CHRISTONE ‘KINGFISH’ INGRAM
Here is a roundup of major arts events taking place around New Jersey, through Aug. 20.
MUSIC FESTIVALS
• Blues-rock phenom Christone “Kingfish” Ingram will headline and the Jersey-bred band LaBamba & the Hubcaps will reunite for a late-afternoon set at this year’s edition of the free, annual Morristown Jazz and Blues Festival, which will take place outdoors on the Morristown Green, Aug. 15.
Ingram will close the fest at 8 p.m., and LaBamba & the Hubcaps is scheduled for 4 p.m. Other performers will include blues artist Dylan Triplett at 6 p.m.; drummer Richard Baratta’s Gotham City Latin/Jazz Septet at 2 p.m.; and The James Langton New York All-Star Big Band, a swing band featuring clarinetist Dan Levinson and singer Molly Ryan, at noon.
Lawn chairs or blankets are recommended. Attendees can bring their own food or eat at one of the many restaurants surrounding the festival area in downtown Morristown.
Click HERE for a new interview with Ingram.
• In the year of the country’s 250th birthday, The Montclair Jazz Festival‘s 2006 Downtown Jamboree, taking place at Lackawanna Plaza on Aug. 15, will include a salute to “major American jazz cities that have shaped our culture and tell our national story.”
DIANNE REEVES
Here is the schedule:
11 a.m.: Second line march from Church and Park streets to the festival site, featuring The Gotham Kings
Main Stage: Spanish Harlem Orchestra (honoring New York) at noon; Dianne Reeves (honoring Detroit) at 1:30 p.m.; Take Me to the River All Stars featuring Cyril Neville, Big Chief Bo Dollis Jr. and others (honoring New Orleans) at 3 p.m.; Patrice Rushen (honoring Los Angeles) at 5 p.m.; Christian McBride Big Band featuring Bilal (honoring Philadelphia) at 7 p.m.
Jazz House Stage: Jazz House Collective (honoring Miles Davis and John Coltrane), Jazz House All Stars, students and ensembles from the Jazz House Summer Workshop, Joel Ross’ Good Vibes at others, noon to 8 p.m.
Block Party on Lackawanna Plaza: DJ Prince Hakim, 8-10 p.m.
Post Party at Egan & Sons: Essex Funk Collective, 9-11 p.m.
There is no admission charge, though attendees (except for children younger than 10, accompanied by an adult) must register for a Jam Pass, which has a “Pay What You Wish” option.
DEBORAH COX
• 103.5 KTU will present a marathon Beatstock concert at The PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, Aug. 15 at 5:30 p.m., with performances by Deborah Cox, Robin S, CeCe Peniston, Treach of Naughty by Nature, C+C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams, Ultra Naté, The Sugar Hill Gang, Grandmaster Melle Mel & Scorpio, Judy Torres, Cynthia, Brenda K. Starr, Coro, The Cover Girls and others.
• In honor of the original Woodstock Festival (which took place on Aug. 15-18, 1969, The Re-Wind ’69 Festival — taking place at The Garden Pier at Showboat in Atlantic City, Aug. 14-16 — will feature tributes to Woodstock artists and other musicians from that era, with the following bands:
Aug. 14: Everyday People (Sly & the Family Stone tribute), Wooden Ships (CSNY tribute), John McNutt Band (Creedence Clearwater Revival tribute), Steal Your Face (Grateful Dead tribute), Pamela Renee Smith (Richie Havens tribute).
Aug. 15: Who’s Next (The Who tribute), Just Like Janis featuring C.C. Coletti (Janis Joplin tribute), White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane tribute), Billy Mungus (Joe Cocker tribute).
Aug. 16: Kiss the Sky (Jimi Hendrix tribute), Edgardo Cintron (Santana tribute), Faces of Rod featuring Eric Visnov (Jeff Beck Group tribute), Kat5 Duo (Joan Baez/Bob Dylan tribute).
The Stray Cats (from left, Slim Jim Phantom, Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker).
OTHER MUSIC
• The Stray Cats cancelled their fall 2025 tour due to a “serious illness” that frontman Brian Setzer had to deal with, but he is healthy again and the band is returning to the road this summer, with stops including Ovation Hall at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, Aug. 15 at 8 p.m.; and The Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, Aug. 16 at 7 p.m. Pete Bernhard of the group The Devil Makes Three will open both shows.
“It’s good to be healthy and strong again,” said Setzer in a press release. “There’s something about the unique sound of The Stray Cats that keeps drawing me in. The Gretsch guitar, the acoustic bass, and the stand-up drums still sound pure and fresh today.”
The trio — also featuring drummer Slim Jim Phantom and bassist Lee Rocker — are known for ’80s hits such as “Stray Cat Strut,” “Rock This Town” and “(She’s) Sexy + 17,” and released two new songs, including a cover of Eddie Cochran’s 1959 single “Teenage Heaven,” last year.
• The great jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan will pay tribute to the music of The Grateful Dead with his group Stanley Plays the Dead (also featuring drummer Kenwood Dennard, bassist Greg Koerner and keyboardist-guitarist Jesse Hiatt) at Homestead Bar & Kitchen in Morristown, Aug. 16 at 8 p.m.
• Ten contestants will compete in this year’s edition of the free, annual My Way Sinatra Sing-Off, taking place at Sinatra Park in Ol’ Blue Eyes’ hometown of Hoboken, Aug. 13 at 6:30 p.m. The event will also include a performance by last year’s winner, John Rinell.
