Colonial Theatre gears up to host a jam-packed weekend full of ghoulishly gooey fun for its 26th Annual Blobfest. This year’s Blobfest theme is “Camp Blobfest,” promising an outrageously over the-top festival experience filled with nostalgia, thrills, and larger-than-life fun.
From July 11 to July 13, the three-day festival pays homage to the theatre’s starring role in the 1958 classic Steve McQueen film, The Blob. Phoenixville’s favorite movie monster oozed into town more than 60 years ago after the Colonial Theater was featured in the famous 1958 film during a scene where a large crowd runs out of the theatre to escape the renowned blob. Since then, the Colonial has celebrated the film and all things sci-fi horror for a quarter century.
Fan-favorite events returning to Blobfest this year include an electrifying stage show and iconic Run-Out, where attendees can relive the legendary escape scene from The Blob. Due to high demand, an additional Run-Out has been added to the event lineup. Tickets start at $40, offering fans a chance to be part of the action and excitement. Other beloved annual events include the high-energy 1950s rock ‘n’ roll Blob Ball, the lively Saturday Street Fair,Shorty’s Short Film Contest, and theBlobfest 5K, 10K, and Half Marathonwith tickets for the race starting at $35. Attendees can also take part in the Facade Decorating Contest and Costume Contest, showing off their best Blob-inspired looks and creative storefront displays. Screenings of The Blob and other horror classics will show throughout the three day festival, including the Spanish-language version of The Blob, La Masa Devoradora, Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn,and Gremlins 2: The New Batch.
Tickets for Camp Blobfest events can be purchased onlineor in person at the Colonial Theatre box office.
The Colonial Theatre is at 227 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, PA .
Just announced: Michael Martin Murphey to perform a concert at the Sellersville Theater on Saturday, June 14, 2025 at 8:00 p.m. (doors will open at 7:30 p.m.)
… The verse is Isaiah 64:6. As translated in the King James Version, the verse reads: “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”
I’m writing about Leonard Cohen’s “If It Be Your Will” and Billy Joe Shaver’s “If You Don’t Love Jesus.”
Most people who’ve heard the songs haven’t encountered the verse directly (and most of this column’s readers haven’t heard the Billy Joe Shaver song).
In the Leonard Cohen song, Isaiah 64:6 is alluded to in the line: “In our rags of light, all dressed to kill.”
In the Billy Joe Shaver song, an allusion to the verse appears as: “Take your rotten rags of righteousness and stuff ’em up your self.”
Jelly Roll’s (Jason DeFord’s) opening statement at a Senate committee hearing
By Steven Brodsky
Thank you, Jelly Roll!
Posted 1-12-24
In tribute to the late Jimmy Buffett
By Steven Brodsky
… I’m pleased to share links to a nearly one-hour phone interview that Clay Eals did with Jimmy Buffett on October 26, 2000 for Clay’s book Steve Goodman: Facing the Music.
April Verch is one of the most admired fiddlers worldwide. It’s not only extraordinary fiddle playing that endears her to fans, however. It’s also her stepdancing, singing, music composition and lyric writing, and a unique and wonderful artistic expression that flavors the various traditional fiddle music styles that she performs and records. April had prodigious talent with the fiddle at an early age. At an even younger age, she demonstrated remarkable ability in stepdancing. Her talent continued to grow and brought her recognition in her native Ottawa Valley, Canada and later on far beyond. In 1997 she won the Canadian Grand Masters Fiddling Championship. At the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, her performance with five other fiddlers in a segment that presented Canadian fiddle music was broadcast to millions of viewers. She has performed in many countries, and is a concert and festival favorite. In the greater Philadelphia region, April performed last year at the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival. She received a rousing reception. Last month, April performed at the Lansdowne Folk Club. Some of our readers were in attendance; they thoroughly enjoyed the concert. April, you were 3 years old when you began stepdancing. At age 6 you started learning to play the fiddle. What was going on in your life and surroundings that contributed to those learning choices? My parents are both fans of our local (Ottawa Valley) music and dance traditions. I grew up attending square dances, festivals and jamborees with them and listening to my dad’s country band practice. My older sister, Tawnya, was taking stepdancing lessons and I wanted to do everything she did, so I started taking stepdancing lessons at the age of 3. We took lessons from a local teacher, Buster Brown, who taught the style with his wife Pauline 5 days a week in different communities around the Ottawa Valley. I’ve heard that you wanted to take up the fiddle earlier. Why didn’t you do so? We were dancing to fiddle music and I was drawn to it, so I decided I wanted to play fiddle, too. I think I also liked the fact that every time there was fiddle music people were happy and having a good time. I believe I decided when I was 3 that I wanted a fiddle, but my parents didn’t really think I knew what I wanted for sure, and they were also worried that I wouldn’t have time and attention to practice both fiddle and dance, so I had to wait until I was 6 for my first fiddle. It was my birthday present. I think I had finally bugged them long enough at that point that they figured it wasn’t something that was going to pass! You sometimes stepdance and play fiddle concurrently. When did you first start doing this? When I was competing in Ontario fiddle and stepdancing competitions as a young girl, which we often did, though it was more about the social gathering than the actual “contest,” I saw a woman by the name of Cindy Thompson fiddle and stepdance at the same time. I don’t know exactly how old I was, maybe 9 or 10, and I was blown away. I figured “if she can do it, I can do it!” So I started working on it on my own and gradually taught myself to combine the two.The opening track on The April Verch Anthology CD is “Canadian Reel Medley: Trip to Windsor, Back Up and Push, Dusty Miller, Woodchoppers Breakdown.” How old were you when this was recorded? This track starts with an old recording from the late 1980s (I was around 10 years old at the time) and then it melds into a recording of me playing the same tune from a CD entitled Verchuosity which was released on Rounder Records in 2001. What were the circumstances? My dad and my sister and I had gone to play on CHIP radio in Fort-Coulonge, Quebec. It was a station we listened to a lot.