ILLINOIS CENTRAL COLLEGE GUEST ARTISTS SERIES PRESENTS EVERLY BROTHERS TRIBUTE OCTOBER 13

The 2018-2019 Illinois Central College Guest Artists Series features the music of one of music’s most influential duos, as Jack Skuller and Sean Altman approximate the Everly Brothers with The Everly Set on October 13 at 7:30 pm in the ICC Performing Arts Center, located on the East Peoria Campus.

               The Everly Set features award-winning singers Jack Skuller and Sean Altman as they approximate the Everly Brothers. They met eight years ago when they were paired together to perform at a Simon and Garfunkel tribute in New York City. They performed Mrs. Robinson together at that event, then stayed in touch afterwards, each occasionally performing as a guest performer at the other’s solo shows over the next few years. About two and a half years ago, they decided to put together a night of Everly Brothers songs for their friends and families, and they have been performing the show across the country ever since.

               “I really fell in love with the simplicity in the melodies and the effect that it had on people,” said Skuller. “I loved All I Have to Do Is Dream and Wake Up, Little Susie, and Sean and I also encountered a lot of songs we didn’t know were originally Everly Brothers songs, like Love Hurts and When Will I Be Loved?, so we learned a lot in the process.”

               While the show covers all the Everly Brothers’ hit songs, the event also delves into more obscure songs by the duo as well.

               “Our favorite parts of our repertoire are some of the weird little oddities that Jack uncovered when we were putting the act together,” Altman said. “He’d say, ‘Come check out this song’ like Poor Jenny or I’m Not Angry; these are not the standard Everly Brothers hits, but they are now our favorite songs to sing, and it’s fun for us to expose the audience to more than just the hits.

               “Everybody knows the seven or eight big hits. It’s one of those acts where, if you mention the song, people will know the song, but if you say, ‘What do you think of the Everly Brothers?’, they can maybe pull out Bye Bye Love and Wake Up Little Susie.”

Their show presents all the favorite hits of brothers Phil and Don Everly but also includes other rarities and Everly-influenced classics, all sung with the same supercharged Everly harmonies that influenced The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, The Beach Boys, The Hollies and the Bee Gees.

               Heart of Illinois Big Brothers Big Sisters will be highlighted as the ICC Guest Artists Series Community Partner for this show. The Community Partner program features a different community or non-profit organization with some kind of tie-in to the performance at each ICC Guest Artists Series event. Those attending the show who donate to the community partner at the event will be entered in a drawing for tickets to a future ICC Guest Artists Series event.

               Tickets cost $26 for the general public and $16 for students.

               The ICC Guest Artists Series is presented by the Arts at ICC, which has a rich history of enhancing the arts community and expanding education beyond the classroom. Arts at ICC presents more than 500 exhibits, performances, lectures, rehearsals, meetings, master classes, clinics, seminars, receptions, orientations, forums, auditions and tournaments annually.

               For more information or to purchase tickets, visit ArtsAtICC.com or call the box office at (309) 694-5136.