Page 21 - Kent Parks Recreation Guide Fall 2025

International Guitar Night – The World on a String
Tickets: $35 general, $32 senior, $22 youth
Sponsored by Kent Community Foundation Performing Arts Fund
International Guitar Night, North America’s longest running mobile guitar festival, is celebrating its 26th
Anniversary. As always, the show will bring together the world’s foremost acoustic guitarists to perform their
latest original compositions and exchange musical ideas in a public concert setting. IGN founder Brian Gore
has, once again, assembled a new cast of guitar luminaries to come together for a special evening of solos,
duets and quartets that highlight the virtuosity and diversity within the world of acoustic guitar.
Classical virtuoso Stephanie Jones (Australia) is heading an all-star lineup with three newcomers, including
Friday, January 30 • 7:30 p.m. Brazilian sensation Lucan Imbiriba, Russian fingerstyle innovator Alexandr Misko, and IGN’s first ukulele maestro,
Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center Taimane from Hawaii.

Gadan
Tickets: $32 general, $30 senior, $22 youth
Gadan is a storming new band blending the drive of Irish Traditional Music and Celtgrass with the soul of folk
and Appalachian music…all spiced with unmistakable Italian seasoning!
Gadan is a fresh project created by four seasoned musicians from the Irish trad and European folk/rock
scene, all with years of experience performing at major traditional and alternative folk music festivals across
Europe and the US. In 2024, they were joined by Enda Scahill, a tenor banjo master, award-winner, All-Ireland
champion, and founder of We Banjo 3.
Their high-energy repertoire has a powerful live appeal, reminiscent of new-trad acts, but with a unique
Thursday, February 12 • 7:30 p.m. identity. With three banjos—tenor and clawhammer—fiddle, mandolin, and guitar, they create a distinctive
Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center “strings-only” sound, enhanced by subtle electronics and driven by a powerful rhythmic pulse. Just ask all these
great Celtic Fests – Milwaukee Irish Fest, La Crosse Irish Fest, Dublin Irish Fest, and Iowa Irish Fe.

Women of Americana – A Celebration of American Music
from Bob Dylan to Bonnie Raitt
Tickets: $35 general, $32 senior, $25 youth
Sponsored by the Curran Family and Kent Community Foundation Performing Arts Fund
Early folk, gospel, and Western swing musicians laid the groundwork for Americana, extending back to the
founding mothers and fathers of country music, including Hank Williams, Woody Guthrie, and the Carter
Family. From the mid-20th century through the present day, more singer-songwriter luminaries followed: Bob
Dylan, The Band, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Bonnie Raitt, Lucinda Williams, Rosanne Cash, Emmylou Harris, and
Brandi Carlile.
Friday, February 27 • 7:30 p.m. A Celebration of American Music from Bob Dylan to Bonnie Raitt brings together some of today’s most
Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center accomplished and expressive female artists for an exuberant exploration of this expansive and singular
American genre. Featured vocalists and instrumentalists, Cristina Vane and Brennen Leigh, will interpret
iconic songs, including “This Land is Your Land” (Woody Guthrie), “This Train” (Sister Rosetta Tharpe), “Just Like
a Woman” (Bob Dylan), “Angel From Montgomery” (Bonnie Raitt and John Prine), and “Car Wheels On a Gravel
Road” (Lucinda Williams).
Coinciding with the 250th anniversary of the United States’ founding, Women of Americana will entertain and
inspire audiences at a historic moment in our nation’s history.

Yesterday and Today: The Interactive Beatles
Tickets: $35 general, $32 senior, $25 youth
Sponsored by Judy Woods and the Haffner Family
This amazing band, anchored by brothers Billy, Matthew, and Ryan McGuigan perform as themselves and leave
the song choices completely in the hands of the audience. Audience members fill out request cards prior to
the show, offering only three pieces of information: their name, their favorite Beatles song, and the reason why
they chose that song.
The cards are collected and minutes before the show beings, a set list is created based upon the songs chosen
by that particular audience. As an added treat, the audience members’ reasons for choosing the songs make
Friday, March 6 • 7:30 p.m. up the narrative of the evening.
Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center
Every show is different, every show is interactive, and every show proves that The Beatles’ music truly is the
soundtrack to our lives.

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Register for Fall 2025 programs at MyKentParks.com/Register or call 253-856-5100