Regional event highlights include performances by Craig Ferguson, The Dead Zone and The Music of The Cars by Greg Hawkes and Eddie Japan (Events Roundup)

• Comedian Craig Ferguson, who knows how to make everyone laugh, will perform tonight at 7:30 at the Santander Performing Arts Center in Reading. Ferguson is a Grammy-nominated and Peabody- and Emmy-winning actor, writer, producer, director and comedian; He has had a diverse career spanning film, television and stage. He is a New York Times bestselling author and has recorded stand-up specials for Netflix, Epix, Comedy Central and Amazon. The wildly popular “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” aired on CBS for 10 years and remains a cult favorite on YouTube, garnering millions of views each year through fan-posted bootleg clips. After a few low-paying acting gigs, Ferguson discovered he had a talent for comedy and soon became the star of his own BBC television show, “The Ferguson Theory”. After making a few appearances in comedy in the United Kingdom, Ferguson brought his acting to America in 1995, appearing in the short-lived ABC comedy “Maybe This Time” opposite Betty White and Marie Osmond. After the show ended, ABC decided to add the talented Scotsman to “The Drew Carey Show” as Drew Carey’s boss, Nigel Wick, from 1996-2003. Ferguson has achieved notable success in the North American comedy scene and has performed at sold-out theaters across the country, including Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall. He has five critically acclaimed stand-up comedy specials: “A Wee Bit O’ Revolution,” which premiered on Comedy Central in 2009; “Does This Need to Be Said” on EPIX and Comedy Central in 2011; “I’m Here to Help” on Netflix in 2013, which earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Comedy Album; “Just Being Honest” on EPIX in 2015, which earned him his second Grammy nomination for Best Comedy Album; and “Tickle Fight” on Netflix in 2017 and the six-episode stand-up/documentary series “Hobo Fabulous” on Amazon in 2020. Tickets start at $29. For more information go to: santander-arena.com/events.

• Exhumed Films presents “The Dead Zone,” a horror movie that will leave you on edge, Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Colonial Theater in Phoenixville. Exhumed Films officially kicks off a series of 16mm film presentations at the Colonial’s luxurious Berry Theater with David Cronenberg’s 1983 adaptation of Stephen King’s “The Dead Zone.” Throughout November and December, Exhumed Films will bring 16mm projectors, feature films, cartoons, shorts, TV commercials and related ephemera for a program screening smaller format films that do not normally have the opportunity to be presented at the Colonial Theatre. The show will be preceded by an appropriately themed cartoon short and a selection of 1980s horror TV commercials, and will be followed by a special screening of the rarely screened 1983 short film adaptation “Disciples of the Crow” for King fans. It was shot before the feature film “Children of the Corn.” Seating is limited. Tickets start at $18. For more information go to: thecolonialtheatre.com/films.

• Greg Hawkes performs Music of the Cars with Eddie Japan; A show that never ceases to surprise will be held in Uptown on Saturday at 7:30pm! Knauer Center for the Performing Arts in West Chester. A pioneer and pusher of the boundaries of technology and sequencing throughout the late ’70s and ’80s, Hawkes cemented the synthesizer’s place in rock and pop music, and his contribution influenced countless artists. In addition to achieving Rock and Roll Hall of Fame status and major commercial success with Cars, Hawkes became a sought-after session and touring musician, working with the likes of Paul McCartney, Todd Rundgren and the Turtles. In 2016, he collaborated with the famous Boston band Eddie Japan to produce their 2017 album “Golden Age”. This eventually led to Hawkes and the band joining forces and creating Cars’ night of music, which featured a setlist curated by Hawkes. Greg Hawkes has been performing The Music of the Cars with Eddie Japan since 2019, thrilling audiences across the Northeast with an energetic show featuring hits and deeper cuts from the Cars songbook, as well as special selections from Hawke’s music career . Tickets start at $40. For more information, see uptownwestchester.org.

• Hooters will perform at the Keswick Theater in Glenside on Friday at 8 p.m. In 1980, the Hooters burst onto the Philadelphia music scene as a new and different kind of rock band, formed by co-leaders and songwriters Rob Hyman and Eric Bazilian. Other members include original drummer David Uosikkinen, John Lilley, Fran Smith Jr. and Tommy Williams. Hyman and Bazilian have contributed music and songwriting to other artists, including Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, the Band, Carole King, Mick Jagger, Willie Nelson, the Chieftains, Jon Bon Jovi, Robbie Williams, the Scorpions, Dar Williams and Taj. contributed with their help. Locus. In 2009, Hooters released “Both Sides Live,” a double-album set featuring both full-tilt electric and unique acoustic versions of the band’s best hits. And in 2010, their EP “5×5” was released, which included the uplifting single “Silver Lining” as well as versions of hits “Time After Time” and “One Of Us.” When these two songs became hits, written and recorded with Lauper and Osborne, Hyman and Bazilian, respectively, were nominated for a Grammy for Song of the Year. In 2017 the band released the double live album ‘Give The Music Back’, recorded in Keswick. This compilation CD and subsequent international tours continue to reflect their powerful collaboration in the studio, their passionate energy on stage, and their long-standing friendship both on and off the road. And in October 2019, the band was inducted into Philly’s Walk of Fame with their own sidewalk plaque on the Avenue of the Arts. Ticket prices start from $98. For more information go to: keswicktheatre.com/events.