A quick look at some of what Long Island has on tap this week.
Salute to Vets with Tony Orlando and the USO Liberty Bells
Saturday, Aug. 1, 7 p.m.
The Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre
Stewart nd Merrick Avenues, East Meadow
(516) 572-0348
http://www.nassaucountyny.gov/
Ceremonies honoring our armed services past and present as well as the Nassau Firefighters Operation Wounded Warrior will begin at 6:45 p.m. and the show will begin at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. The only official chartered USO show troupe, the USO Liberty Bells, will support headliner Tony Orlando, who recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of his recording of “Tie A Yellow Ribbon ‘Round The Ole Oak Tree.”
“Weird Al” Yankovic
Saturday, Aug. 1, 8 p.m.
The Paramount
370 New York Ave., Huntington
(631) 673-7300, ext. 303
Few would have guessed that a shy, accordion-playing teenager would go on to become the biggest-selling comedy recording artist in history with more than 12 million album sales. Now in his fourth career decade, “weird Al” Yankovic has won three Grammys (with 14 nominations) and countless accolades for classics like “Eat It,” “Like a Surgeon,” “Fat,” “Yoda,” and “Smells Like Nirvana.” He released his 14th studio album “Mandatory Fun” on July 15.
1964 – The Tribute
Saturday, Aug. 1, 8 p.m.
NYCB Theatre at Westbury
960 Brush Hollow Road, Westbury
(516) 247-5200
1964 – The Tribute takes their audiences on a musical journey to an era in rock history that will live forever. Hailed by critics and fans alike as the most authentic and endearing Beatles tribute in the world, 1964 – The Tribute chooses songs from the pre-Sgt. Pepper era, recreating an early live Beatles concert, with period instruments, clothing, hairstyles and onstage banter. More than 25 years of researching and performing have made “1964” masters of their craft.
San Francisco Opera’s Show Boat
Sunday, Aug. 2, 2 p.m.
Adelphi University Performing Arts Center
Westermann Stage, 1 South Avenue, Garden City
(516) 877-4000
A true classic of American musical theater, this tale of life on the Mississippi from the 1880s to the 1920s is both a poignant love story and a powerful reminder of the bitter legacy of racism. Director Francesca Zambello’s grand-scale production has been called “a grand, operatically scaled piece of storytelling…with magnificent melodies and big themes” with “rollicking dance numbers and big crowd scenes, balanced by intimate emotion and sheer romance. ”
Folk Night in the Garden
Tuesday, Aug. 4, 7 p.m.
Clark Botanic Garden
193 I. U. Willets Road, Albertson
(516) 484-2208
Famous Folk singer David Sear will headline a night of folk music at scenic Clark Botanic Gardens, playing a set of foot stomping tunes. He will be followed by Gathering Time, an American folk band that has been compared to a modern Peter Paul and Mary or Crosby, Stills and Nash.
Billy Joel
Tuesday, Aug. 4, 7:30 p.m.
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
1255 Hempstead Turnpike, Uniondale
(516) 794-9300
Two Long Island institutions come together one final time Tuesday when “the piano man” Billy Joel makes his last solo appearance at Nassau Coliseum. Joel, who has been doing a monthly residency at Madison Square Garden, returns to his native soil before the Coliseum closes for an extensive renovation. Joel’s last appeared at the Uniondale venue in 1998 when he sold out nine shows, setting the building record for the most sellouts in one year.
Vanessa Trouble & The Red Hot Swing
Wednesday, Aug. 5, 7 p.m.
Old Westbury Gardens
71 Old Westbury Road, Old Westbury
(516) 333-0048
Since their debut in 1995 to a crowd of more than 400 Lindy hoppers, The Red Hot Swing have been thrilling audiences with their eclectic mix of jazz, jump blues, originals, and swing. The Red Hot Swing are Vanessa Trouble, lead vocals; Michael Hashim, tenor saxophone; Marty Bound, trumpet; Stefan Schatz, drums; Kelly Friesen, acoustic bass; and Mark McCarron, guitar and arrangements.
