Bedfordtimesregister.com - 'Weird Al' comes to 'Taste of Cleveland'

The 15th Annual Ohio Natural Gas Taste of Cleveland returns to downtown Cleveland Labor Day weekend Sept. 3 through 6.

Admission is free until 3 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Labor Day admission is "Dollar Day" with $1 general admission all day. Children 12 and under are free everyday, all hours. Taste of Cleveland continues to be deliciously affordable with a smorgasbord of discounts, freebies and special offers including $5 general admission at the gate with a Giant Eagle Advantage Card (good for up to four admissions) or printable online discount coupon from www.cleveland.com/tasteofcleveland (good for up to two admissions).

All of the entertainment on the Taste of Cleveland menu is free with paid general admission. The Bud Light Main Stage will cook up a weekend-long music festival with headliner acts as diverse as the food served along "Restaurant Row." Catch the king of pop culture parody "Weird Al" Yankovic at 8:45 p.m. Sept. 3, Cleveland legend Michael Stanley and The Resonators Sept. 4 at 8:45 p.m. and the Grammy Award-winning band Train Sept. 5 at 9:15 p.m.

On Labor Day, Journey, Led Zeppelin and Genesis tribute bands perform the ultimate fantasy rock show on the Bud Light Main Stage. Frontiers | The Journey Tribute will take the stage at 6:30 p.m. along with Led Zeppelin 2--The Live Experience at 4:30 p.m. and Fayrewether at 3 p.m.

For an additional charge, fans can purchase prime reserved seat tickets for "Weird Al" Yankovic, Michael Stanley and The Resonators and Train at www.livenation.com and all Ticketmaster locations. Monday's entertainment lineup will include all general admission seating.

All performance times and artists subject to change. Additional acts that regularly sell out the Northeast Ohio concert scene are also on deck to keep the music pumping all weekend.

For a complete schedule of participating bands and performance times, visit www.cleveland.com/tasteofcleveland.

A variety of free activities and interactive features are scheduled during Taste of Cleveland. The Ohio Natural Gas Ultimate Backyard Kitchen will host cooking and sampling demos, including a "Cooking with Kids" class for parents and their children Saturday and Sunday only. Cheer on local mayors and pastry chefs as they participate in Saturday afternoon's Time Warner Cable Mayors' Dessert Cup Challenge.

Local culinary celebrities including Jenn Thomas, winner of Rachael Ray's "So You Think You Can Cook" contest and Stefanie Paganini, cooking educator from the Loretta Paganini School for Cooking in Chesterland, will whip up savory meals on stage as well as emcee demonstrations conducted by participating Taste of Cleveland restaurants.

On Saturday and Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m. under the main concert tent, learn about a variety of wines at the American Wine School Tasting Bar.

Those attending the Cleveland International Air Show can receive free admission to Taste of Cleveland Sept 4 through 6 with a ticket stub at the Taste of Cleveland gate (one ticket per discount.)

For more information or directions to the 15th Annual Ohio Natural Gas Taste of Cleveland, visit www.cleveland.com/tasteofcleveland or call 440-247-2722.