PAC Celebrates Music Giants

Written By: Mary Adair Trumbly - Highlands PAC | Issue: 2019/04 - April

The Highlands Performing Arts Center has unveiled its 2019 Concert Season. 

Mark your calendars for Sunday, June 16, 8:00 P.M. for the thrilling Highlands debut of internationally-acclaimed fiddler Mark O’Connor and The Mark O’Connor Band.  The band’s very first performance took place in 2015.  In 2017 – less than a year and a half later – they took home the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album for their debut recording, Coming Home.

At 8:00 P.M. Friday and Saturday, June 21 and 22, we’ll mark the return of “Travis LeDoyt: A Tribute to The King.”  Travis performed here in 2016 for two sold out concerts (with waiting lists.) The biggest compliment LeDoyt has received came from D. J. Fontana, who was Elvis Presley’s drummer in the 50s, who said, “This is as close as you’ll get to seeing a concert by Elvis Presley in the early years.”

On Saturday, June 29, 8:00 P.M., Broadway hits the stage with the hilarious “Broadway’s Next Hit Musical,” the only unscripted theatrical awards show.  Master improvisers gather made up, hit song suggestions from the audience and create a spontaneous evening of music, humor, and laughter.

Jason Petty’s “Hank and My Honky Tonk Heroes,” a tribute to Hank Williams, will be staged at 8:00 P.M. Saturday, September 14.

Don Helms, a member of Williams’ band, The Drifting Cowboys, says “I played with Hank for many years, and I was his best friend.  No one in my time has come closer to Hank’s look, sound, and natural charisma than Jason.  He’s the best. Hands down!”

Sunday, September 29, 8:00 P.M. spotlights The Tenors Unlimited from the UK.  A clever combination of popular opera, musical theater, crooner standards, and original songs has been the key to their success.  That, combined with a wicked sense of humor, makes their performance more than just a show, and this is apparent when “The Rat Pack of Opera” (as they are also known) takes to the stage.

Save 8:00 P.M., November 29, the Friday after Thanksgiving, for the legendary Maureen McGovern as she commences our holiday season.  Elegantly sophisticated one moment, powerfully gutsy the next and always translucently pitch perfect, McGovern is a superstar with a lifetime of music that spans Broadway, Grammy nominations, and an Oscar-winning international Number One gold record.

2019 PAC Memberships are now available and entitle you to many benefits, like a month-advance notice of the season and an opportunity to purchase tickets and select seats before the tickets go on sale to the general public on April 15. 

For more information, please call (828) 526-9047 or visit highlandspac.org.