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Prepare to Be Amazed: Craig Karges to Continue the 25th Season at the Pocahontas County Opera House!"
The Pocahontas County Opera House is thrilled to announce the continuation of its stellar 25th season with an astonishing performance by the renowned "extraordinist" Craig Karges on November 23 at 7 PM.

Craig Karges combines the art of magic with the science of psychology to create an experience that defies logic and leaves audiences spellbound. With over 5,000 appearances spanning 27 countries and all fifty states, Karges's "Experience the Extraordinary" show features mind-bending feats where tables float, minds are read, and metal bends. His talents have earned him over 40 national television spots, including appearances on The Tonight Show, CNN, and Fox News Channel. Performance Magazine has hailed his act as "The next era in mystery entertainment," and he has been repeatedly honored as Entertainer of the Year by the National Association for Campus Activities.

The Pocahontas County Opera House is committed to providing a family-friendly and accessible environment for all. Special accommodations are available upon request to ensure that every attendee can enjoy the show. With a first-come, first-served seating policy, we encourage guests to purchase their tickets in advance to secure their place for this enchanting evening.

Tickets are available for a $10 donation for adults, while admission is free for attendees aged 17 and younger. Tickets can be acquired through multiple channels: online at pocahontasoperahouse.org, in person at the 4th Avenue Gallery in Marlinton, or at the venue on the evening of the performance.

The Pocahontas County Opera House extends its deepest gratitude to the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, the West Virginia Commission on the Arts, Pocahontas County Dramas, Fairs and Festivals, Mid-Atlantic Arts, and the Pocahontas County Convention and Visitors Bureau for their invaluable financial support. We also thank the local community for its continued support and enthusiasm for our historic venue.

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Festival of Trees 2024

Friday, Nov 29, 2024 at 10:00 AM to Sunday, Dec 1, 2024 at 4:00 PM

Friday, Nov 29 to Sunday, Dec 1, 2024

Maryland State Fairground Cow Palace, Timonium, MD

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History

Friday, Nov 29, 2024 at 9:00 PM to Saturday, Nov 30, 2024

Friday, Nov 29 to Saturday, Nov 30, 2024

The Patapsco Arena, Baltimore, MD

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James Keelaghan at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Dec 5, 2024 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Dec 5, 2024

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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Contemporary folk songs, at their very best, offer an insight into the hardships, attitudes, and resolve of characters and events that shape our day-to-day lives. You can dress these songs up in inspired arrangements and intricate instrumentation but, at their very essence, the archetypal folk song is all about stories. Stories and people. Something such compelling songwriters as Eric Bogle, Si Kahn, Ewan MacColl, and Stan Rogers … all understood and mined so effectively.

James Keelaghan, too, burrows into that same rich seam with equal ability and comparable conviction. To quote Eric Bibb, the award-winning American acoustic bluesman, after listening to Keelaghan perform: “[You’re] a joy to hear, just beautiful. Reminded me of the best of the best of another time – Liam Clancy, Tom Paxton etcetera.” Less colourful but more succinct, Dave Marsh, the eminent Rolling Stone critic, simply described Keelaghan as “Canada’s finest songwriter.”

Truly, throughout a career that now spans almost four decades, the Juno and Canadian Folk Music Award winner has created a repertoire of incalculable importance – a unique body of work, either inspired by or drawn from the folk tradition. Ten solo albums flush with enduring lyrical relevance. Take the beautiful but heartbreaking ballad, Jenny Bryce, for example. From any point of view, it’s indistinguishable from the numerous traditional tracks covered on his disc A Few Simple Verses.

What’s more, various other originals from the Keelaghan canon must surely enter the domain of traditional folklore. Most notably, Small Rebellions (highlighting the 1931 slaughter of peaceful striking miners in Bienfait, SK); Hillcrest Mine (a prelude to the worst coal mining disaster in Canadian history); Kiri’s Piano (a triumph over adversity amidst the shameful, racist treatment of Japanese-Canadians during WW II); Cold Missouri Waters (a harrowing portrait of the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire in the mountains of Montana) …

A relentless musical spirit, Keelaghan has surrounded himself with a variety of crackerjack companions down through the years that have largely included the late, innovative, free-spirited fiddler and composer, Oliver Schroer, the exuberant, Chilean, Latino-fusionist guitarist, Oscar Lopez (with whom Keelaghan made two albums under the banner of Compadres), or the ubiquitous, former Spirit of the West anchor and multi-instrumentalist, Hugh MacMillan. Scrupulous audiences from Alberta to Australia bore witness to the sum of these resourceful parts.

