The cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” album.
Some people go with Darkness on the Edge of Town. Others, with Born in the USA or something else. But for me, Bruce Springsteen’s greatest album was, is and always will be Born to Run.
The Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music at Monmouth University in West Long Branch will present a number of events celebrating the 50th anniversary of the release of Born to Run (which was on Aug. 25), starting with “Born to Run: A Jersey Shore Celebration Concert” at the university’s Pollak Theatre, Sept. 3 at 7:30 p.m. Participants will include original E Street Band drummer Vini Lopez as well as Williams Honor, Pat Roddy, Jake Thistle, Pat Guadagno, Richie Blackwell and others. Most have participated in similar events honoring Springsteen’s first two albums, Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J., and The Wild, The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle.
Other 50th anniversary events include:
Opened Aug. 18, no closing date: “Bruce Springsteen in Long Branch: An Exhibition Telling the Story of Born to Run” at Long Branch Arts & Cultural Center. No admission charge.
Sept. 5, 10 a.m.: Opening of “Born to Run at 50: Photographs by Eric Meola” at The DiMattio Gallery at Rechnitz Hall at Monmouth University. Meola took the famous photo of Springsteen and Clarence Clemons that is on the cover of Born to Run. The exhibit will remain open through Dec. 18 with no admission charge.
Sept. 5, 7 p.m.: “An Evening with Thom Zimny: The Making of Born to Run” at The Pollak Theatre. Featuring rare footage from the Born to Run sessions and Springsteen’s 1975 Born to Run Tour. Thom Zimny is a filmmaker who has frequently worked with Springsteen; E Street Band drummer Max Weinberg will appear at the event as a special guest.
Sept. 6, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.: Born to Run 50th Anniversary Symposium at Pollak Theatre. Panel discussions, presentations, interviews with E Street Band members and more.
Sept. 6, 7 p.m.: “Summer Celebration” featuring Max Weinberg’s Jukebox at Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park.
Sept. 7, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.: Walking tours of the West End section of Long Branch, where Springsteen lived in 1974 and 1975.
Sept. 7, 8 a.m.-6:30 p.m.: Academic Conference: “Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run at 50″ at Monmouth University.
Better Than Ezra (from left, Jim Payne, Michael Jerome, Kevin Griffin, Tom Drummond).
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Here is a roundup of other major arts events taking place around New Jersey, through Sept. 11.
FESTIVALS
• The Bayzara Music Festival, taking place all day Sept. 6 and 7 on Keansburg Beach, will feature bands (including Better Than Ezra, Vertical Horizon, The Ataris, Williams Honor, The Mercury Brothers, Dentist and cover bands Jessie’s Girl and The Fresh Kids of Bel-Air) plus other attractions including the Elevated Maidens aerial acrobatics show; live versions of the “Talkin’ Jets” and “Fireside Giants” sports talk shows; murals made by local artists, and more.
Among the many food options will be jambalaya made by Crawfish Fest founder Michael Arnone.
• A tribute to the late Eddie Palmieri presented by one of his musical collaborators, bassist Luques Curtis, will be part of the Jersey City Latin Jazz Festival, taking place on the Hudson River waterfront in Jersey City, Sept. 6-7. There will be three stages, as well as a community zone, children’s activities, food trucks, and bars.
The Palmieri tribute will be at 8 p.m. Sept. 6. Other performers will include Bobby Sanabria & Ascensión, John Benitez, Alex “Apolo” Ayala & The Bámbula Project, Melvis Santa, Dave Schumacher & Cubeye, and The Chembo Corniel Quintet.
Pantera (from left, Rex Brown, Charlie Benante, Philip H. Anselmo and Zakk Wylde).
MUSIC
• Pantera postponed its July 31 concert at The PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel to Sept. 8, due to the July 22 death of Ozzy Osbourne. Pantera’s current guitarist, New Jersey native Zakk Wylde, performed with Osbourne frequently, starting in the late ’80s. Pantera also played at many of Osbourne’s Ozzfest shows, and recorded several songs by Osbourne’s band Black Sabbath.
The band said on social media: “Ozzy wasn’t just a legend who shaped the very foundation of heavy metal and inspired Pantera from the beginning — he was family. A mentor, a brother, and a constant presence in our lives both on and off the stage. The bond we shared with him ran far deeper than music.”
Original Pantera members Dimebag Darrell (guitar) and Vinnie Paul (drums) died in 2004 and 2018, respectively. But singer Philip H. Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown have been performing under that name again since 2022, with Wylde and drummer Charlie Benante (of the band Anthrax).
• Adam Gontier, the original lead singer of the band Three Days Grace, left in 2013 — going on to perform with the band Saint Asonia and to contribute to many other projects — but returned last year, and now shares lead-vocal duties with his replacement, Matt Walst. The band is double-billed with Breaking Benjamin, with Return to Dust opening, at The Prudential Center in Newark, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m.
The cover of Young Jeezy’s “Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101” album.
• Rapper Young Jeezy will celebrate the 20th anniversary of his 2005 album Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101 — featuring hit singles “Soul Survivor,” “And Then What,” “Go Crazy” and “My Hood” — by performing it with a symphony orchestra, Sept. 7 at 8 p.m. at Prudential Hall at NJPAC in Newark.
