October will be a busy month of performances at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center.
Daniel McGrew and Parker Ramsay will perform a free concert Oct. 3. On Oct. 6, the VIVA Health Gala 2023, the year’s largest fundraiser, will be “A Night of the Arts.” Keb’ Mo’ will perform Oct. 8 and Eric Benét on Oct. 15, and on Oct. 29, see Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue with a free pre-show reception.
Read more about the center’s upcoming year of programming and explore the season or purchase tickets at AlysStephens.org. Call the ASC Box Office at 205-975-2787.
Tuesday, Oct. 3: Daniel McGrew and Parker Ramsay
Tenor Daniel McGrew and harpist Parker Ramsay will open the Alys Stephens Center’s free Young Concert Artists Series this season with a performance at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3. Register for this free performance at AlysStephens.org.
Deeply committed to the art of song, McGrew performs a broad range of genres spanning opera, musical theater, early music and new music. Ramsay’s career defies easy categorization. Equally at home on modern and period harps, he is dedicated to invigorating the existing canon while delving into new and underperformed works and is co-director of A Golden Wire, a period instrument ensemble based in New York.
Friday, Oct. 6: VIVA Health Gala, “A Night of the Arts”
The annual black-tie event and fundraiser will debut a new format this year with “A Night of the Arts.” Enjoy a full evening of arts experiences while raising vital funds that support UAB’s arts organizations, the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts, Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, ArtPlay Community Education and Arts in Medicine. Tickets are $250. A VIP experience that includes an elegant on-stage dinner is also available. To purchase tickets, visit AlysStephens.org.
The evening begins at 5:30 p.m. with a reception. Guests are invited to help select a work of art to be added to the permanent collection. UAB health care professionals and medical students who are also accomplished musicians will fill the lobbies with song. Then, five-time Grammy-winning blues artist Keb’ Mo’ will present a private performance. After the performance, guests can enjoy a jazz café with beverages, heavy hors d’oeuvres and live music, and later in the evening, a dance party.
Sunday, Oct. 8: Keb’ Mo’
Guitarist/vocalist Keb’ Mo’ will present a public performance at 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8. Reserved seating tickets are $45, $55 and $65. Purchase tickets at AlysStephens.org.
With soul and folksy storytelling, Keb’ Mo’ keeps his sound contemporary while drawing heavily on the old-fashioned, country-blues style of Robert Johnson, according to his bio. A skilled frontman and accomplished sideman, he writes much of his own material and has applied his acoustic, electric and slide guitar skills to jazz- and rock-oriented bands. His 1994 solo debut “Keb’ Mo’,” a modern spin on vintage blues, was a critical and popular success, and 2006’s “Suitcase” was another laid-back set rooted in acoustic sounds. 2017’s “TajMo” found him collaborating with acoustic blues artist Taj Mahal, and 2019’s “Oklahoma” included cameos by Mahal, Rosanne Cash, Robert Randolph and others; both albums earned him Grammy Awards. His latest is “Good To Be …” from 2022, a soulful, relaxed groove.
Sunday, Oct. 15: Eric Benét
Eric Benét will perform at 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 15. Reserved seating tickets are $45, $55 and $65. Purchase tickets at AlysStephens.org.
Suave standard-bearer for contemporary R&B, the four-time Grammy Award-nominee singer and actor is originally from Mobile, Alabama. His albums include “True to Myself,” “A Day in the Life,” which featured the single “Spend My Life with You” with Canadian artist Tamia, “Hurricane,” “Love & Life,” and “Lost in Time,” which included the single “Sometimes I Cry.” His later recordings include “The One” and “Eric Benét,” under his newly formed independent record label, Jordan House Records.
Sunday, Oct. 29: Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue
Horn player and natural born showman Trombone Shorty will perform with Orleans Avenue at 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29. Reserved seating tickets are $49, $59 and $69. A New Orleans-themed pre-show party will be at 5 p.m. at UAB's AEIVA, with live music, food trucks on-site, a cash bar, selfie station, make-your-own masks and more. Purchase tickets at AlysStephens.org.
Troy Andrews got his start (and nickname) early: making his first appearance at Jazz Fest performing with Bo Diddley at age 4; at 6, leading his own brass band; and by his teenage years, performing with Lenny Kravitz in his Electric Church World Tour band. Since 2010, he has released four chart-topping studio albums; toured and collaborated with artists from Jeff Beck and Red Hot Chili Peppers to Pharrell, Bruno Mars, Mark Ronson, Foo Fighters, ZHU, Zac Brown, Normani, Ringo Starr and countless others; played Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, New Orleans Jazz Fest and nearly every other major festival; performed at the Grammy Awards, at the White House, on TV and at the Sesame Street Gala, where he was honored with his own Muppet; launched the Trombone Shorty Foundation to support youth music education; and received the prestigious Caldecott Honor for his first children’s book.