The Jane Pickens Theater & Event Center has announced a summer lineup of live music celebrating rock legends, blues virtuosos and original artists, headlined by a 50th-anniversary tribute to Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue.
The centerpiece event, “Rolling Thunder Revue — Live Tribute Concert,” comes to the theater on Tuesday, July 21, with doors at 6 p.m. and the show at 7 p.m. The immersive production pays tribute to Dylan’s mythic 1975 tour, recreating its white face paint, renegade energy and fearless artistic spirit 50 years later.
Leading the production is Avi Jacob, a New England singer-songwriter who steps into Dylan’s role. Jacob has shared stages with the Marcus King Band, Dr. John and The Lone Bellow, was called an “emerging folk superstar” by Counting Crows in 2015, and took home a New England Music Award in 2022. He is joined by an ensemble that includes Jacqui Armbruster as Scarlet Rivera, Chase Cavacco as Mick Ronson, Johnny Santini as Rob Stoner, Nicole Gauthier as Joni Mitchell and Beth Killian as Joan Baez. Produced with the New England Music Organization, the event celebrates both Dylan’s legacy and Newport’s own deep roots in folk music history. Tickets are $40, or $38 for JPT members.
The summer slate opens earlier with Classic Stones Live, a Rolling Stones tribute, on Friday, June 26, at 7:30 p.m. Frontman Keith Call channels Mick Jagger and Bernie Bollendorf embodies Keith Richards in a recreation of the band’s live act, with classics from “Brown Sugar” to “Gimme Shelter.”
The lineup continues with an evening with international blues-rock guitarist Joanne Shaw Taylor on Thursday, July 9, at 7:30 p.m., featuring songs from her album “Black & Gold” along with fan favorites and new music. Newport favorite Chase Ceglie then makes his Jane Pickens debut on Wednesday, July 29, at 7 p.m., celebrating the release of his album “My Saxophone Cried” with a blend of art-pop, jazz, folk and theatrical storytelling.
Tickets are on sale now, and the full calendar is available at janepickens.com.