JAKE THISTLE
• Jake Thistle will perform in the free, outdoor Summer Concert Series at The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music, Aug. 13 at 6 p.m. The show will take place at the Klose Amphitheater outside the museum, which is on the campus of Monmouth University in West Long Branch.
The 22-year-old Paramus native and Rutgers University graduate released his first album at the age of 16 and has continued releasing new music and performing regularly in area venues since then. This year, he made the Top 14 of television’s “American Idol” competition.
Lawn chairs or blankets are recommended for the show. Also, since it will take place on a Thursday and the Center is open until 8 p.m. on Thursdays, you can see the museum beforehand. (While the show is free, regular museum admission is required for those who are interested.)
MUSIC/THEATER
• Jesse Malin has described his “Silver Manhattan: A Musical Guide to Survival” — which originated at The Gramercy Theatre in New York and will be presented at The Vogel at The Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, Aug. 14-15 at 8 p.m. — as “a musical, a play, a live concert. It’s kind of this mixed thing … it’s gonna be onstage with my full band, playing a lot of the songs that you know, but it’s a story, and it’s from my life, you know — from childhood stuff, characters in New York, a New York that doesn’t exist, about manifesting dreams, and overcoming hardships, and all this stuff in these last couple years.” (Malin is still recovering from a 2023 spinal stroke.)
“It’s a feel-good thing, don’t worry,” continued Malin. “There’ll be some bits and some jokes.”
EMILY GROVE
PHOTOGRAPHY/MUSIC
• The Art Spot gallery in Asbury Park is presenting “Back to the Beginning: Remembering Ozzy Osbourne,” featuring photos by veteran rock photographer Mark “Weissguy” Weiss, through Aug. 17, and a closing event, Aug. 16 at 4 p.m., will feature an acoustic performance by the Black Sabbath tribute band, Fairies Wear Boots, featuring singer Emily Grove.
Weiss will be on hand, signing copies of the coffee table book, “The Decade That Rocked: The Photography of Mark “Weissguy” Weiss” (written by Richard Bienstock) and issues of Rocked magazine with his photos on the cover.
Locations for the photos in the exhibition range from Convention Hall in Asbury Park in 1981 to Osbourne’s all-star farewell “Back to the Beginning” concert at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, in July 2025. Osbourne died 17 days later, at the age of 76.
Osbourne once said that Weiss “is like a member of our family … He must have more photographs of me than any other photographer I’ve ever worked with.”
THEATER
• The 2026-27 season of The McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton will open Aug. 19-23 and 25-30 at The Berlind Theatre with “All The Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain” (see video below), created and performed by veteran Broadway actor Patrick Page, whose deep voice has made him a natural for villain roles.
According to a press release, “Page illuminates the Bard’s evolving conception of evil by delving into more than a dozen of his most wicked creations, offering a spellbinding masterclass on the most terrifying subject of them all: human nature.”
Each show will feature a post-show conversation with Page.
Jeffrey M. Bender in a rehearsal for “The Merry Wives of Windsor.”
• The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey will present a “Shakespeare in the Wild” production of Shakespeare’s comedy “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” Aug. 14-16 and 18-23 at its F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre at Drew University in Madison.
Veteran STNJ actor Jeffrey M. Bender will play the main character, the incorrigible Sir John Falstaff.
In a press release, “Shakespeare in the Wild” show was explained this way:
Harkening back to original Shakespearean practices, Shakespeare in the Wild is theatre at its most daring. With no director and only a week of rehearsal, performers come in memorized and dive straight into the work, trusting their instincts and the brilliance of Shakespeare’s language to guide them. The result is an edge-of-your-seat experience — unfiltered, unpredictable, and wildly alive. This season, a troupe of talented Shakespeare Theatre actors will be set loose on The Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare’s fast-paced comedy bursting with mischief and unforgettable hijinks. When the boastful Sir John Falstaff is outsmarted by two clever women, chaos ensues in this joyful tale of comic revenge. Filled with wordplay, disguises, and unexpected twists, it’s a timeless celebration of ribaldry and charm.
FAMILY
• “Jurassic Quest,” a touring exhibition featuring more than 100 life-sized, animatronic dinosaurs as well as interactive, dinosaur-related activities, will come to The Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, Aug. 14-16. It is recommended for children aged 2-10.
Darryl Strawberry will sign copies of his new book in Ridgewood and Northvale.
BOOKS
• Former Major League baseball star Darryl Strawberry will sign copies of his book, “Another Life: Discovering the Healing Power of Purpose on My Long Journey from Player to Preacher,” Aug. 18 at 5 p.m. at Bookends in Ridgewood, and Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. at Books and Greetings in Northvale.
FILM
• In partnership with The Montclair Jazz Festival (see above), The Clairidge in Montclair will screen the 2022 documentary about New Orleans music, “Take Me to the River: New Orleans,” Aug. 13 at 7 p.m. You can watch the trailer below.
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REVIEWS
“Without Further Ado: Jerome China” at ArtWorks Trenton. (Through Aug. 15)
“A Change of Position” at New Jersey Repertory Company, Long Branch. (Through Aug. 23)
“In Conversation: Will Wilson” at Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, Summit. (Through Aug. 23)
“Claybash” at Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton. (Through Sept. 6)
“Bascha Mon: Mindscapes” at Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton. (Through Sept. 6)
“Valerie Huhn: The Wound Is the Place Where the Light Enters You” at Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton. (Through Sept. 6)
“Steamroller Group: Uncharted Territories” at Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton. (Through Sept. 6)
“Henri Matisse: Beyond Color” at Morris Museum, Morris Township. (Through Sept. 13)
“Salvador Jiménez-Flores: Raíces & Resistencias” at Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton. (Through Aug. 1)
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