Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center Annual Gala Features Grammy Award Winner Take 6 And Chef Tom Pizzica

Uptown Knauer Performing Arts Center will brighten January with its annual Gala. Light Up The Night will once again give audiences an incredible event to celebrate Uptown. Saturday, January 14 at 5:30pm audiences will gather at the Chester County History Center for signature cocktails, hors d'oeuvres by local native, "Big Chef" and Food Network Star Tom Pizzica of Philly Hots, live music from the Uptown! Singers, fun photos and a silent auction.

Then at 7:30pm they move across the street to Uptown for a performance by Grammy winners Take 6 on the Roy A. Smith Mainstage. Tickets are all-inclusive and are $160 for an individual ticket with sponsorships starting at $650. Tickets and more information are available at uptownwestchester.org. Uptown is at 226 N. High Street in the borough of West Chester.

This exciting black-tie optional party hosted by Molly and Bob Morrison starts with a mix and mingle at the Chester County History Center. While there, those gathered can enjoy signature cocktails and food by local native, "Big Chef "Tom Pizzica of Philly Hots. Pizzica has been featured on Food Network Stars and has just returned from the new show, Super Chef Grudge Match.

The menu Pizzica has created for the evening includes: a Salmon/Bowtie Pasta Dish, Turkey Carving Station with Rolls for Sandwiches, Fried Chicken Sliders, Roast Beef Tacos, Roasted root vegetable Bruschetta, goat cheese, honey, olive oil, Fried Chesapeake oysters with fried pepper remoulade, Egg Roll, Fresh Charcuterie and Cheese & Veggie Table. And a sweet ending with Glow Jewelry and a Vintage Candy Assortment The signature cocktails include. Music at the history center will be provided by the Uptown! Singers. There will also be fun photos and a silent auction.

Guests then move across the street to Uptown at 7:30 pm to enjoy the incredible sounds of Grammy winners Take 6. Take 6 (Claude McKnight, Mark Kibble, Joel Kibble, Dave Thomas, Alvin Chea and Khristian Dentley), heralded by Quincy Jones as the "baddest vocal cats on the planet!," is the quintessential a cappella group and the model for vocal genius. Six virtuosic voices united in crystal clear harmony, against a backdrop of syncopated rhythms, innovative arrangements, and funky grooves that bubble into an intoxicating brew of gospel, jazz, R&B, and pop. With praise from such luminaries as Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Brian Wilson, Ella Fitzgerald and Whitney Houston, the multi-platinum selling sextet has toured across the globe, collaborated across genres, and is recognized as the pre-eminent a cappella group in the world.

10 Grammy Awards. 10 Dove Awards. Gospel Music Hall of Famers. And more! Take 6 (Claude McKnight, Mark Kibble, Joel Kibble, Dave Thomas, Alvin Chea and Khristian Dentley), heralded by Quincy Jones as the "baddest vocal cats on the planet!," is the quintessential a cappella group and the model for vocal genius. Six virtuosic voices united in crystal clear harmony, against a backdrop of syncopated rhythms, innovative arrangements, and funky grooves that bubble into an intoxicating brew of gospel, jazz, R&B, and pop. With praise from such luminaries as Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Brian Wilson, Ella Fitzgerald and Whitney Houston, the multi-platinum selling sextet has toured across the globe, collaborated across genres, and is recognized as the pre-eminent a cappella group in the world.

With the popularity of televised vocal competitions such as the explosive a cappella show The Sing Off and the mania over singing driven comedy-dramas like Glee and Smash, Take 6 is the original torchbearer. Major public and corporate events remind everyone of this as Take 6 has triumphed among a gathering of stars including Celine Dion, Lionel Richie, Justin Timberlake, Stevie Nicks, and Ne-Yo at Walmart's 50th Anniversary celebration; a SOLD-OUT audience and Standing Ovation at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Awards where Take 6 captivated the audience with their rendition, performing with and honoring legendary singer-songwriter Ben E. King, on his classic "Stand By Me." As a group that knows no musical bounds, they then brought the house down with their tribute to folk icon Woody Guthrie with "This Land Is Your Land."

Take 6 has come a long way from their days at Huntsville, Alabama's Oakwood College where McKnight formed the group as The Gentleman's Estate Quartet in 1980. The group eventually became known as Alliance but when they signed to Reprise Records in 1987 they found that there was another group with the same name, so they became Take 6. Their self-titled debut CD won over jazz and pop critics and they've never slowed down.

