PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
May 18, 2012
Media Contact
Jane Gendron
(435) 640-3315
jgendron@jgendron.com
Park City Performing Arts Foundation Announces
St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights
2012 Season Line-Up
PARK CITY, UT – The 2012 St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights outdoor concert series at Deer
Valley Resort just got bigger. The line-up includes velvet-voiced Aaron Neville and The Dirty
Dozen Brass Band (July 13), Lucinda Williams (July 16), country star Dwight Yoakam (July
29), Supertramp’s Roger Hodgson (Aug. 5), The All-American Rejects (Aug. 12), Rickie Lee
Jones (Aug. 25) and The Sound of Music Sing-Along (Sept. 1).
Kicking off the season with plenty of soulful sizzle, four-time Grammy Award winner Aaron Neville
makes an encore Park City performance (this time without his band of brothers) on July 13. The
R&B, gospel, soul (and even sometimes country) sounds of this iconic performer are heavily spiced
with the flavors of his New Orleans home. But it is his voice – “an ethereal, inimitable tenor that
legions of fans regard as a national treasure” (People Magazine) – that has bowled over audiences
and critics alike for decades. As Newsday writes “When Neville opens his mouth, out floats a
heavenly choir—a falsetto as light as gossamer and as rich as butter.” More than beignets and
gumbo, Neville’s Big Easy style is rooted in faith and an ability to overcome hard times. From his
early hits, such as “Tell it Like it is” to the more recent “I Know I’ve Been Changed,” his music
spans genres and generations.
Another New Orleans staple, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, will open Neville’s July 13 show.
Celebrating their 35th anniversary and the release of a new album, this jubilant, brassy group has
contagious energy and rollicking tunes. The seven-member band, which has been through several
incarnations since its 1977 inception as The Dirty Dozen Social and Pleasure Club, kicks off the
evening with unrelenting pizazz. As The New York Times puts it, “[The Dirty Dozen Brass Band’s]
ability to be funky – to play complex syncopated rhythms with carefree flair that automatically
makes listeners want to get up and dance – has never been in doubt.”
Just as the N’Orleans gents wrap up a spicy couple of sets, Grammy winning, Louisiana-born singersongwriter Lucinda Williams steps into the spotlight with a rockin’, bluesy, rootsy, country show on
July 16. Named “America’s best songwriter” by TIME magazine, it’s no secret that this poet’s
daughter can pen phenomenal – and, at times, tough – lyrics. Her 10th album (released last year)
shows a little flirtation with a sunny take on life as well as Williams’ renowned songwriting prowess.
As The New York Times writes, “Her voice has all its old scrapes and hollows; she’ll never come
across as too cozy. But her music is newly confident.” Often called a female Bob Dylan, Williams is
well into a fourth decade of remarkable ballads and performance.
Dwight Yoakam picks up the Big Star torch where Ms. Williams set it down and carries it into the
July 29 night with his trademark country-rock style. Dubbed a “Renaissance Man” by TIME
magazine, Yoakam is a chart-topping, multi-platinum singer-songwriter as well as an actor, director
and musical pioneer. Yep, it doesn’t get much more iconic than “Guitars, Cadillacs…” and this
particular cowboy. The honky tonk hero has two Grammys (21 nominations) and accolades that
stretch from his long-time Los Angeles home to his native Kentucky and back. Thanks to intricate,
yet uncluttered and still smooth melodies as well as poignant lyrics, this troubadour crosses genres
with ease.
“Like Presley, [Yoakam] doesn’t always stay within musical genres,” writes The New York Times,
“even more important, he makes sure a song’s conflicting emotions all come through. His breakup
songs are blue and lovelorn, but angry, too; his rambling-guy songs are footloose but regretful; and
his come-ons are both seductive and menacing.”
Best known for his time fronting the progressive rock band Supertramp, Roger Hodgson brings his
legendary voice and hit tunes to the stage on August 5. Hodgson co-founded Supertramp in 1969,
composed a hefty chunk of their most recognizable songs and was the driving force in the band for
14 years before parting company in 1983. He has penned and sung a slew of chart-topping classics,
such “Give a Little Bit,” “Dreamer,” “It's Raining Again,” “Take the Long Way Home,” “The
Logical Song,” “Breakfast In America,” “School” and “Fool’s Overture.” The recipient of two recent
ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) awards, Hodgson continues to
rock with his distinct vocals. As The Times (London) puts it, “There are few vocalists instantly
recognizable from the first few bars of a song but Roger Hodgson is certainly one of that unique
group.”
