The Irish are coming, and with great song! The Knox Concert Series announces that the 2012-13 season is now complete with the addition of Celtic Woman on Dec. 21, the fifth concert on the season ticket. Celtic Woman is a musical ensemble and stage show. With its 35-piece orchestra, it features a harpist and fiddle player and incorporates both traditional Irish music and modern songs, delivered with a Celtic twist. This will be the group’s “Christmas Symphony Show,” and the company’s last booking on their current tour before the musicians return to Dublin. Celtic Woman, formed in 2004, has recorded six albums. The ensemble has performed three tours in America and a number of world tours. Single tickets (which range from $50 to $75) may possibly be on sale a week before the concert. For more information, call Mandi King at 256-235-2553 or visit knoxconcert@cableone.net.

Exhibit on Noble Street

If you haven’t had a summer vacation, just browse through the exhibit at Noble Gallery in Nunnally’s Custom Framing at 1214 Noble St. The display by 20 artists represents a sense of far-and-wide travel seen through paintings picturing the rural south, Mexico, Alaska and India. There’s also silk fabric art, carved gourds, pottery, jewelry, photography and some unique walking canes. The exhibit, up through the end of November, showcases the works of East Alabama Artists, Inc., formerly Artworks. The show’s opening reception Aug. 3 drew more than 150 people.

Auditions for holiday show

There’s been lots of interest concerning roles available in “A Christmas Story,” CAST’s choice for its holiday production. Auditions will be Monday, Sept.24 at 7 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church on Henry Street in Anniston. There are 19 roles available including two women, two men and lots of children, especially boys, according to artistic director Kim Dobbs. Bring a monologue to read or read from the script. The show will be offered from Nov. 23 through Dec. 2 at McClellan Theatre. CAST’s season opener is “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” Sept.13 through Sept.23.

Orchestra tuning up

Congratulations to five Calhoun County students who were selected from auditions this summer to play in the Etowah Youth Orchestra. They are Katherine Athon, Wesley Cain, Alex East, James Gavino and Shelby Rhodes. This brings the total number of Calhoun County student participants in EYO to 21 instrumentalists.

Performing each season with the award-winning EYO requires hard work from its musicians; the concerts include a variety of advanced scores by classical and contemporary composers. But the youth can also look forward to performances on the lighter side. The Rock and Roll Christmas Concert is an annual event, and plans are underway for a Concert Tour in 2014; South America is one destination being discussed, according to Mike Gagliardo, EYO director. The group is now in rehearsal at EYO’s new home, The Music Center at Temple Beth Israel in Gadsden.

String players needed

The JSU/Community Orchestra re-convenes Aug. 28 at 7 p.m. on the third floor of Mason Hall on the JSU campus. String players are needed for the season, which includes a fall and spring concert. Selections include pieces by German composer Johannes Brahms and French composer Leo Delibes. For more information, call Director Mike Gagliardo at 256-467-3168.

Hervey Folsom is a longtime supporter of the arts in Calhoun County and has been writing for The Star since 1971. She can be contacted at herveyfolsom@yahoo.com.