• Bergen County Players will present the jukebox musical “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” at The Little Firehouse in Oradell from Sept. 13 to Oct. 11. And to celebrate, it will present a free Carole King Wannabe Karaoke Night in the Park at Veterans’ Park in Westwood, Sept. 6 at 5:30 p.m. The evening will include a “sneak peak” performance by the musical’s cast, and all those who participate will be entered into a drawing for tickets to a show during Bergen County Players’ 2025-26 season.
(UPDATE: Because of the threat of bad weather, this event has been moved to Sept. 7.)
“Beautiful” features songs written or co-written by King (including “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” “Up on the Roof,” “So Far Away” and “It’s Too Late”) and other songwriters from the late ’50s to the early ’70, and chronicles her life and career during that time period — when she gained success, first, as a behind-the-scenes songwriter, and then as a recording artist in her own right.
• Original Beach Boys member Al Jardine, who toured with Brian Wilson (who died in June) until Wilson was no longer able to, will lead the Pet Sounds Band that Wilson put together — including Wilson’s longtime music director Darian Sahanaja, Jardine’s son Matt on guitar and vocals, and others — at The Music Box at Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City, Sept. 5 at 9 p.m.
• The eloquent singer-songwriter James Maddock, who performed at the GabeGate series at The Spanish Pavillion in Harrison in May, will be back for another show there, Sept. 7 at 4 p.m. “Rarely have I booked an artist again after only a short few months,” said series organizer Gabe Sasso on Facebook. “But everyone had such an outstanding time with James Maddock … we both felt we needed to do it again sooner than later.”
Maddock, who got his start with the British band Wood, is a longtime New York resident who recently relocated to New Jersey.
(For a chance to win two tickets, send an email to njartscontest@gmail.com by noon Sept. 4 with “Maddock” in the subject line.)
SHELLEY KUSNETZ
Isaac Hickox-Young and Billie Wyatt will co-star in “Romeo & Juliet” at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey in Madison.
THEATER
• The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey will kick off its 2025-26 season with Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet” at The F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre at Drew University in Madison. The first preview will be on Sept. 10, with the official opening night on Sept. 13 and the last show on Oct. 5.
Real-life couple Isaac Hickox-Young and Billie Wyatt — both veterans of many STNJ productions — will play the star-crossed lovers.
COMEDY
• Ben Marshall, John Higgins and Martin Herlihy — who have been making short films for “Saturday Night Live” under the group name Please Don’t Destroy since 2021 — will make appearances at The Vogel at Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, Sept. 9-10 at 7 and 9:30 p.m. It was announced this week that Marshall will become a cast member in the upcoming season of “Saturday Night Live” (which will begin on Oct. 4), while Herlihy will continue to contribute to the show as a writer, and the three will continue to work together as Please Don’t Destroy outside of “Saturday Night Live.”
BOOKS
• Pat Benatar and her husband and musical partner Neil Giraldo will promote their children’s book, “My Grandma and Grandpa Rock!,” Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. at BergenPAC in Englewood. According to the BergenPAC website, “This special author event features a presentation and Q&A moderated by WDHA’s Terrie Carr. Hear the stories behind the book celebrating cool grandparents everywhere! Every ticket includes a pre-signed copy. (Note: No additional signing or photos post-event).”
According to the book’s promotional material, “Grandparents love to rock every way they can — whether it’s by singing out loud, dancing to a song in their hearts, or just living their best lives!
“From the musical team of Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo comes a lyrical read-aloud that celebrates all kinds of grandparents from all walks of life — from plumbers to yoga instructors to … rock stars!”
• Paul Lisicky, author of the memoir “Song So Wild and Blue: A Life With the Music of Joni Mitchell,” will read from it and be interviewed about it at The Scottish Rite Auditorium in Collingswood, Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. Some of Mitchell’s music will also be performed by Love City Collective.
This event is co-sponsored by and will benefit The Collingswood Book Festival and The Collingswood Foundation for the Arts.
Stan Laurel, right, and Oliver Hardy in “Sons of the Desert.”
FILM
• I. Joseph “Irv” Hyatt — a film expert and lifelong Woodbridge resident who was on the board of The Union County Performing Arts Center in Rahway — died in April, and to honor him, UCPAC is renaming its classic film series The I. Joseph Hyatt Classic Film Series. To celebrate this, UCPAC will offer a free screening of Laurel & Hardy’s 1933 comedy “Sons of the Desert,” Sept. 7 at 3 p.m., following remarks and a plaque dedication at 2:30 p.m.
• The Latinos of Montclair organization and Middlesex County will co-present a screening of “La Grande” — a film about the Dominican musician Fefita La Grande, the first woman to become a star in the genre of merengue típico — Sept. 6 at 6:30 p.m. at The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. (see trailer below) A talkback with producer Antonio Rubio will follow.
Fefita La Grande began performing professionally as a teenager in the 1950s, and is now 81.
REVIEWS
“Christine Sauerteig-Pilaar: Reflecting Refuge” at 1978 Maplewood Arts Center. (Through Sept. 7)
“Léni Paquet-Morante: Extract/Abstract,” presented by Princeton University Art Museum at Art@Bainbridge. (Through Nov. 2)
“Indigenous Identities: Here, Now & Always” at Zimmerli Art Museum, New Brunswick. (Through Dec. 21)
“Morven Revealed: Untold Stories From New Jersey’s Most Historic Home” at Morven Museum & Garden, Princeton. (Through March 1)
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