Published: September 20, 2007 07:33 pm         

SENECA CASINO: Cosby, Clarkson highlight concert line-up

Seneca Niagara unveils fall entertainment schedule

From classic rock connoisseurs to animal lovers, the list of entertainment lined up for the upcoming months at Seneca Niagara Casino showcases some of the industry’s top performers, and a few surprises.

Comedian Bill Cosby, American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson and country music star Gretchen Wilson are among the scheduled performances The fall season officially kicked off Wednesday night with ZZ Top and will continue Oct. 6 with the ninth-annual Native American Music Awards, which is the only national awards show honoring Native American and Aboriginal music initiatives.

“The series of special events and engagements boast something for everyone,” said Rob Victoria, senior vice president of marketing for the Seneca Gaming Corporation, who announced the fall line-up during a press conference Thursday.

He added that almost all of the casino’s summer attractions reached nearly 100 percent attendance capacity, including a turnout of 38,000 people for the outdoor Rock the Falls concert series featuring Foreigner, Kenny Rogers and the Dynomite Disco Dance Party.

Most of the upcoming shows will be performed at the Seneca casino hotel’s events center, which boasts the latest in lighting and sound technology.

In addition to the awards ceremony, the fall line-up includes:

• Kelly Clarkson on Oct. 26, as part of her “My December” tour.

• Eclectic rock and acoustic styles of David Crosby and Graham Nash on Oct. 27.

• Country music sensation Gretchen Wilson on Nov. 2.

• “Jungle” Jack Hanna, host of his own television series “Jack Hanna’s Animal Adventures,” on Nov. 4 at the Bear’s Den Showroom.

• Rock band Daughtry on Nov. 6.

• Ten-time Native American music award-winning artist Joanne Shenandoah on Nov. 17.

• A one-hour question-and-answer session with “Dancing with the Stars” contestants Ian Ziering and Maria Lopez on Nov. 18 in the Bear’s Den Showroom.

• Comedian and actor Bill Cosby on Nov. 23.

• The world-renowned Moscow Ballet “The Great Russian Nutcracker” on Dec. 14 and 15.