FMU Performing Arts Center announces fall season lineup

Blues and soul, Doo Wop and classic rock are on the roster for the fall season at the Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center. The soulful melodies of Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, the classic tones of The Doo Wop Project and rock-n-roll great The Grass Roots will be in the fall lineup.

Martha Reeves and the Vandellas kick off Fall at the PAC on Friday, Sept. 23. The Doo Wop Project will perform on Oct. 13 and The Grass Roots will follow them on Nov. 19.

Tickets for all three are on sale now, both online and at the PAC box office (843-661-4444, www.fmupac.org).

Martha Reeves & The Vandellas tickets are $45; tickets for The Doo Wop Project are $32; and tickets for The Grass Roots are $42.

Laura Sims, director of the Performing Arts Center, says the fall lineup continues the PAC’s crowd-pleasing tradition.

“The PAC prides itself on providing a variety of musical styles for our patrons in the Pee Dee,” says Sims.  “We’ve had a bit of country and folk music this summer, so what better way to begin the fall than to snap your fingers and tap your feet to hits of the 60’s and 70’s?”

Nearly 50 years after the first hit song, “Come and Get These Memories,” Reeves and her sisters Lois and Delphine continue to perform at festivals, concerts and clubs around the world as The Vandellas.

Their legendary hits include the Grammy-nominated “Heat Wave,” the gospel-inspired “Nowhere to Run,” the soulful favorite “My Baby Loves Me,” and the legendary, “Dancing In The Street.” Deemed “Motown’s ultimate soul diva,” Reeves established herself as one of music’s greatest voices early in her career.  She sang backup on Marvin Gaye’s first three hits and helped Holland-Dozier-Holland to secure their first big hit with “Come and Doo Wop Project-1Get These Memories.” While the members of the Vandellas changed often, Reeves’ high-ceilinged soprano remained constant.

The Doo Wop Project consists of the street corner harmony of five guys to the greatest hits on the radio, tracing the evolution of Doo Wop. During the show, the group performs songs from the Crests, Belmonts and Flamingos and the sounds of Smokey Robinson, the Temptations, the Four Seasons and Michael Jackson.

Grass Roots-1The Grass Roots band began with Rob Grill and producer Steve Barri (The Mamas & The Papas, Tommy’s Roe, Four Tops, and Dusty Springfield). They have charted 29 singles, 13 of which went gold followed by two gold albums and one platinum album since its inception in 1965. Some of their best-known songs are “Sooner or Later,” “Let’s Live For Today,” and “Temptation Eyes.”

To purchase tickets, visit the PAC website at www.fmu.pac, call the box office at (843) 661-4444, or visit the box office at 201 S. Dargan Street. Telephone and in person sales are available Monday through Thursday between 12 and 5 p.m.