Face Value, a national touring tribute to Phil Collins and Genesis, to perform at The Dixon

Hello Sauk Valley and beyond!

June is here and it seems like the summer has exploded with activity, from the Dixon Market on Wednesday nights, the Milledgeville Jamboree and Clinton’s Tailgates and Tallboys to Pride Fest and Polo Town and Country Days! There are fantastic activities going on all over our part of the world. I got to see Judy Carmichael at The Next Picture Show in Dixon and it was amazing.

We just showed “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” at The Dixon: Historic Theatre, which was great to see on the big screen again. We love how the grandparents are bringing their grandkids to the movies like “Star Wars” and “ET” and Ferris! If there are movies that you’d like to see at our venue, please don’t hesitate to send us a message and let us know! We’re planning 2025′s lineup now!

We have a special ask of you. We are going into the construction part of our revitalization, and we have one show scheduled in June that can help us hurdle July while our theater is getting her rejuvenation!  Face Value is a national touring tribute band to Phil Collins and Genesis. They will be playing all his biggest hits with a full band, including a fantastic horn section.

We were lucky to snag them on their way back to Nashville. With your ticket purchase, you can help us through July and support us as we schedule our future shows.

With this concert, we have a returning fan favorite: Drew Cagle and the Reputation – a solid rock group that has opened for an insane number of famous bands. They are starting their own tour and decided to join Face Value to give our community two amazing bands for the price of one! This will be an epic night of hard and soft rock. So if you’re free, please come join us at one of the most beautiful venues in the area for a night of incredible music.

For those coming from out of town, we have 10-plus restaurants and bars all within walking distance of The Dixon, as well as unique stores and surprises around every corner. Come have dinner, grab a drink, sit by the river, and explore our beautiful downtown area, then come to the show. Make it a day!

The Eastman School of Dance’s 55th annual dance recital is coming to The Dixon on Friday, June 14! We cannot wait to host a night of dance with some of the area’s best! With decades of experience, The Eastman School always brings a jaw-dropping show. Tickets can be purchased at the door.

We have an amendment to the last article. Our Dixon Kids theater has changed shows from “Wonka Jr.” to “Frozen Jr.” We discovered that The Penguin Project was also doing “Wonka Jr.” We are huge fans of The Penguin Project and want them to shine so we changed to “Frozen Jr.” The Penguin Project’s mission is to empower children with special needs through theater. Please consider going to their website and being a supporter. They are also looking for mentors for the upcoming show. As we’ve said before, if you have theater in your heart, you deserve a stage. We’ll all be going to their performance!

Please be sure to come see “Frozen Jr.” and “Beauty and the Beast” this coming fall at The Dixon! Registration is now active on our site. No matter your child’s experience, they will get to be in the show! With our great director and choreographer, Jan and Tori, they will learn how to dance, sing, tricks on how to remember their lines and blocking, and make lifelong friends in the process. With two great Disney shows, the fun won’t stop! We’d also like to thank Culver’s, Mama Cimino’s, and Domino’s for feeding our kids and band and crew during tech week!  Your generosity is amazing and the kids love your food…so do I!

The Petunia Fest is coming in July. Our very own board member, Debbie Bay, is also the president of The Petunia Festival! She is a major volunteer at The Dixon and an invaluable board member! Please attend this popular annual festival! Check their website for band schedules and events!

We’d also like to thank Dixon Stage Left for helping us get the word out about our children’s shows and the upcoming Face Value/ Drew Cagle show! One of our main partners of the arts here in Dixon! Thank you!

Also, thank you to the Woodlawn Center for the Arts and Sauk Valley Community College for adding The Dixon to the growing arts community in our area! We look forward to working with you into the future!

Did you hear we have a newsletter now? With over 4,000 people signed up already, we’re striving to hit 10,000 by the end of the year. Some highlights you’ll get from the newsletter will be first shot at buying tickets for “just added” shows throughout the rest of this year as we maneuver through construction. Discounts and contests. Behind-the-scenes information. Upcoming events in 2025 with season ticket information and when they will go on sale. Maybe a joke or two. Just click on the Join Our Newsletter button on the main page.

Next bucket list adventure for me, tubing the Rock River. Is there a group that does that?

Thanks for reading all the way through and we’ll see you at The Dixon!

• Darren Mangler is The Dixon: Historic Theatre’s executive director and artistic producer.