—They played a lot of old country music and a lot of local artists. One of the hosts at the time was Red Bennett, and we had met him at a few events and he had invited us to come and play live on his show.What do you recall about the experience? It was my first live radio experience and I was pretty excited! We played a few tunes and he interviewed us in between. Please talk about what is to be heard on the track. The track starts with Red asking me about what we were going to play next and I say something like “some of my favorites, maybe yours too, eh?” I sound like I’m trying to be very grown up but really I just sound like a kid who’s thrilled to be playing on live radio. And then I tear into a tune much too fast, which I think a lot of kids do—tend to play too quickly.… So when it melds into the “current day” version of the same tune, the pace slows considerably to where the tune can groove a bit more!The anthology CD allowed you to choose from tracks that were on 10 of your previously released recordings. What specific memories arose when you revisited some of the songs selected for inclusion on the CD? It was amazing to listen back to each recording, because each one reminded me of a different phase of my life and my career. Remembering not just who was in the band or the studio at that time, but what was happening in my life, what my hopes and dreams were for that recording… For me personally, listening back was like seeing snapshots in a photo album. Please tell us about the current members of your band. Not a day goes by that I do not feel extremely grateful to have such amazing bandmates. Cody Walters plays bass and clawhammer banjo. He resides in Asheville, NC. And from Boston, MA, Alex Rubin joins us on guitar. Both Cody and Alex also contribute vocals. They are fantastic musicians and really wonderful human beings to hang out with offstage as well. I have tremendous respect for them.You started full-time touring in 2000. Please tell us about several of your most memorable performance-related experiences. Performing in the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver was definitely a highlight and a huge production. I feel so fortunate to be able to play in so many different parts of the world and also so many different types of venues and events. Each one is different and special in its own way, and the the most memorable experiences for me as a performer come from the connections that we make in sharing our music with an audience. Hearing their stories after the show, seeing their faces and reactions. That’s what means the most. That can happen in a tiny space of a big hall, but it’s what sticks with me always.How do you occupy your time while traveling to performance venues? In all honesty, I spend almost all of my time working on the “business” aspect of my career when we are in the van, at the hotel, or between tours. I do have hobbies too, but right now my focus is mostly on doing what I can to keep us touring and doing what we love, and I’m okay with that, even if it’s sometimes a heavy load to keep up with. I feel fortunate to be able to do it. You perform a variety of traditional fiddle styles. How are some of them similar to one another and how are they different? A lot of the differences lie in the bowing patterns and ornamentation. Some styles are more articulate while others use longer bows and more notes slurred together. The ornamentation in the left hand also differs from style to style. In the fiddle styles that I play, the thing that ties them all together in my mind is that they are intended for dancing. They have a driving rhythm and how you achieve the dance groove might be different, but that is the ultimate goal for the music.What formal and informal training and music exposure has been most helpful to you? I first learned from local fiddlers that taught me “by ear.” Later I studied classical violin as well and learned to read music. Both methods and experiences were invaluable and I am glad to have both. More than anything have passionate, patient and dedicated teachers been my greatest asset.You attended Berklee College of Music. How did that experience benefit you as a musician? Attending Berklee really opened up my ears to styles of music I had never been exposed to before and made me realize how vast the possibilities are for my instrument, or any instrument for that matter. It was also great to be surrounded by so many musicians that were passionate about their craft and to learn about the business aspect of the industry. I still refer to some of my music business course books to this day.Other than the styles of music that you perform and record, which do you most enjoy? That’s a difficult question for me—I seem to go through phases and love a lot of genres. I don’t know that I would say that there are any that I love that I haven’t tried, because I tend to try most of them when I get really passionate about them. Right now I can’t seem to get enough of old classic country music.When not on the road on in the studio, what are some of the activities that you most like doing? I enjoy reading, walking, gardening and crafts. And hanging out with my family and neighbors. I’ve so much to learn from them. Are you giving thought to your next CD? I am! We will be recording this fall for a new CD to be released in 2019.What do you expect might be on it? I’m leaning towards that old classic country sound and thinking of going more in that direction. You heard it here first! April Verch’s website address is: www.aprilverch.com
Enjoy an evening of fun at Designer Bag Bingo where you can win fabulous designer bags. 100% of proceeds go directly to the day-to-day operations of the Somers Point Volunteer Fire Company #2