Appalachian Arts Unveils Star-Studded 2025-26 Lineup
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BOONE, NC — Appalachian Arts performing arts series (formerly the Schaefer Center Presents series), presented by Appalachian State University’s Office of Arts Engagement and Cultural Resources, proudly unveils its 2025-26 season — a vibrant lineup that celebrates artistic excellence and rich cultural legacies. From bluegrass sensation Billy Strings and Americana icon Lyle Lovett to category-crossing musicians Margo Price and Rhiannon Giddens, the season features a dazzling spectrum of events that also includes a screening of Disney’s Moana with the score performed live by Polynesian musicians and vocalists, the high-flying acrobatics of Cirque Kalabanté, the acclaimed Ailey II dance company, and genre-blending jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles. All performances take place at the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets go on sale to the public Wednesday, August 27 at 10am.
Buy tickets at TheSchaeferCenter.org, in person at the Schaefer Center box office (733 Rivers Street), or by calling 828-262-4046.
The APPlause! K-12 Performing Arts series, now in its 13th year, is an educational companion series to Appalachian Arts, drawing thousands of students and teachers from across the region each year to experience the magic of live theatre. APPlause! presents a variety of world-class music, theatre, and dance tailored specifically for young audiences and educators. Most events run 60 minutes, with certain events also featured in full on the evening mainstage series. Registration for teachers and homeschoolers opens on Friday, Aug. 29 at 7am at https://theschaefercenter.org/applause/.
Appalachian Arts
Billy Strings & Bryan Sutton with Royal Masat – SOLD OUT
Thursday, Sept. 11 at 7:30pm and Friday, Sept. 12 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Both concerts are SOLD OUT following a special Ticketmaster lottery held this past April.
Two-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and musician Billy Strings joins forces with renowned guitarist Bryan Sutton to release their new collaborative album, Live at the Legion. Recorded live on April 7, 2024 at Nashville’s American Legion Post 82, the album showcases the acclaimed duo performing 20 traditional bluegrass and folk songs, including new renditions of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,” Doc Watson’s “Way Downtown,” and more. Released as a surprise on April 7, 2025 — the one-year anniversary of the recording — the album is now available to stream and pre-order CD or vinyl.
Lyle Lovett and his Acoustic Group
Sunday, Oct. 5 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$70 Tier 1, $60 Tier 2, $45 Tier 3, $25 App State Students
A singer, composer and actor, Lyle Lovett has broadened the definition of American music in a career that spans 14 albums. Coupled with his gift for storytelling, the Texas-based musician fuses elements of country, swing, jazz, folk, gospel, and blues in a convention-defying manner that breaks down barriers.
Whether touring as a 'Duo' or with his 'Acoustic Group' or his 'Large Band,' Lovett's live performances show not only the breadth of this Texas legend's deep talents, but also the diversity of his influences, making him one of the most compelling and captivating musicians in popular music. Since his self-titled debut in 1986, Lyle Lovett has evolved into one of music’s most vibrant and iconic performers. Among his many accolades, besides the four Grammy Awards, he was given the Americana Music Association's inaugural Trailblazer Award, and was named Texas State Musician. His works, rich and eclectic, are some of the most beloved of any artist working today.
Disney’s MOANA Live-to-Film Concert
Sunday, Oct. 19 at 6:00pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$35, $10 children/students (all seating is General Admission)
If you loved Coco with live orchestra, you don’t want to miss this experience. Disney Concerts and AMP Worldwide present Disney’s MOANA Live-To-Film Concert North American tour, featuring a full-length screening of the beloved movie accompanied by live performances of a unique on-stage musical ensemble of top Hollywood studio musicians, Polynesian rhythm masters, and vocalists, celebrating the music and songs from this award-winning Walt Disney Animation Studios animated classic.
Cirque Kalabanté: Afrique en Cirque
Wednesday, Nov. 12 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$45 Tier 1, $35 Tier 2, $25 Tier 3, $10 children/students*
*First 100 child/student tickets FREE with each purchase of a standard tiered ticket
Afrique en Cirque is a show by Yamoussa Bangoura, inspired by daily life in Guinea. This performance shares the beauty, youth and artistry of African culture. A colorful show beyond its scenery, costumes and staging, it makes any theatre vibrate with energy and represents the strength, agility and life’s joys of young Africans. The audience will see acrobats execute gravity-defying moves and human pyramids, accompanied by the contemporary sounds of live Afro-Jazz, percussion, and kora. Welcome to the universe of Kalabanté Productions, and prepare for an unforgettable journey.
