Legacy Theater to kick off 2023 season Feb. 11 with showcase highlighting upcoming productions

CARTHAGE, Ill. — The Legacy Theater in Carthage will kick off its 2023 season with a showcase on Saturday, Feb. 11, to highlight the performers of the coming year. This free event will be held at the theater. Social time begins at 6 p.m. with complimentary appetizers and a cash bar serving wine and beer. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m.

The evening will include a combination of outstanding live local performers and video previews of many of the shows planned for the year. Featured live on stage during the evening will be Duke Oursler of Macomb, a country Americana singer/songwriter; T Heberlein of Quincy, a stand-up comedian; and Liz Bentley of Quincy, an up-and-coming country singer.

These performers provide a forecast of the kinds of shows that will be featured during the coming year. A series of videos, produced by Phil Weiss of Western Illinois University, will give a glimpse of the 2023 schedule, starting with Shawn Gerhard, the Ultimate Garth Brooks, at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 11.

In a press release, Amy Graham, chairman of the performance recruitment committee, said, “This is something new for us. We are so excited about the line-up we have at the theater for 2023. We just want to give people a chance to see and hear more about these acts. They can get a head start at ordering their tickets for the year.”

Returning again this year are the Church Basement Ladies with their musical comedy show, “Away in the Basement.” Two rising stars who fill out The Legacy Theater season are Angie K, country artist of Nashville, and Sal Valentinetti, whose jazz and crooning style earned him a golden buzzer to the finals of America’s Got Talent in Season 11.

Other tribute acts planned this year honor Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson and Selena. Three, new non-musical style shows will provide family fun — Puppy Pals, an America’s Got Talent finalist act; Dry Bar Comedy with Bill Boronkay and Andy Beningo, good family friendly comedy; and Eric Jones, one of only a handful of magicians to have fooled Penn and Teller on their hit show “Fool Us.”

The showcase is free. Reservations are not required.

Tickets to the 2023 season shows will be sold at the showcase and are available Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Legacy Theater box office, 1160 Buchanan (Route 136) in Carthage. Tickets can be bought at any time on the theater website, thelegacytheater.com, or by calling 217-357-9479.