There have been several mouth-watering collaborations in the writing department, too. Celebrated names in the folk world such as Karrine Polwart, Jez Lowe, Catherine MacLellan, David Francey, Lynn Miles, Dave Gunning, Cara Luft and J.D. Edwards … all contributed to notable Keelaghan releases.

“I love co-writing,” he says, “it’s the spark that gets me motivated – the fresh approach to a lyric or a different way of forming a melody for a song is so stimulating. Besides, it’s also a great impetus to finish the damn song.”

James Keelaghan grew up in a bungalow in northwest Calgary, AB, with six siblings, an Irish father, and an English mum. His brother Bob would develop into a noteworthy guitarist with the excellent, but now defunct, Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir. From his father, Jim, James developed a love of history. The family record collection provided further inspiration. Traditional folk LPs by the likes of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, Séan Ó Riada, and Harry Belafonte certainly caught young Keelaghan’s ear. He still cites Belafonte At Carnegie Hall as a recording that changed his life at age six!

Incidentally, Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy would live in Calgary in the mid-‘70s where they recorded a weekly TV show that James and his father routinely attended. “They were stunning performers,” says James. “I can still hear aspects of Tommy Makem’s sound in my voice. He was a fabulous singer, fabulous.”

And so, another link in a storied musical chain was forged. James Keelaghan, as they say, is “a man you don’t meet every day.”

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Ecstatic Dance: Fire & Ice with Dante Baker

Thursday, Dec 5, 2024 from 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Thursday, Dec 5, 2024

Edgewood Arts Center, Washington, DC

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Ecstatic Dance with Moneá of the Moon

Thursday, Dec 12, 2024 from 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Thursday, Dec 12, 2024

Edgewood Arts Center, Washington, DC

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Black Mountain Bluegrass Boys

Saturday, Dec 14, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Saturday, Dec 14, 2024

Pocahontas County Opera House, Marlinton, WV

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Faith Noel Live In The Clandestino

Saturday, Dec 14, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Saturday, Dec 14, 2024

Zen West, Baltimore, MD

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Ecstatic Dance: Solstice with Outlier.mp3

Thursday, Dec 19, 2024 from 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Thursday, Dec 19, 2024

Edgewood Arts Center, Washington, DC

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Ecstatic Dance: New Years with DJ Shango

Thursday, Jan 2, 2025 from 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Thursday, Jan 2, 2025

Edgewood Arts Center, Washington, DC

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Ecstatic Dance: Road to Interfusion with DJ Miss Behave

Thursday, Jan 9, 2025 from 8:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Thursday, Jan 9, 2025

Edgewood Arts Center, Washington, DC

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John Flynn and Joe Jencks at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Jan 23, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Jan 23, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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A wordsmith and poet of rare clarity, John Flynn writes powerful songs of humanity and hope. His dynamic performances are known for their disarming honesty and humor. Songwriter and activist John calls himself a “hopeful pessimist.” John sings from the heart. His powerful songs of humanity and hope are deeply rooted in the traditions of Woody Guthrie. From barbed political verse to joyous fun-loving lyrics for kids, John paints vivid, lasting images with words and music drawn from a palate of awareness, irony, humor, and compassion. He opens one of his recent CDs, The End of the Beginning, with the lines “Like river stone, it may be that some edges get worn smooth, or maybe it’s just that these days you don’t have as much to prove.” These words seem to capture not only the mood of the disarmingly acoustic release, but also something of the 59 year-old singer-songwriter himself. In 2005, Arlo Guthrie invited John to join his post-Katrina “Train to New Orleans Tour.” Arlo says of John, “More than just a good song writer, performer, or guitar player, John Flynn is a friend because he actually does the kinds of things to help make the world a little better.”

Joe Jencks is an international touring musician, award-winning songwriter, and celebrated vocalist known for his performances of musical beauty, social consciousness and spiritual exploration. A 25-year veteran of the international Folk circuit, Jencks has released 15 CDs in that time. Merging conservatory training with his Irish roots and working-class upbringing, Joe delivers engaged musical narratives filled with heart, soul, groove and grit. Blending well-crafted instrumentals and vivid songwriting, Jencks serves it all up with a lyric baritone voice that has the edgy richness of a good sea-salt caramel.

