COD Kicks Off Free Starlight Summer Concert Series Friday

The following information comes from a College of DuPage press release. 

The McAninch Arts Center (MAC), 425 Fawell Blvd. in Glen Ellyn, opens its inaugural Summer 2014 Starlight Free Concert Series at the new Lakeside Pavilion at College of DuPage with a concert by the internationally acclaimed Chicago-based Beatles tribute band American English Friday, July 18 at 7:30 p.m.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Beatles first arrival in U.S. and the Lakeside Pavilion audience will have a chance to experience some of the excitement of the early ‘60s and their legendary appearances on the Ed Sullivan when American English as the Fab Four performs “She Loves You,” “All My Loving” and more. After a brief intermission, the band will return for a trip to the psychedelic era ofMagical Mystery Tour Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band before capping the show with songs from The White Album including “Hey Jude,” “Something” and “Let It Be.”

American English features Frank Canino asJohn Lennon, Eric Michaels asPaul McCartney, Ames Paul Lynch asGeorge Harrison, Tom Gable asRingo Starr and Ken Zemanek asBeatles’ producer, Sir George Martin. 

American English has been voted the “Best Tribute Band” by Nitelife.org and was hailed Newsweek's special 2012 commemorative issue, “The Beatles!” as one of the best Beatles tribute bands in the world today. The band was voted No. 1 in sound-alike contests at Beatlefest® for three consecutive years and has headlined International Beatle Week in Liverpool, England.

American English opens the MAC’s Lakeside Pavilion inaugural Summer 2014 Starlight Free Concert Series with the Chicago-based Beatles tribute band American English on July 18. The Seriescontinues on July 25with an evening of jazz featuring the Dee Alexander Quartet plus special guests Ari Brown, Corey Wilkes andScott Hesse.A concert by theU.K.-based ABBAtribute band,“Abbamania” on Friday, Aug.1 and an evening of blues/roots music by the

Grammy nominated The Holmes Brothers Friday, Aug. 8 follows.New Philharmonic,the 60-piece professional orchestra in residence at the McAninch Arts Center under the direction of Music Director and Conductor Kirk Muspratt, caps the series with a pops concert of movie and Broadway musical favorites on Friday, Aug. 15. Admission to all concerts is free; all concerts begin at 7:30 p.m.

Concessions available to purchase on site will include soda, wine, beer, popcorn. ice cream, hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza by Wheaton’s Copper Oven Pizza, and gourmet fare by Lisle’s Chef by Request including an imported cheese plate, beef tenderloin and turkey breast sandwiches, three-cheese tortellini with sundried tomato pesto and a seasonal fresh fruit plate.

All concerts take place rain or shine. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early and bring a blanket and picnic to enjoy at the concert. No outside alcohol will be permitted onto the property.

The 2014 Starlight Summer Concert Series comes to the new Lakeside Pavilion at College of DuPage Fridays, July 18 to Aug. 15, at 7:30 p.m. The Starlight Movie Series showcases a selection of films Thursdays, July 17 to Aug. 7 at 8:30 p.m. All Concert and Movie Series events are free of charge. For more information about any of these events, call 630.942.4000 or visit AtTheMAC.org.

The Dee Alexander Quartet plus special guests Ari Brown, Corey Wilkes and Scott Hesse(July 25) and The Holmes Brothers (Aug. 1) are presented in partnership with 90.9 FM WDCB Jazz & Blues Radio.

Programs at the MAC are partially supported through funding from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

The McAninch Arts Center (MAC), on the campus of College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn, Ill., is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355 and houses three performance spaces (the 800-seat proscenium Belushi Performance Hall, the 184-seat soft-thrust Playhouse Theatre and the versatile 70-seat black box Studio Theatre), plus the Cleve Carney Art Gallery, classrooms for the College’s academic programming and the 1,200 capacity outdoor Lakeside Pavilion. This unique facility has presented theater, music, dance and visual art to more than 1.5 million people since opening in 1986 and typically welcomes more than 75,000 patrons annually from the greater Chicago area.

The MAC began major renovations in fall 2012 to update its three performance spaces, construct a new art gallery and outdoor lakeside pavilion and make improvements to the infrastructure, teaching and learning spaces and patron service areas. The MAC completed the $35 million renovation in December 2013 and officially opened its doors to the public with the MAC Madness Celebration on March 8.

The mission of the MACis to foster enlightened educational and performance opportunities, which encourage artistic expression, establish a lasting relationship between people and art, and enrich the cultural vitality of the community. For more information about the MAC, visit AtTheMAC.org. You can also learn more about the MAC on Facebook at facebook.com/AtTheMAC or on twitter attwitter.com/AtTheMAC.

The McAninch Arts Center (MAC) is supported in part by the College of DuPage Foundation. Established as a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visitcod.edu/foundation or call 630.942.2462.