WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — The stage at the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre has gone dark for the summer, but it's all to give this historic building an upgrade.
"We have a scheduled capital project that involves replacing all of our rooftop units, putting in an HVAC system in the building, and simultaneously, we will be finishing construction downstairs, recovering from the flood that we had in 2023," said Joell Yarmel, F.M. Kirby Exec Director.
Executive director Joell Yarmel tells Newswatch 16 that when they reopen in the fall, the downstairs, which was damaged by flooding, will be primed for patrons.
"For those people who came this past year for the first time, there is a downstairs that they didn't even know existed, and there's an entire new set of restrooms down there. So getting those backup and running is going to be huge."
What's also huge is the star-studded lineup for the 2024-2025 season.
"Lou Gramm of Foreigner coming, Daniel O'Donnell, who's been here in the past. The ladies just love him, so we're excited to have him coming back as well, the Sinatra years, and also, in September, we have Chubby Checker coming. He was rescheduled from when we had our flood last year," added Yarmel.
There is also the Chandelier Series, which will take place away from the main stage.
"They are more intimate setting. So It's those local bands, those regional bands, those national bands that we just have a smaller space for," said Yarmel.
"Ghost Hunters" star Amy Bruni will be "Startling" things off under the chandelier on October 29th.
"She had been on our stage previously, but it's a smaller audience, and for the people that love her, it's going to be really cool to be close to her, and then everyone's really excited about Tigers Jaw that's going to be coming and Subnotics with elephants dancing," said Yarmel. "We had 118 events last season, so this is just the tip of the iceberg for what we're going to be offering this season. I would say days after these tickets go on sale for the season, we'll be announcing new shows."
The F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre reopens for the season on September 12th, with comedian Pete Davidson taking the stage.
For a list of all of the shows, click here.