What makes the music and the group last this long? The answers are direct and simple: faith, friendship, respect, and love of music. From their exceptional Christmas Show, to their innovative Symphony show, these qualities are at the heart of the Take 6 phenomenon.

When "Big Chef" Tom Pizzica moved from San Francisco back to his hometown of West Chester, Pa, in 2018 he was excited for a fresh start. He knew he wanted to create something new around a classic favorite, sandwiches!!

Tom started out doing small pop-ups and sandwich drop offs for local hospitals and businesses combining familiar local favorites like roast pork, roast beef and chicken cutlets with creative sauces and toppings such as his famous fried pepper mayo and charred broccoli and garlic, "Philly Hots!" was born.

With his "Big Chef" personality and 15 years experience working in restaurant kitchens, Tom gives "outrageous" a whole new meaning as he hits the road to uncover the most jaw-dropping, eye-popping, occasionally heart-stopping foods on his primetime Food Network show, Outrageous Food.

Originally from West Chester, Penn., Tom's curiosity for cooking began at an early age. He learned to cook from his mother - who he considers the biggest influence in his life - by helping her in the kitchen. With his mother working long hours, Tom often came home from school and helped to prepare meals for his siblings. He even remembers sending away the UPC labels of cereal boxes to receive his first cookbook. After attending private Catholic school through 12th grade, Tom enrolled at George Washington University in 1996 and graduated in 2000 with a bachelor's degree in Speech Pathology.

Tom's 15 years of working in restaurant kitchens began in high school when he got a job as a dishwasher at a local Italian restaurant. He then worked as a line cook at a steakhouse in Arlington, Va., during college and as a cook at a small French restaurant back home after graduating. During one of several other Pennsylvania restaurant jobs, Tom met his now-wife, Rachel, when she was a hostess and he was a server/line cook at a steakhouse. In hopes of building his culinary career and broadening his horizons, Tom moved to San Francisco in 2003 and enrolled in the California Culinary Academy, which he calls "the best decision of his life" since it solidified his commitment to cooking. Diligent to get hands-on experience, he immediately began working as a line and prep cook at Bambuddha Lounge under then Executive Chef Joe Bosworth who became one of Tom's mentors. He graduated culinary school with an Associate of Occupational Studies in Culinary Arts in 2004. Tom then began working as a line cook at Wolfgang Puck's San Francisco restaurant, Postrio, and simultaneously as a breakfast cook at Campton Place Hotel. Meanwhile, his mother and stepfather retired in Maryland and bought a 100-year-old historical hotel in Chestertown called The Imperial Hotel. In May 2006, at the age of 28, Tom moved to Maryland and served as executive chef for the hotel's restaurant, The Front Room, for three years. There, Tom developed his culinary point of view and focused his efforts on bringing a new food vision to this community. In July 2009, Tom decided he wanted to be back in San Francisco to expand his experience and culinary career. He drove cross country with a friend, proposed to Rachel, and ended up applying for Food Network Star shortly thereafter.

Uptown has a full schedule for the rest of the 2023 performing arts calendar. Their first produced theatre season continues with Katori Hall's insightful look at the last night on earth for an American Civil Rights hero, The Mountaintop. This beautiful play runs February 1-26. On Valentine's Day, Uptown is welcoming Philadelphia R&B and Jazz artist Sherry Wilson Butler for Love Expressions: Serenades on Unapologetic Divas: Celebrating Amy Winehouse, Nancy Wilson, Etta James, and Whitney Houston. March 18, Sweet Baby James returns to Uptown with the sweet sounds of James Taylor. Then Tito Puente Jr heats up the Uptown stage with an evening of Latin music on Thursday, March 30.

Established in 2017, Uptown Knauer Performing Arts Center is a unique Chester County, PA destination for world-class performing arts in historic downtown West Chester. Built in 1916, and proudly holding five preservation and community impact awards, this former armory is now home to professional theatre, music, dance, comedy and film in a modernized, accessible, and acoustically ideal space. Performances are held in an intimate 327-seat Mainstage theatre and 85-seat Cabaret, with additional classrooms and performing space for theatre students.

Uptown Knauer Performing Arts Center is committed to enriching our communities through the transcendent power of the performing arts.

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