Salvation Army Leading Food Drive

FRESNO, Calif. - Sept. 15, 2015 - PRLog -- TULARE – The 2015 Tulare County Fair, Sept. 16-20, offers music, fun food and five days of free entertainment for fairgoers of all ages – and a newly announced canned food drive thanks to the local Salvation Army.

Thursday through Saturday, Creedence Clearwater Revival tribute band Fortunate Son will perform at 7 and 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday. Fandango, a ZZ Top tribute band, will perform at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Thursday and Saturday.

Local entertainers perform on community stages throughout the fair, including Midnight Wine, West of Howard, alternative rock band Days Under Authority, duet Miss Lee and Little Ava, and the Ruby Slipper Company, to name a few.

The Budweiser Stage headliners are comedian Paul Rodriguez, Wednesday, Sept. 16; Kelly Pickler on Thursday, Sept. 17; Foghat, Friday, Sept. 18; Rose Royce, Saturday, Sept. 19; and Marty Stuart, with Aubrie Sellers, on Sunday, Sept. 20. All concerts begin at 8 p.m. and are free with paid gate admission.

Fairgoers who bring at least 3 cans of food on Sunday, Sept. 20, will receive a 50 percent discount on admission.

Grounds entertainment, all free with gate admission and offered daily, includes the new Great American Duck Races, with live ducks and the chance to learn more about Mallards. Also new is Wild Science, offering hands-on entertaining ways to learn more about science and technology, along with the Chinese Acrobats of Hebei, a display of incredible acrobatics, stunning costumes and beautiful music.

Mindworks! Is a collection of puzzles, giant games, brain teasers, a construction zone and a toddler area where fair-goers can have fun while learning. Dozens of interactive displays/statsions offer a variety of challenges and experiences, including the bubble arena, a LEGO wall, a Rube Goldberg Wall (with tracks, catapults, gears and baskets) and a giant chess game.

Let’s Pretend Circus, presented multiple times daily, allows children to become tightrope walkers, wild animals, an animal trainer or a clown for a live theater experience designed to build confidence and creativity.

Something Ridiculous is a high-energy juggling and acrobatic act. The comic duo climbs up a freestanding ladder, onto a 10-foot-tall unicycle or atop each other’s shoulders in an entertaining and dynamic show.

Walk on the Wild Side is an exhibit of displaced exotic animals that were given a home by a nonprofit animal refuge in Oregon. The exhibit pairs education about exotic animals with lessons on responsible animal ownership and awareness of the huge diversity of animal life.

Puppets and Players Little Theater will present Puff the Magic Dragon, which includes a daring duel onboard a pirate ship, a fearful storm at sea and travel to the bottom of the ocean. The show will be offered daily.

Great American Petting Zoo allows children to pet and enjoy a wide variety of friendly, hand-raised animals including llamas, fallow deer, Bennett wallabies, African pygmy goats, Vietnamese potbelly pigs, miniature Sicilian donkeys, call ducks and bantam chickens, among others.

Jest in Time Family Fun Stage is Topper Todd and Li Li Zucchini, two physical comedians and jugglers who perform stage shows and circus acts for the whole family.

Hypnotist Steve Bayner will perform nightly on the Budweiser stage.

Vintage America is a museum-quality, interactive 1950s vintage exhibit. It includes a fully restored, 20-foot vintage Airstream trailer full of vintage things and pulled by a 1956 Country Squire station wagon. Chef Dianne Linderman offers cooking demonstrations throughout the five days of the fair.

Admission is $8 for adults; $5 for children ages 6-12. Seniors 62 and older are admitted for $6 on Senior Day, Thursday, Sept. 17, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., sponsored by Humana. Military Appreciation Day is also Thursday, with $6 admission for active duty military with ID card, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The fair will also offer live local entertainers, the annual Heifer Replacement Sale and Junior Livestock Auction, new food booths, the Demolition Derby, a tractor pull, fun rides and more. Visit www.tcfair.org for ongoing updates to the schedule of events.