The City of Akron presents A Lock 3 Extra! Inside the Akron Civic Theatre
Saturday, August 20, 2016 8:00 PM
Akron Civic Theatre

Singer-songwriter Steve Grand remembers the first time he realized how powerful music could be. At a young age, riding in the car with his dad, listening to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys, he saw how a song could transport someone through time and space to a moment in the past. 

It’s a feeling he’s now given countless people himself with 2013’s release of “All American Boy,” his debut single. Pegged as a “gay country artist” by the media, his song depicts a situation familiar to many people—an unrequited crush of someone out of reach, that burning desire for someone you can never have. It’s a universal truth, but Steve’s story was even more affecting, because he was telling that story from the perspective of a gay man who had a crush on a straight man.

Opening for Mr. Grand will be comedian Karen Williams. As a single lesbian mom living in Berkeley in the 1980s, Karen Williams started doing stand-up comedy “because it was something I could do that didn’t cost anything.” Known for her quick repartee, insightful commentary and audience rapport, Williams is a comic craftmaster, a gifted actor, a multitalented writer, and an inspirational lecturer.  Armed with her “heal with humor” philosophy, she gives humor workshops specifically designed to build self-awareness and self-confidence, and to encourage tolerance and respect for the dignity of human life.