Tony Bennett, Patti LaBelle booked for Opening Nights

If last year's Opening Nights Performing Arts festival was dominated by famed classical musicians such as cellist Yo-Yo Ma and violinist Joshua Bell, the vocalists are taking their turn for the 2015-2016 season.

Tony Bennett will return to Tallahassee for the first time since 1999, when he performed as part of the inaugural Opening Nights festival. The legendary vocalist, who turned 89 on Monday, will sing in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall on Feb. 13, 2016.

"This guy, it is like he's 40 or 50 years old if you look at his touring schedule, he's all over Europe and North America," Opening Nights executive director Christopher Heacox said. "This isn't 15 minutes of just propping him up, either, he's out there singing for a long time. It's impressive he's been able to do what's doing for such a long period of time — and at such a high level. I'm pretty stoked about bringing him here."

Tickets can be purchased starting Sept. 15

Bennett's career is riding high these days following the release of the duet album "Cheek to Cheek" with pop star Lady Gaga. That album won a Grammy Award and landed at No. 1 on the Billboard charts, making Bennett the oldest artist to score a No. 1 hit.

"What gives Tony such staying power is his youthful and energetic demeanor and approach to his work," said horn player, Count Basie Orchestra leader and Florida State jazz professor Scotty Barnhart, who has performed with Bennett. "He's always smiling, he loves people, and he's totally approachable. This makes him a magnet for people. I also think that the music itself, jazz, along with the many jazz pioneers that he knew personally such as Count Basie and Duke Ellington, also keeps him going as he realizes that the pursuit of excellence as you travel the world actually keeps you young at heart."

The other top vocalist on the Opening Nights roster is Patti LaBelle. The singer of such hits as "Lady Marmalade" and "New Attitude" returns to the city to perform on Feb. 8, 2016 in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall.

"Patti has just re-invented herself in every decade," Heacox said. "Most recently, she was on 'Dancing With the Stars,' she's done guest appearances on 'Empire.' She played a role on 'American Horror Story' and most people didn't know it was her. She was the character Dora Ross, real sassy, very Patti-esque. She hasn't toured a lot lately but she's going back out on the road."

The latest Opening Nights festival will offer up shows starting in September and running through April 2016, with the bulk of the performances arriving in February. The announcement of the new season was made during a splashy reception at FSU's Turnbull Center on Tuesday night. Some of the other highlights include "Saturday Night Live" alum Ana Gasteyer, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, an encore appearance by Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, the jazz-innovating Bill Frisell Trio, writer Elizabeth Gilbert ("Eat, Pray, Love"), a tribute to the late Laura Nyro by Billy Childs, humorist Jeanne Robertson, jazz bassist Christian McBride, violinist Gil Shaham and the world premiere of "Walking With 'Trane" by the Urban Bush Women.

"We co-commissioned the work," Heacox said of "Walking With 'Trane," a portion of which was shown in an early version two years ago at Opening Nights. "It's having its New York premiere at BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) in December but we're getting it first."

The Urban Bush Women was founded by dancer-choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, who teaches at Florida State's dance department. "'Trane" is a tribute to the great jazz musician John Coltrane and the influence his music has had on Zollar's work and life.

This year, Opening Nights is presenting The Broadway Series of the touring musicals "Flashdance," "Once," "Saturday Night Fever" and the stage show "The Illusionists" in the Civic Center starting on Dec. 1. The arts festival also is playing host to The Southern Arts Southern Circuit Film Festival, which is screening six films such as "The Trials of Muhammad Ali" and "Orion: The Man Who Would Be King" starting Sept. 17 at The Challenger Learning Center.

Paying members of Opening Nights get first crack at the tickets starting on Aug. 11 and continuing until Sept. 14. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Sept. 15. Ticket prices range from $15 to $125. Visit openingnights.fsu.edu.

Since it began 16 years ago, Opening Nights has attracted a who's who of big names and cutting-edge acts. Past performers and artists include the experimental Kronos Quartet, controversial author Salman Rushdie, comic Joan Rivers, humorist David Sedaris, singer Mavis Staples, harpist Joanna Newsom, dancer Savion Glover, country icon Willie Nelson, artist Judy Chicago, songwriter Randy Newman, actor Danny Glover, comedian Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, The Neville Brothers, concert pianist Garrick Ohlsson, blues guitarist Buddy Guy, writer Margaret Atwood and Oscar-winning director Jonathan Demme.

