Southport Magazine

Down home country tunes that span the test of time

STORY BY: JEFF STITES

Do you miss the days when country and western music wasn’t just pop sung by a guy or gal with a twang? Would you love to revisit the days of Hank Williams and Patsy Cline, of Johnny Cash and Loretta Lynn, of Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard? Then Odell Williamson Auditorium has a show for you! The Classic Nashville Roadshow takes to the stage at Odell William Auditorium on the campus of Brunswick Community College on Thursday, April 27 bringing the best of country music’s bygone era to life.

Jason Petty and Katie Deal, stars of The Classic Nashville Road Show, are two veterans of very successful Off-Broadway country music revues. Petty portrayed Hank Williams in Hank Williams Lost Highway, winning an Obie (the Off-Broadway version of a Tony Award) for his efforts. Deal starred in two sold out national tours of A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline. The Classic Nashville Roadshow is more than just Hank and Patsy. Petty and Deal, backed by a robust five-piece band, portray all your favorite classic country stars in solos and duets. The show features hits like Harper Valley PTA, Coal Miner’s Daughter, On the Road Again and Momma Tried. The show’s stars have genuine country routes with Deal a native of Georgia and Petty hailing from Manchester, Tennessee, where he learned the classics from his grandmother Fannie Mayberry. Yes, Fannie Mayberry. You don’t get more country than that, do you?

The Classic Nashville Roadshow takes to the Odell Williamson stage at 7:30 pm and tickets are available in person at the Odell Williamson Box Office from 9 am to 4:30 pm Monday through Thursday and 9 am through 2:30 pm on Fridays. The box office also opens one hour and fifteen minutes prior to curtain on the day of the show. Tickets are also available online at www. bccowa.com or by phone at 910-755-7416. This is a great opportunity to experience country music as it was from the 1950s through the 1970s, whether you are revisiting memories or hearing the tunes live for the first time. Y’all come on down, ya hear?