*Local musicians TRACY JAMES and LISA FURMAN and bands HOE and GREASEWHEAZER are coming together for a one-night-only concert at Playhouse on the Green on Saturday, September 6, at 8 pm.

All tickets are $20, and proceeds will benefit Playhouse on the Green as the not-for-profit theater company launches its 2008-09 season. The show is being billed as “Unplugged To Plugged” and will begin with acoustic sets by Hoe and Lisa Furman, followed by plugged-in sets by Tracy James and Greasewheazer.

To charge tickets call 866-811-4111. For additional information try the box office, 203-333-3666 or visit PlayhouseOnTheGreen.org. The box office will be open for walk-up ticket sales only during the two hours prior to the concert next weekend.

*Even closer to home, Sandy Hook musician DOUG WAHLBERG will be among those providing music during a fundraiser next month for Kevin’s Community Center, the free medical clinic here in town.

The event will feature classic music by the Concert Society Chamber Orchestra, arranged by Richard Serbagi (also of Newtown),  and there will also be jazz selections from RICK BAUMER and his jazz quartet and acoustic music from DOUG WAHLBERG and MARC HUBERMAN.

“Mozart, Merlot and Mums,” which is what the fundraiser is being called, will be hosted by Shane and George Miller at their historic home at 50 Main Street (a/k/a The Budd House). There will be wine tastings thanks to Matt DeAngelis, the owner of Yankee Liquor and Stop N Save, and manager Steve Small, who will offer a taste of wines from around the world, with help from distributors Prestige Wine Imports and Pro-Enterprise Wine Distribution. Several local restaurants will offer a variety of ethnic cuisines, and there will be a silent auction showcasing the best of Newtown’s benefactors, and George Miller’s gardens will be open for tours. A glass of champagne will be offered to everyone upon arrival.

The event will run on Saturday, September 20, from 4 to 7 pm.

And just in case it’s needed, a rain date has been set up for September 21.

Tickets are $30 and available at Yankee Liquor, Drug Center Pharmacy, Lexington Gardens, Dodgingtown Market, Stop & Save Liquor, Mocha Coffee House, and C.H. Booth Library. Call Kevin’s Community Center at 426-0496 or visit KevinsCommunityCenter.org for further details.

*A reminder that this weekend’s music at Mocha Coffee House in Sandy Hook will include a performance by SIDE PORCH, a three-man blues/rock guitar band, on Friday night, and then a return by INFRASONIC (a/k/a Will Lindsay), who plays acoustic rock that adds folk, new wave, blues and psychedelic sounds into the mix, on Saturday night. Both shows will run from 8 to 10 pm, and admission, as always, is free.

*Ready off their latest album release and with a busy tour schedule already underway, STAIND has announced a show at Mohegan Sun Arena on Wednesday, November 12. Papa Roach will be opening, and tickets go on sale this weekend.

Tickets will be available for charge purchases beginning at 10 am Friday, August 29, and then they’ll also be available through the arena’s box office 24 hours later. All seats are $37.50.

*On Saturday, August 30, Georgetown Saloon will host a special benefit for Wilton Social Services (WSS) Warm Up Fund.

Entertainment will be provided by the Fairfield County band FARMERS AGAINST THE CROWN, who will begin playing their mix of rhythm & blues and classic roots rock around 9:15. In addition to the covers of work by Clapton, Cream, Traffic, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Allman Brothers Band and others, these guys also have some originals to pull out of their pocket.

The cover charge is officially $5 per person, but everyone attending is asked to be generous – all of the proceeds will be going to a great cause that is going to be hit up, I imagine, for help this year more than ever before. WSS has already, in fact, begun hearing from worried Wilton residents who have never called their office for help.

The Warm Up Fund helps folks with low or fixed incomes keep up with rising energy costs. We’re all going to know people who need help with bills this winter. The Wilton Warm Up Fund uses every penny of donations to help clients; there are no “administrative fees.”

For further information about Saturday’s benefit or to make a reservation, give the saloon a call at 203-544-8003 or visit GeorgetownSaloon.com. For more info on the Wilton Warm Up Fund and other services offered through the Social Services office contact director Catherine Pierce, MSW, at 203-834-6238 or Cathy.Pierce@WiltonCT.org.

*For my final Road Note this week I’m torn between saying “Start saving your chips!” and “Now they’re just playing with us” after receiving a good news/bad news email from Mohegan Sun this week.

The good news is the latest major expansion at Mohegan Sun Casino, Project Horizon, will celebrate the opening of the first portion of the $925 million expansion this weekend. This is the project that broke ground in June 2007 and was originally slated to be open this past spring. It’s been delays, delays, delays, and a terribly long wait.

On August 29 one of the world’s largest gaming facilities will get even bigger when the 64,000 square foot Casino of the World – complete with 42-table poker room, more than 650 slot machines and 28 table games – opens.

The bad news is Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville – the portion of Project Horizon that I’ve been waiting for! – isn’t slated to open until late September to early October. Not that I have a choice (if it isn’t open, it isn’t open) but I suppose the month-long celebration the casino is planning will make the next four weeks a little more bearable. While Project Horizon will open this weekend, a month long grand opening commencing October 1 will include a poker tournament with one of the largest prize pools on the East Coast, daily car giveaways and signature drinks among the offerings… and may make it easier to wait just a little longer to head to the eastern side of the state.

Until next week I’ll be seeing you... on the road, but not yet ready to make my reservation for Margaritaville Mohegan Sun.

Questions and comments should be sent to Shannon Hicks c/o The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road, Newtown CT 06470, or shannon@thebee.com, or call the office at 426-3141. Shows listed at clubs are for ages 21 and over unless specified.

 

UPCOMING SHOWS

AUGUST 29 — Side Porch at Mocha Coffee House, Sandy Hook; Dion at Mohegan Sun’s Cabaret Theatre, Uncasville;

August 30 — Infrasonic at Mocha Coffee House; Paramore at The Chevrolet Theatre, Wallingford, with Jack’s Mannequin and Phantom Planet opening; Dion at Mohegan Sun’s Cabaret Theatre;

August 31 — Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo at The Klein Memorial Auditorium; Kid Rock & Lynyrd Skynyrd at Dodge Music Center; John Voket and Brendan Walsh at Rosy Tomorrows, Danbury; Dion at Mohegan Sun’s Cabaret Theatre.

SEPTEMBER 1 — Steve Azar at Mohegan Sun’s Wolf Den, Uncasville;

September 4 — Burning Spear at Toad’s Place, New Haven (all ages);

September 6 — Curtis T (12:30-2 pm), Jerry Brown (2:30-3:30), Gunsmoke (4-6), Dave Powers Band (6:30-7:45) and Blue Oyster Cult (8 pm) at CityCenter Green, Danbury (part of 22nd annual Taste of Danbury event); American Idols Tour 2008 at Arena at Harbor Yard, Bridgeport; Celine Dion at MGM Grand at Foxwoods; Tracy James, Lisa Furman, Hoe and Greasewheazer at Playhouse on the Green, Bridgeport;

September 7 — Whitewood (12:30-1:45 pm), Blue Oyster Cult (2-4), Jerry Brown (4:30-5) and Dr Ya Ya’s Gumbo Party (5-7 pm);

September 11 — Pete Seeger, Tao Rodriguez-Seeger and Guy Davis at The Ridgefield Playhouse (benefit for WPKN radio);

September 12 — Trace Adkins at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Kellie Pickler opening; Alicia Keys at MGM Grand at Foxwoods; Darik & The Funbags at Toad’s Place.