Opening Nights 2015 lineup

Sept. 22: Words will fly during "Poetry Night with Adrian Matejka" in the FSU Alumni Center Ballroom

Sept. 30-Oct. 1: The Urban Bush Women dance company presents the world premiere of "Walking with 'Trane," inspired by the music of jazz giant John Coltrane, in the Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre

Oct. 13: Nashville bluegrass band The Barefoot Movement resins up the bow at the Carriage House at Goodwood Museum

Oct. 24: Jazz bass players Edgar Meyer and Christian McBride break out big bass fiddles in Opperman Music Hall

Oct. 27: Folk singer Anaïs Mitchell makes the trip from Vermont to the Carriage House at Goodwood Museum

Nov. 10: Jazzy cabaret singer and bass player Kate Davis brings her silky voice to Opperman Music Hall

Nov. 21: Grammy Award-winning violinist Gil Shaham performs in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Nov. 24: Genre-jumping jazz innovator and guitarist Bill Frisell brings his trio to town for a rare Florida show in Opperman Music Hall

Opening Nights 2016 lineup

Jan. 12: Trombone Shorty & New Orleans Avenue are back by popular demand for a second line in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Jan. 24-25: Solo cellist Maya Beiser plays two shows, one at Pebble Hill Plantation and the other at The Carriage House at Goodwood

Jan. 26: Choreographer Shen Wei mixes everything from traditional Chinese dance to modern American moves when Shein Wei Dance Arts leaps on the stage in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Jan. 29: Tango the night away when pianist Pablo Ziegler and violinist Lara St. John play the music of Astor Piazolla in Opperman Music Hall

Feb. 2-3: Throw the script out the window when the totally improvised "Broadway's Next H!T Musical" brings the laughs to Fred W. Turner Auditorium at TCC

Feb. 4: Comedian Kathleen Madigan offers her humorous take on things in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 5: It's a summit of Southern guitarists when JJ Grey, Marc Broussard, Anders Osborne and Luther Dickinson join forces as the Southern Soul Assembly in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 6: Pop-classical Croatian duo 2CELLOS, which was helped along by Sir Elton John, makes its Tallahassee debut in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 7: Bands, ensembles, drummers and the Marching Chiefs get in on the action when the Prism concert returns to Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 8: Patti LaBelle raises the rafters in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 9: Jazz pianist Billy Childs teams with Becca Stevens and Alicia Olatuja to present "Map to the Treasure: Reimagining Laura Nyro" in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 10: The Midtown Men, which features four of the original cast members of the Broadway hit "Jersey Boys," sing the hits by the Four Seasons and more in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 11: Singer-actor-force of nature Storm Large blows in for a concert in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 12: Mandolin player Sierra Hull returns with The David Grisman Bluegrass Experience for a foot-stomping show in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 12: An exhibition of 20th century art from Cuba and a show of photographs by Builder Levy open at the FSU Museum of Fine Arts

Feb. 13: Tony Bennett flips through The Great American Songbook in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

Feb. 13: Bring the family to the annual Saturday Matinee of the Arts at The Tallahassee Museum

Feb. 14: Ana Gasteyer showcases her classically trained voice and sharp wit during a Valentine's Day concert in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

March 3: The Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra travels from the Middle East to Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

March 6: The hip Black Violin Duo shares the stage with conductor Alexander Jimenez and the Tallahassee Youth Symphony Orchestra in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

March 11: Jamaican guitarist Brushy One String and other world music performers join together for globalFEST in the amphitheater at Cascades Park

March 21: Faculty members from the Florida State Creative Writing Program will take part in the radio show "Selected Shorts" live on the stage in the Richard G. Fallon Theatre

March 24: Humorist Jeanne Robertson spins stories about love, marriage and grocery shopping in the Richard G. Gallon Theatre

March 30: The a cappella group Semi-Toned presents "Game of Tones" in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

April 5: Best-selling memoir writer Elizabeth Gilbert ("Eat, Pray, Love") reads from her work in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall