“Air Play” starring Seth Bloom and Christine Gelstone will kick-off the 2021-22 National Touring Season at the Ellen Eccles Theare on Sept. 7.
LOGAN – After a year of hosting mostly small scale, ad hoc productions, the Cache Valley Center for the Arts is now roaring back with a 10-show line-up for its 2021-22 National Touring Season.
“We are ecstatic to have a full season of nationally touring acts coming to the Ellen Eccles Theatre again,” said Wendi Hassan, the CacheARTS executive director. “With the variety of shows scheduled this year, there will be something for everyone.”
The upcoming season offerings will run the gamut from Grammy-winning musicians to traditional Chinese acrobats, according to Alek Nelson, the CacheARTS marketing director.
Some of those shows were rescheduled after being cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak, he explained, while others have been in the works for several years.
The 2021-22 season will open on Sept 7 with “Air Play,” a wordless circus-style ballet comedy starring Seth Bloom and Christine Gelstone.
On Sept. 27, the legendary “Sons of the Pioneers” will present their world-famous cowboy harmonies and musicianship. After 85 years of touring, their performances of tunes like “Cool Water,” “Tumbling Tumbleweeds” and “Ghost Riders in the Sky” are recognized as timeless classics that are woven into the very fabric of the American West.
On Oct. 21, the Eccles Theatre will host “The Moth Mainstage.” The Moth is a nationwide non-profit group dedicated to preserving the tradition of storytelling. Since 2009, “The Moth Radio Hour” has been a popular weekly syndicated broadcast on National Public Radio affiliates, including Utah Public Radio. The Moth gathers material for those broadcasts by hosting “Moth Mainstage” shows throughout the country, seeking ordinary, everyday people with unique storytelling perspectives and talents.
Next up on the CacheARTS schedule on Nov. 4 are Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, a powerhouse guitar and dobro duo who have electrified the acoustic music scene. Ickes and Hensley are best known for combining blues, bluegrass, country and rock music traditions into a trademark style of music performance that defines genre restrictions.
On Nov. 15, the Eccles Theatre will celebrate the music of Ray Charles with “Georgia on My Mind.” Award-winning vocalists Clint Holmes and Nnenna Freelon will combine with saxophonist Kirk Whalum and the gospel music group Take 6 to perform classic tunes from the renowned Ray Charles catalogue of hits.
For a Christmas treat, the Bar J Wranglers will perform at the Eccles Theatre on Dec. 18. As usual, their show will blend pure vocal harmonies, top-notch musicianship and the funniest ranch humor around.
The multi-talented “Choir of Man” will help to usher in the New Year on Jan. 8, 2022. Their feel-good show combines a broad range of musical styles into hair-raising harmonies, high-energy dancing and live percussion. Critics have praised the “Choir of Man” as “… the best singing, dancing, stomping, pub crawl of a show you’ll ever see.”
On Feb. 9, Danny Chang and his Golden Dragon Acrobats will appear in to Logan. This act has been a consistent draw on the national touring circuit for more than three decades. As always, their show will feature amazing feats of athleticism, heart-stopped stunts and the traditional grace of their centuries old art form.
“Collision of Rhythm” will perform at the Eccles Theatre on April 13. This high-energy act combines music from a wide range of instruments with tap-dancing and bounce juggling.
Finally, the 2021-22 national touring season will close locally with the “Popovich Comedy Pet Theater” on May 11. This family-oriented show will feature the comedy and juggling skills of Gregory Popovich combined with the talents of 30 furry co-stars, all of which were rescued from animal shelters.
Nelson explained that ticket prices for the national touring shows vary and discounts are available for children aged 5 to 12 (50 percent off), students (25 percent off) and groups of 15 or more (15 percent off). Patrons who purchase tickets to three or more shows will also be eligible for a 20 percent discount.
Ticket will be available online and at the CacheARTS ticket office starting at 10 a.m. on July 26.
“After a year of smaller events and shows to allow for social distancing and safety,” Nelson added, “this upcoming season will be open to (the Eccles Theatre’s) full capacity again.”
The Cache Valley Center for the Arts is an independent non-profit organization that promotes the use of Cache Valley’s publicly owned cultural arts facilities.
Those facilities include the Ellen Eccles Theatre, the Thatcher-Young Mansion and the Bullen Center.