Fresh-faced and outrageous, The All-American Rejects will rock the outdoor amphitheater with their
emo-pop sounds on August 12. Fronted by bassist/singer/lyricist Tyson Ritter, the band first topped
the charts with their hit single “Swing, Swing.” Since then, Ritter, band co-founder Nick Wheeler,
guitarist Mike Kennerty and drummer Chris Gaylor have honed their own brand of rhythmic, highenergy and melodic sound. With a fourth album (“Kids in the Street”) released just two months ago,
this quartet continues to dazzle and delight. As Variety writes, “Depending on the point of view, the
band is a guilty pleasure or a group of pure pop pundits.”
Adding some jazzy-rootsy-R&B oomph to the line-up, iconic performer Rickie Lee Jones takes to the
stage on August 25. As MOJO writes, “When beatnik kitty cat Rickie Lee first blew minds in’79
with Chuck E.’s Love, it was obvious that an artist of startling talent had arrived… as she evolved,
she wisely shed the theatrics and focused on her art.” This duchess of cool is back with even more
coolness. Critics wax poetic about her vocals, which adapt to the music with appropriate brittleness
or rock-hard precision – and have only gotten better as she’s worked her singer-songwriter magic
into a longstanding, still creative, career. As The Independent writes of Jones’ vocals, “It is a voice
from a dream, elusive, yet familiar, transcendent, a messenger from another place…Stunning.”
The summer season wraps up Labor Day weekend with The Sound of Music Sing-Along – an
audience-participation, fest of musical fabulousness. “The best fun you’ll ever have” (London’s The
Evening Standard), this movie sing-a-long fills the amphitheater on September 1. Not only will the
hills be alive with the sound of music, but fans of Maria and the von Trapp Family are free to dress
up in movie-inspired costumes, sing, shout, bring along props and revel in the splendor of an outdoor
movie-meets-fun-theatrical-experience as well as a gorgeous alpine backdrop. Yes, there are subtitles
for sing-along purposes.
“Thanks to incredible support from our sponsors, we’ve been able to book a season of diverse acts –
some icons of the stage, some edgy and pop-flavored and some that simply couldn’t be more fun,”
says PCPAF executive director Teri Orr. “As always, we can’t imagine a better spot to present these
big stars, than outdoors on the slopes of Deer Valley.”
CONCERT DETAILS
All St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights concerts take place at Deer Valley Resort’s Snow Park
Outdoor Amphitheater. Lawn and reserved tickets as well as summer season punch cards are
available at the Box Office at The Mega Genius Supply Store and IQ HQ (436 Swede Alley, Park
City), via phone at 435-655-3114 or online at www.ecclescenter.org. Lawn tickets are also
available at Deer Valley Signature & Etc. stores and Whole Foods Market. Discounted tickets are
available for children (under age 16) as well as seniors (age 62 and older).
Gates open 90-minutes before show time. Coolers are permitted and a nine-inch chair height
restriction (i.e. you shouldn't be able to roll a basketball under the seat) is enforced. Concerts will
be held rain or shine.
The 2012 Line-Up & Pricing
Aaron Neville and The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
July 13, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $35
Reserved seating: $45, $55 and $65
Lucinda Williams
July 16, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $35
Reserved seating: $45, $55 and $65
Dwight Yoakam
July 29, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $40
Reserved seating: $55, $65 and $75
Roger Hodgson, Legendary Voice of Supertramp
Aug. 5, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $35
Reserved seating: $45, $55 and $65
The All-American Rejects
Aug. 12, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $35
Reserved seating: $45, $55 and $65
Rickie Lee Jones
Aug. 25, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Lawn seating: $35
Reserved seating: $45, $55 and $65
The Sound of Music Sing-Along
Sept. 1, 2012 - 6 p.m.
Lawn seating: $15
Reserved seating: $25
ENTERTAINING, EDUCATING AND ILLUMINATING SINCE 1998
Park City Performing Arts Foundation is a non-profit organization, dedicated to bringing world-class
performances to the community. Since 1998, PCPAF has presented internationally renowned and cutting
edge musicians, actors, authors, comedians, dancers and film at The George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles
Center for the Performing Arts (a joint-use facility with the Park City School District). The organization
embarks on its ninth season of headliner concerts at Deer Valley Resort this summer. PCPAF is
dedicated to introducing young people to the arts through free student outreach workshops, shows and
demonstrations. They proudly launched the Mega Genius Supply Store and IQ HQ - an after school
literacy program and very thinky retail store - in January 2010.
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