On Stage Extra: Soft Machine just keeps on going

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Soft Machine Any discussion of British bands with impressive longevity has to include Soft Machine. Soft Machine (billed as The Soft Machine up until 1969 or 1970) were formed in mid-1966 by Robert Wyatt (drums, vocals), Kevin Ayers (bass, guitar, vocals), Daevid Allen (guitar) and Mike Ratledge (organ). Allen, Wyatt and future bassist Hugh...

What To Do: As Winter (hopefully) winds down, enjoy cold weather activities

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Winterfest Weekend This is the time of year when the adventurous can get outside and enjoy a variety of winter festivals and other outdoor winter-themed events. This weekend will undoubtedly be a weekend of wintry weather with West Chester having forecast lows of 20 degrees on Friday, 17 degrees on Saturday and 26 degrees on Sunday. So – bundle...

On Stage: Aziza Nailah brings music back to The Queen

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Aziza Nailah Live music is starting to slowly return after being relegated to the trash heap for more than a year because of COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns. This weekend, there are a variety of shows around the area including several that can be classified as “firsts” – including Aziza Nailah’s show at The Queen and shows at the Sellersville...

On Stage: Michael Borowski makes solo debut at Sellersville

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times  Michael Borowski When Michael Borowski performs at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com) on February 2, it will be as close as possible to what he could call a hometown show. The talented pianist grew up 10 minutes southwest of Sellersville in Souderton and now lives about 15 minutes south of...

On Stage: Sellersville returns to live streaming-only concerts due to COVID

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Deb Callahan Up until about a week ago, the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com) was holding down the fort in the battle to keep indoor performances with live audiences featuring national acts on the local schedule The venue was able to present live music and comedy at 10% occupancy to live performances...

On Stage: With live shows dwindling, Greg Sover adapts to new realities

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times  The Greg Sover Band Live music in the area is still alive (barely) – not quite dead (completely). Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 restrictions have made it hard for live venues to keep presenting music on stage. It is much worse in Philadelphia where the city’s additional restrictions have closed things down entirely. Sellersville is 37.5 miles from...

On Stage: Venues cautiously move to indoor shows as weather gets colder

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times The Queen COVID-19 has almost completely erased the live music scene in the area for eight months as venues have been prohibited from holding indoor shows by government mandate. Fortunately, there has been a thread of a lifeline to live music locally in late summer and early autumn. Restaurants, wineries, theaters and clubs have been hosting low-key...