In August of 2022, Jencks released his 17th recording, The Coming of the Years, an album that stands firmly in the modern Celtic traditions and is still quintessentially a Joe Jencks record. Centered around songs Jencks wrote while on tour in Ireland over a 12-year period, this album emerges as a synergistic blend of past and present merging with themes of immigration spanning multiple generations. The album was received with critical acclaim.

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Anne Hills and Jay Ansill at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Feb 20, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Feb 20, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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Anne Hills has become one of the better known voices of the contemporary folk music scene, receiving awards and recognition for her live performances (2009 Bound for Glory live radio show favorite- Ithaca, NY), her unique solo and collaborative recording projects (2001 WAMMIE for duet CD with Tom Paxton, Under American Skies), and her overall artistry and benefit work (2002 Kate Wolf Award, Carole Robertson Award & Kerrville Female Vocalist of the Year 1997). Her song “Follow That Road” was the title cut of the Martha’s Vineyard Songwriter Retreat and has enchanted audiences for over a decade. Whether she is singing her own song, the words of 6-year-old Opal Whiteley, or the Hoosier poet James Whitcomb Riley; accompanied with her guitar, banjo, or simply a Tibetan bell, she puts her whole heart and soul into the moment. So, even if you haven’t become familiar with her voice (featured often on XM/Sirius Folk Radio, The Midnight Special and many other folk shows) you won’t want to miss a chance to hear her songs and stories in person. She’s just begun touring more extensively, winning over audiences with her warm, lively and humorous performances. The AllMusic Guide says, “A stunning soprano tone has made Anne Hills one of contemporary music’s premiere vocalists … Her knack for writing heartfelt songs [has] brought her to the upper echelon of her craft.” and Tom Paxton says, “Anne Hills is such an exquisite singer that it’s understandable that people might be swept up in the pure beauty of her voice and thereby overlook her writing. That would be a mistake. For me, Anne’s writing, in songs like ‘Follow That Road’ and many others, is as direct, melodic and deep as any work being done today. She is quite simply one of my absolute favorite songwriters.”

Jay Ansill became interested in folk music while in high school, before long he was playing mandolin and fiddle at square dances Irish Ceilis. While still in high school, he formed the Schuylkill Valley Nature Boys, a band that played all kinds of folk music. He became well known in Philadelphia in the early 1980s for a station ID they recorded for WXPN FM. Jay Ansill is a composer and folk musician, known primarily as a Celtic harpist and fiddler. The emotional power and stylistic adventurousness of Ansill's music also owes a great deal to the literature of the twentieth century. Ansill was nominated twice as Best Folk Instrumentalist by the Philadelphia Music Foundation and in 1990 his album Origami, a collection of original compositions, was voted Best Folk Recording. He was also nominated for two Barrymore Awards in the same year for theatrical scores for productions of The Grapes of Wrath and Charlotte's Web at the Arden Theatre in Philadelphia. Ansill is a regular collaborator with Mabou Mines theater company. Jay Ansill is a composer and folk musician, known primarily as a Celtic harpist and fiddler. The Folk Harp Journal says that "He has created a new language for the Celtic harp."

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Kate McDonnell at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Mar 20, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Mar 20, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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Tom Paxton & the Don Juans at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Apr 3, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Apr 3, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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This show will be among Tom’s last tour dates. After 60 years of touring and recording, recording and touring, Tom will be retiring from the road in Spring of 2025. This will be your last opportunity to see Tom and to sing along to all his songs, so known and loved.

Tom Paxton has become a voice of his generation, addressing issues of injustice and inhumanity, laying bare the absurdities of modern culture and celebrating the tenderest bonds of family, friends, and community.

In describing Tom Paxton’s influence on his fellow musicians, Pete Seeger has said: “Tom’s songs have a way of sneaking up on you. You find yourself humming them, whistling them, and singing a verse to a friend. Like the songs of Woody Guthrie, they’re becoming part of America.” Pete goes on: “In a small village near Calcutta, in 1998, a villager who could not speak English sang me What Did You Learn In School Today? in Bengali! Tom Paxton’s songs are reaching around the world more than he is, or any of us could have realized. Keep on, Tom!”