Saturday, Feb. 14 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$60 Tier 1, $50 Tier 2, $40 Tier 3, $25 App State Students
For nearly a decade, Margo Price has created a lane where independent-minded, insurgent country music can exist and thrive alongside the mainstream. Now she’s back with an exquisite, timeless album that reconnects with her roots. At its core, Hard Headed Woman is about that furious instinct to never waver — especially when our values and future are so clearly on the line. It's country music as only Price can make it: free of rules, cherishing tradition, hard headed but with a delicate beating heart.
Ailey II: The Next Generation of Dance
Friday, Feb. 20 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$45 Tier 1, $35 Tier 2, $25 Tier 3, $10 children/students
For over 50 years, Ailey II: The Next Generation of Dance has merged the spirit and energy of the country’s finest early-career dance talent with the passion and creative vision of today’s most outstanding and emerging choreographers. Founded by Alvin Ailey in 1974, this universally renowned company embodies his pioneering mission to establish an extended cultural community that provides dance performances, training, and community programs for all people. Under the leadership of Sylvia Waters, who served as artistic director for 38 seasons, Ailey II flourished into one of the most popular modern dance companies, combining a rigorous touring schedule with extensive community outreach programs. Today, with Artistic Director Francesca Harper at the helm, she brings fresh perspectives to Mr. Ailey’s legacy, while nurturing new creative voices and propelling the company forward.
Saturday, April 18 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$70 Tier 1, $60 Tier 2, $45 Tier 3, $25 App State Students
Rhiannon Giddens imbues her brand of folk music with miles-deep historical roots and contemporary sensibilities, pursuing an authentic understanding of the country’s musical origins through art. A two-time Grammy Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning singer and instrumentalist, MacArthur “Genius” grant recipient, and composer of opera, ballet, and film, Giddens has centered her work around the mission of lifting up people whose contributions to American musical history have previously been overlooked or erased.
As Pitchfork once said, “few artists are so fearless and so ravenous in their exploration” — a journey that has led to NPR naming her one of its 25 Most Influential Women Musicians of the 21st Century and to American Songwriter calling her “one of the most important musical minds currently walking the planet.”
Friday, April 24 at 7:30pm
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
$40 Tier 1, $30 Tier 2, $20 Tier 3, $10 children/students
“Earth Tones” is presented in partnership with the Pathways to Resilience QEP, a five-year climate literacy initiative at App State.
Trinidadian trumpeter and composer Etienne Charles has dedicated his recent works to highlighting the voices of marginalized peoples in the Americas. He broadens his scope with his latest composition, Earth Tones, a multimedia jazz performance featuring original compositions that draw attention to people and regions that are, or soon will be, severely affected by climate change. The performance invites us into a sensory journey that includes sounds, stories, and musical idioms from at-risk coastal communities, with images and short films of disappearing mangrove swamps, coral reefs, oyster beds, seagrass, sand dunes, and mud volcanoes. Featuring musicians from the very communities most at risk, the performance balances blunt reality, eternal optimism, and surrealism, ultimately offering an exhortation to address climate change’s impact on our future.
Tickets
Seating for most shows is tiered at three levels. Ticket discounts are available to children/students for select shows and to App State students for additional shows. App State faculty/staff receive a discount off all tiered tickets and should call the Box Office for special code. Buy tickets at TheSchaeferCenter.org, in person at the Schaefer (733 Rivers St), or by calling 828.262.4046.
About Appalachian Arts
Appalachian Arts, formerly known as “The Schaefer Center Presents,” is a performing arts series offering campus and community audiences a diverse array of music, dance and theatre programming designed to enrich the cultural landscape of the Appalachian State University campus and surrounding area. By creating memorable performance experiences and related educational and outreach activities, the series promotes the power and excitement of the live performance experience; provides a "window on the world" through the artistry of nationally and internationally renowned artists; and showcases some of the finest artists of our nation and our region. Musical events range from symphony orchestra and chamber music performances to jazz, folk, traditional, international, and popular artists. Theatre productions run the gamut from serious drama to musical comedy. Dance performances offer an equally wide array of styles, from ballet to modern dance to international companies representing cultural traditions from around the world. For more information, visit http://theschaefercenter.org.
