418 South Illinois Avenue, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
LIVE EVENTS
Varsity’s All-Ages Show: Doing Disney
The Invincible Czars open Halloween weekend festivities
The Invincible Czars open Halloween weekend festivities
7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26
$10 / $5 students with ID
6 p.m. Doors and Varsity Bar
Disney is embracing drag queens, and the Varsity is giving them a good squeeze back at the next monthly all-ages drag show at the downtown venue.
The Walt Disney Co. has committed itself to supporting LGBTQ activism and has followed through with the casting of Shea Couleé in its upcoming Disney+ series “Ironheart.” Couleé — real name, Jaren Kyei Merrell — is a drag performer who finished fourth in the ninth season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and in the top four in “Drag Race All Stars 7.”
“Drag Does Disney” starts at 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 26. Doors and the Varsity Bar open at 6. Join emcee and performer Blanche DuBois, the godmother of Southern Illinois drag. Joining Blanche will be Jodie Santana, Faim Lee Jewls, Leiyana Santana and Sierra D’Leight. Christina Garnette will be the evening’s hostess and will also perform a number.
This is an all-ages show, and the venue welcomes young people; however, the show can be on the risqué side, and those 17 and younger must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
The show begins at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26. Tickets are $10 for adults or $5 for students with ID. They are available in advance at Eventbrite.com (see link below). Tickets are not available in advance at the venue but will be available on the night of the show.
Come early and enjoy special cocktails at the bar in the company of Christina and the Varsity staff.
The Invincible Czars open Halloween weekend festivities
The Invincible Czars open Halloween weekend festivities
The Invincible Czars open Halloween weekend festivities
7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28
6 p.m. Doors and Varsity Bar
$15 in advance / $18 at the door
The Invincible Czars are making their long-awaited return to the Varsity this fall, when the group embarks on a two-month “Nosferatu Centennial Tour” throughout the U.S. and Canada. The tour is conjunction with the release of the group’s updated silent-film soundtrack of the 100-year-old film.
The Austin, Texas-based group makes cinematic, experimental “rock” music for nerds, horror fans, film lovers, science fiction (and fact!) comics, cartoons and humor and anyone with a complicated relationship with heavy metal and classical music. The musicians in the group – Aaryn Russell (bass guitar), Phil Davidson (violin, keyboard, glockenspiel), Josh Robins (guitar, percussion, sound effects) and Skunk Manhattan (keyboard, guitar synth) – create, compose and perform modern soundtracks for silent films and perform live with the movies.
On Friday, Oct. 28, this performance will usher in the Halloween festivities in the city of Carbondale. “Nosferatu” is one of the most revered films in the history of cinema, perhaps the most important horror film of the silent era and one of the first vampire movies.
Fans, venues and media have praised The Invincible Czars’ soundtrack for making the century-old movie actually scary for modern audiences. Violin, glockenspiel, organ, flute, bass clarinet, voices and vocals, music box, loops, electric guitar, bass, piano and percussion all play prominent roles in the score and are a sight to behold when performed by only four players as the movie screens.
Attendees are encouraged to dress for the Halloween season at the show, which will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 28. Doors and the Varsity Bar open at 6. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 at the door. Advance tickets are available in advance at Eventbrite (see link). Tickets are not available in advance at the venue but will be for sale on the night of the show when doors open.