Guy Clark adds: “Thirty years ago Tom Paxton taught a generation of traditional folksingers that it was noble to write your own songs, and, like a good guitar, he just gets better with age.” Paxton has been an integral part of the songwriting and folk music community since the early 60’s Greenwich Village scene, and continues to be a primary influence on today’s “New Folk” performers. The Chicago native came to New York via Oklahoma, which he considers to be his home state. His family moved there in 1948, when Tom was 10 years old, and he graduated from Bristow High School and The University of Oklahoma, where he majored in drama while his interest in folk music grew and eventually predominated.

Brought to New York courtesy of the US Army, Tom remained there following his discharge. His early success in Greenwich Village coffeehouses, such as The Gaslight and The Bitter End, led to an ever-increasing circle of work. Then in 1965 he made his first tour of the United Kingdom — the beginning of a still-thriving professional relationship that has included at least one tour in each of the succeeding years.

He and his late wife, Midge, have two daughters, Jennifer and Kate. All three women have served as inspiration for many songs, and now three grandsons, Christopher, Sean, and Peter are adding to the sources of inspiration.

He has performed thousands of concerts around the world in countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, Scandinavia, France, Italy, Belgium, Holland, England, Scotland, Ireland and Canada. That these fans still enjoy his work is a testament to the quality of his recent work, and to the enduring power of modern standards like The Last Thing On My Mind, Ramblin’ Boy, Bottle Of Wine, Whose Garden Was This?, Goin’ To The Zoo and The Marvelous Toy. Paxton’s songbooks, critically acclaimed children’s books (available from HarperCollins – see the page for children), award-winning children’s recordings, and a catalog of hundreds of songs (also recorded by many renowned artists including Willie Nelson, Placido Domingo, Paul Simon, Townes Van Zandt and Tiny Tim), all serve to document Tom Paxton’s 40-year career.

Tom received a 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy during the 51st Annual GRAMMY® Awards. He was nominated for a GRAMMY for Comedians and Angels in 2007, and Live in the U.K. in 2006. He was also nominated for GRAMMYS in 2003 for his Appleseed Records CD, Looking For The Moon, and in 2002 for his children’s CD, Your Shoes, My Shoes. He has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from ASCAP, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the BBC in London.

Tom Paxton’s place in folk music is secured not just by hit records and awards, but by the admiration of three generations of fellow musicians. An internationally recognized and loved cultural figure, he has always chosen goodwill over commercial success. His generosity has taken the shape of a benefit concert performance for a little girl fighting leukemia, or a personal note of encouragement to an up-and-coming songwriter. This is the man who wrote and lives the words, “Peace will come, and let it begin with me.”

He is one of the great songwriters of the last century and will be reckoned as one of the greats in this new century, as well. He is a man we have come to regard as our friend.

“Tom Paxton’s songs are so powerful and lyrical, written from the heart and the conscience, and they reach their mark, our most inner being. He writes stirring songs of social protest and gentle songs of love, each woven together with his personal gift for language. His melodies haunt, his lyrics reverberate. I have sung Tom’s songs for three decades and will go on doing so in the new century, for they are beautiful and timeless, and meant for every age.” (Judy Collins)

“Tom Paxton embodies the spirit of folk music in the most beautiful sense. Not just in his song crafting, his work ethic, his politics and his dedication to people’s music, but also in his kind and generous heart. When I first started playing folk festivals, I was all of eighteen, shaved headed and politically outspoken. Many people in the folk community at that time seemed defensive and threatened by me, but I remember Tom was a notable exception. He was nothing but warm, welcoming and supportive to me from the git go. He’s the coolest.” (Ani DiFranco)

“Every folk singer I know has either sung a Tom Paxton song, is singing a Tom Paxton song or will soon sing a Tom Paxton song. Now either all the folk singers are wrong, or Tom Paxton is one hell of a songwriter.” (Holly Near)

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner and folk icon, Tom Paxton, teams up with the Grammy winning singer/songwriter duo The Don Juans - Don Henry & Jon Vezner.

Collectively, their songs have been covered by: Harry Belafonte, John Mellencamp, Miranda Lambert, Neil Diamond, Ray Charles, Nancy Griffith, Judy Collins, Pete Seeger, Janis Ian, Kathy Mattea, John Denver, Faith Hill, B.J. Thomas, Blake Shelton, Peter, Paul & Mary and Bob Dylan… just to name a few! Within days of writing and playing together, they knew they were onto something. Now they’re taking it on the road!

