Time to plug in the number for Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center (76 Main St.) to your favorites: tickets go on sale today, April 5, for renowned recording artist Ben Folds — and they are going to go fast!
“We are very excited to welcome Ben Folds to our MainStage,” said WHBPAC marketing director Heather Draskin in a press release. “His music has been a cultural touchtone for decades.”
The Emmy-nominated multi-platinum selling musician and composer (and fingers-on-fire piano player) has been making wildly popular pop and contemporary music for the last three decades, performing all over the world with his band Ben Folds Five, as a solo performer and with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. among a multitud of other places and collaborations.
The WHBPAC performance, sponsored by Marjorie and James Kuhn, is slotted for July 14 at 8 p.m. and is the return of his “Paper Airplane Request tour,” with solo shows kicking off in May. The impetus for the show was based around the notion of allowing fans to call out requests for Folds’ songs, but with the twist of making the suggestions via paper airplanes that audience members toss onto the stage and Folds reads and acts on. (Forgotten how to make one? We’ve got you covered — click here for a refresher course!)
“The last time I did this on tour the response was overwhelming, with literally hundreds of paper airplanes with song requests being launched on cue from fans at the start of the second half of each of my concerts,” said Folds in a statement to the press. “It’s the purest, most low-tech form of engagement that creates a special bond with my audiences.”
Folds, whose songs are frequently played on local station WEHM, released his most recent album, “What Matters Most,” in June 2023, adding to his body of work, which include seven studio albums and 10 compilations.
WHBPAC was erected as a movie house in 1933, and remained so until it shuttered in 1996. Buoyed by a dream of bringing the arts to Main Street, a group of concerned citizens led by Len Conway, Lon Sabella and Cynthia and Neal Hochman purchased the building in 1997 for $300,000 and relaunched as the not-for-profit Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center on July 4, 1998.
No matter where you sit for Folds, never fear: There are no bad spots in the intimate, 425-seat theater, its grand red-velvet curtains parting to welcome world-class performances seven days a week all year round, hosting up to 60 performances annually.
Book your tickets to the show here or by calling 631-288-1500.
