Library. Light refreshments are included in the $20 ticket price. Refreshments are provided by Manatawny Still Works.

Charlie Zahm is one of the most sought-after Celtic singers on the East Coast and the Pottstown Regional Public Library is lucky to be hosting this amazing performer for one night of music. His knowledge of Irish and Scottish stories and deft guitar skills will entertain everyone.
With his baritone voice, Charlie Zahm has performed on television and has been one of a few in the world invited to sing with the “Black Watch” of Scotland.

Burning Bridget Cleary  takes the stage in Barto on Saturday evening, April 23, 2016 at Landhaven B & B, 1194 Huff’s Church Road, Barto, PA. Doors open at 7:15 and the show starts at 8 p.m. All concerts at Landhaven are BYOB, but Concert Cuisine in a Box meals may be requested if ordered before noon on Friday (610.845.3257).

Celebrate spring and this beautiful weather by dropping by the Southside Arts Festival and Spring on SouthSide in Bethlehem on Saturday, between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Consider starting at the Banana Factory, 25 W. 3rd Street, Bethlehem where you can see, and in some cases create some art yourself, graffiti art and tagging, glass-blowing, mosaic tiling, sidewalk chalk art, and more.

An interactive arts experience, the SouthSide Arts Festival is packed with dynamic activities for every artist in the family. With yarn bombers to transform ordinary backdrops into works of fabric art, chalk artists to inspire driveway masterpieces, and a host of demonstrations and workshops, the festival is five straight hours filled with artistic inspiration.

Walk down 3rd Street and check out the South Side Chili Festival, hear the music on stage at Godfrey Daniels at 7 E. 4th Street from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (folk, alternative rock, rock, and blues; performers include Dave Fry, Mike Duck of Not for Coltrane and Jack Murray & The Blue Tarp Wranglers). The guitar duo AcoustiKatz will play from noon to 2 outside of the Asian Bistro at 24 E. 3rd Street. Additional free entertainment, science experiments for kids, crafts, and more will be happening on 3rd Street at the NCC Fowler Center between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Students at Liberty High School, 1115 Linden Street, Bethlehem, are performing the musical Pippin on  Friday and Saturday night, April 22 and 23, 2016. The curtain goes up at 7 p.m. For tickets call 610-865-0615 or email

Notre Dame High School students are also on stage this weekend, performing the musical She Loves Me. Their Friday and Saturday night performances this weekend begin at 7:30 p.m. Call 610-252-1068 or email

And if you are interested in seeing next weekend’s high school performance of the musical The Producers at Dieruff High School, 815 N. Irving Street, Allentown, tickets for the show can be purchased by calling 610-349-5269 or emailing Thursday and Friday, April 28-29, shows start at 7 p.m. and Saturday’s matinee on April 30th begins at 2 p.m.

 

Tonight at Bally Hotel’s Open Mic -MMUP musician Alyssa Dodge

Alyssa Dodge is the featured performer at tonight’s (Wednesday, April 20, 2016) Open Mic at the Bally Hotel, 600 Main Street, Bally, PA.  She will be playing her guitar and singing ten songs during her time at the microphone, and expects to start sometime between 8:30 and 9 p.m.  While the featured performer usually starts later in the evening, this is a school night, after all, and Alyssa is twelve years old!  But she is already an experienced singer/songwriter/instrumentalist who has played at Make Music Upper Perk for several years now, and has been performing at open mics, coffee shops, restaurants, theaters, fundraisers, and other venues for some time.

The Open Mic session, hosted by Phil Stahl, is scheduled for 6 p.m. to midnight.

Two weeks left to register to play at Make Music Upper Perk 2016

There are just two weeks left to register to play at Make Music Upper Perk on Tuesday, June 21, 2016. Online registration closes at midnight on Wednesday, April 20th. Then we’ll be putting together the schedule so that we can go to print at the end of the month and start distributing the performance schedule and map to the community in May.

We have some new venues and some familiar ones lined up for 2016. And of course, you can always arrange to set up at a location of your own design (your front porch, maybe?) and just tell us when and where you’ll be playing on the day of Make Music Upper Perk so that we can include your music in the program online and in print to let the world know.

Options include live music performance (concert, gig, session, jam etc), participatory events such as workshops, and public gatherings for music participation (sing-alongs, drums, guitars, kazoos, etc).

Gather your friends, dust off your instruments, and sign up – anyone and everyone is invited to participate – students, amateurs, professionals, and everyone in between – all musical genres are welcome (but do keep it family friendly).

Learn more about Make Music Upper Perk by checking out the Make Music Upper Perk drop down menu where you can find FAQs, as well as photos, videos, and schedules from 2013, 2014, and 2015.  You can also keep in touch on our Facebook page and on Twitter @MakeMusicUP

We will try to accommodate the time and place you request, but depending on the popularity of some times and places we can not promise it will exactly match. You may sign up to play at multiple venues for more than one set during the day.

MMUP is a free event organized by volunteers with musicians who are not compensated and a public that is not charged.

Make Music Upper Perk is co-sponsored by ValleyArtScene and Grace Notes Piano Studio.