Thank You to Our Appalachian Arts Sponsors
App State Campus Store, Explore Boone, Courtyard by Marriott, Graystone Lodge, Hampton Inn & Suites, Holiday Inn Express, Mountain Times and Watauga Democrat, Our State Magazine, WNC Magazine, PBS North Carolina, High Country Radio (WZJS and WATA), WDAV 89.9 FM, WFDD 88.5FM, WKSK The Farm, and WASU 90.5FM.
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APPlause! K-12 Performing Arts
Doktor Kaboom: Look Out! Science is Coming!
Wednesday, October 1 at 10am
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Recommended for Grades 3-7
$3/$5*
Doktor Kaboom! leads a tour of the modern scientific method, demonstrating spectacular applications of the physical sciences. Topics include: safety; pressure and force; simple machines; velocity; application of science to everyday life; the scientific method; definitions: chemical reactions, exothermic, external and chemical formula; mass; air pressure; and demonstration vs. experimentation.
Cirque Kalabanté: Excerpts from Afrique en Cirque
Wednesday, November 12 at 10am
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Recommended for Grades K-12
$5*
Afrique en Cirque was developed by multidisciplinary cirque artist of Guinean origin, Yamoussa Bangoura, inspired by daily life in Guinea. This performance shares the beauty, youth, and artistry of African culture, as acrobats execute gravity-defying moves and human pyramids, accompanied by the contemporary sounds of live Afro-Jazz, percussion, and kora. The full-length performance will be presented on the Appalachian Arts evening series at the Schaefer Center.
Wednesday, December 3 at 10am
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Recommended for Grades K-6
$3/$5*
To the sound of the n’goni, djembe, derbouka, and dhol, percussionist Kattam invites you to discover Africa, the Middle East, and India through rhythm, song, and dance! From African rap and desert dance to trance Sufi rhythm and Bollywood dance, Kattam never fails to entertain his audience. Join us as Kattam leads the way on an incredible adventure!
Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour: Student Edition
Wednesday, March 18 at 10am
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Recommended for Grades 6-9
$3/$5*
The Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour’s student screening returns this season! An exciting mix of films selected for this screening will highlight a variety of themes, from adrenaline-pumping adventure to thought-provoking environmental issues facing the world today. These films will capture the essence of mountain life and culture across the globe. Presented in partnership with University Recreation.
Lightwire Theater: The Ugly Duckling
Thursday, April 2 at 10am
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Recommended for Grades K-3
$3/$5*
Lightwire Theater brings a classic tale to the modern stage in an unforgettable theatrical experience. Lined with electroluminescent wire, the beloved story of The Ugly Duckling plays out on stage through a cutting-edge blend of puppetry, technology and dance. With dazzling visuals, poignant choreography and the creative use of music ranging from classical to pop, this production brings this story into a new and brilliant light.
Thursday, April 16 at 10am
Valborg Theatre
Recommended for Grades K-6
$1/$5*
Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Princess and the Pea, the beloved musical comedy Once Upon a Mattress tells the hilarious story of Princess Winnifred, who must prove her sensitivity by sleeping atop 20 mattresses with a pea hidden underneath.
*Homeschool groups and small groups pay $5 per person for all shows
Registration and more information at TheSchaeferCenter.org/Applause.
About APPlause!
Every season, affordable music, dance, film and theatre events are offered to students and their teachers from K-12 classrooms across the region. A variety of in-person and virtual events enable students to experience everything from high-energy acrobatics and Appalachian music to international dance and literary classics brought to life through theatrical productions. Featuring local, regional and world-renowned professional artists, the mission of the program is to share university arts resources with the public, private and home school network across our region. Study guide materials connect every performance to the classroom curriculum.
Thank You to Our APPlause! Sponsors
The APPlause! 2025-2026 season receives individual support from Jacqueline and Robert Brauser (in honor of Bonnie and Jamie Schaefer), Sue and Steve Chase, Christy and Brad Chenausky, Richard and Vicki Hammer, and Jeff Handler. Sustaining support for the series is offered by the Christine Petti Opportunity Fund.
