-->

* * * * *

Virginia Opry Set Sat., Oct. 5 At Masonic Theatre

 
Clifton Forge, VA (Sept. 17, 2019) - The Virginia Opry will present its “Fall Harvest Jamboree” that will complete its 28th performance season by featuring Moonshine Express Band on stage at the Historic Masonic Theatre on Saturday, October 5, at 7:00 p.m.

Jana Allen, fresh from filming her lead role in Remember Yesterday , an independent film set in Wilmington, North Carolina, where filming took place, will perform as vocalist and emcee.

Recently, she was cast in an episode of The Righteous Gemstones, a HBO TV series starring John Goodman and Danny McBride. The episode aired earlier in September. Additionally, she has been cast in Fear Street I, Fear Street II, and Fear Street III, a feature film trilogy that is being filmed in Atlanta. She portrays a reporter in that series of films. Other roles in films include: The Taking of Deborah Logan, The Hollow, The Shunning, The Bleeding and three episodes of Manhunt Unabomber.

Members of the Junior Virginia Opry will open for Billy Fury’s Moonshine Express Band. The Junior Virginia Opry is made up of Crossing County Lines-Virginia Boys and The Appalachian Pickers.

Joining Billy Fury, the rhythm guitarist and vocalist, will be Jerry Jefferies, Jr., the band’s drummer who is a vocalist and songwriter; Bink Jenkins, a vocalist and bass player; Timmy Clifton, the lead guitarist; and Frank Alfred, the keyboardist.

Moonshine Express Band has opened for The Statler Brothers, Sawyer Brown, Mel McDaniel, Stonewall Jackson, Clinton Gregory, and David Feasell. Fury and his Moonshine Express Band will be one of ten bands honored at the show by being inducted into The Virginia Opry.

Other bands being inducted at the show are Michael Hoover and his Showcase Band, Robby Meadows Band, Brian Buchanan Band, Glen Shelton Band, Crimson River Band, Keith Bryant and Steve Hoke Band, H. Ray Tucker and Friends, Crossing County Lines-Virginia Boys, and Joey Robinson Duo. Jana Allen will also be honored by being inducted, having completed her first year as emcee and vocalist. Additionally, Denise Glass, an award winning vocalist who specializes in performing tributes to Patsy Cline, will be inducted.

The Virginia Opry was commended by the Virginia General Assembly in 2017 for presenting and producing 25 consecutive years of country music shows following its debut in the Historic Stonewall Theatre on October 17, 1992, during the Clifton Forge Fall Foliage Festival.

Prominent guest performers and groups have graced the stage on The Virginia Opry, including the following: the late Dan Seals, Keith Bryant, The Freight Hoppers, The Lonesome River Band, The Farm Hands, and The Darrell Webb Band.

Other prominent guests have been Shellem Cline, the late Bob Campbell, and Robby Meadows and Pony Express, a band that served as the house band for The Virginia Opry during the performance season that was broadcast live by WKEY Radio Station from the Historic Stonewall Theatre.

M. Ray Allen, director of The Virginia Opry, recalled, “As president of Appalfolks, I authorized Ray Tucker to recruit performers to form the first troupe that debuted as The Virginia Opry on “The Alleghany Jamboree” in October of 1992.”

After regarding the theatre as its home for 28 years, Appalfolks of America has formed an arts education partnership with the Highlands Media Group, owner of 103.5 Big Country, and Appalfolks and The Virginia Opry have a new home, 103.5 Big Country after Appalfolks leased the WXCF Radio Studio Building at 1047 Ingalls Street in Clifton Forge.

M. Ray Allen remarked, “Moonshine Express Band is a high energy band that covers country standards from Merle Haggard to Charlie Daniels, and the band mixes in some classic rock and original songs as well.”

Crossing County Lines-Virginia Boys and The Appalachian Pickers were formed as the result of an Appalfolks audition held in the Historic Masonic Theatre on September 23, 2017, and the two groups make up The New “Old School” Junior Virginia Opry. Both groups have opened for The Virginia Opry, and Crossing County Lines has performed at the Commodore Grille in Nashville where the band recorded its first CD.

M. Ray Allen concluded, “I thank 103.5 Big Country, the Town of Clifton Forge, the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, and Sankar Enterprises, Inc. for ongoing support for The Virginia Opry.”

Tickets for The Virginia Opry are $10 for balcony seating, $12 for auditorium seating beneath the balcony overhang, $15 for orchestra, and $25 for box seats. Tickets may be purchased at The Historic Masonic Theatre’s box office at 510 Main Street in Clifton Forge, by calling the box office at (540) 862-5655 or by visiting www.historicmasonictheatre.com.

 
 
 

* * * * *

BACK TO THE JOURNAL'S HOMEPAGE!
* * * * *
KEEP UP WITH THE LOCAL NEWS! SIGN UP FOR ALLEGHANY JOURNAL BREAKING NEWS BELOW!
FREE Breaking News Sign Up Here!