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There's No Such Thing as Monsters Tour Ft: Wednesday 13 with Stitched Up Heart | Ya Toyah | Live at Zen West

Tuesday, Apr 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM

Tuesday, Apr 8, 2025

Zen West, Baltimore, MD

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Tom Chapin at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, May 22, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, May 22, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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Garnet Rogers and Robin Bullock at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Jun 5, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Jun 5, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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"The greatest interpreter and vocalist performing in the contemporary folk scene." ~ Sing Out

Born in Hamilton, Ontario to parents of Nova Scotian descent, Garnet Rogers spent many hours in front of the old floor model radio listening to Grand Ol' Opry broadcasts and harmonizing with his brother, the late folk legend Stan Rogers. Two years later, Garnet was playing the definitive 8-year-old's version of "Desolation Row" on his ukulele. He soon abandoned that instrument to teach himself the flute, violin and guitar. At 18, Garnet was on the road as a full-time working musician with brother Stan. Together they formed what has come to be accepted as one of the most influential duos in the history of North American folk music. Garnet acted as producer and arranger for his older brother from 1973 to 1983, when Stan died tragically in a plane crash. Since then, Garnet has courageously established himself as a formidable solo artist. Hailed by the Boston Globe as a "...charismatic performer and singer — one of the major talents of our time," they continue by saying that "Garnet's vocal and instrumental talents are complimented by an undeniably powerful physical presence — close to six and a half feet tall — with the lungs to match."

With his "smooth, dark baritone," (Washington Post) his incredible range and thoughtful, dramatic phrasing, Garnet is widely considered by fans and critics alike to be one of the finest singers anywhere. His music, like the man himself, is literate, passionate, highly sensitive, and deeply purposeful. Cinematic in detail, his songs give expression to the unspoken language of the heart. An optimist at heart, Garnet sings extraordinary songs about people who are not obvious heroes and of the small everyday victories. As memorable as his songs, his over-the-top humor and lightning-quick wit move his audiences from tears to laughter and back again. Rogers has been the featured performer on numerous television and radio programs including Much Music, Mountain Stage, and All Things Considered. He has been a headliner at concert venues and festivals such as Wolf Trap, Lincoln Center, and Art Park; sharing the stage with performers such as Mary Chapin Carpenter, Billy Bragg, Bill Monroe, Ferron, Greg Brown, and Guy Clark. Though Garnet has enjoyed much popularity over the years, he remains resolutely independent, turning down offers from major labels to ensure that he continues doing music his own way.

Garnet Rogers recently published a memoir, Night Drive: Travels with my Brother.

"I have found strength and comfort in his songs. This is good and rich and big music. Welcome one and all. Come on in. Get down." ~ Greg Brown

"Celtic guitar god." ~ Baltimore City Paper.

"Breathtaking...brilliant technique, always in service of the music." ~ Guitar Player.

"A musician whose technical skill and stylistic expertise are second to none...a time-served folkie of the highest calibre." ~ Classical Guitar (U.K.).

Robin Bullock is a prolific composer and multi-instrumentalist, whose virtuosity on guitar, cittern and mandolin blends the ancient melodies of the Celtic lands and their vigorous Appalachian descendants into one powerful musical vision. The 17th-century harp tunes of legendary Irish bard Turlough O'Carolan, the spirited jigs and reels of rural Ireland, the haunting ballads of the southern Appalachians and evocative original compositions all find a musical common ground in Robin's music, where lightning-fast fingerwork one moment is perfectly balanced with tender, quiet intimacy the next. A warm, friendly presence onstage, Robin effortlessly creates a magical world for the audience with his multi-instrumental wizardry, taking them on a journey to the heart and soul of Celtic and American traditions.

"Dazzling spirit... what he offers is not just virtuosity for the sake of virtuosity, but also the sensibility of one on a quest between past and present, traditional and modern." ~ Trad Magazine (France).

Originally rising to prominence as a founding member of the innovative acoustic world-music trio Helicon, Robin's solo career has won him three Washington Area Music Association WAMMIE Awards, a Governor's Award from the Maryland State Arts Council, and a feature broadcast on National Public Radio's hugely popular Celtic music program "The Thistle and Shamrock."

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John Gorka at Cellar Stage™ Fulton/Columbia

Thursday, Dec 4, 2025 from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM

Thursday, Dec 4, 2025

Temple Isaiah, Fulton, MD

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