For the first time, the Benjamin Russell High School Band will open this year’s Jazz Fest concert in Strand Park on Friday, Aug. 7, with selections from this year’s show, Rhapsody on a Bad Romance. The band’s 2020 repertoire includes music by Queen, Bruno Mars, George Gershwin, Lady Gaga and others.

“We wanted to showcase our own. We’re very proud of the Benjamin Russell Pride Band, and we wanted to let them shine,” said Ed Collari, CEO and president of the Alexander City Chamber of Commerce, which coordinates the free two-day concert series.