Keegan H. Fox

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First Posted: 1/13/2014 Beginning this weekend, there is a brand-new place for concerts in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
The Keystone Grand Ballroom, inside the Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs Hotel and Convention Center in Plains Township, will celebrate its grand opening with a slew of high-profile stars.
On the slate? A private performance by stand-up comedian Jay Leno on Saturday and an open-to-the-public concert with country star Josh Turner on Sunday, for starters.
Other grand-opening happenings include a free performance by the Bacon Brothers &#8212; yes, Kevin, of &#8220;Footloose&#8221; fame, is one of them &#8212; at Breakers on Saturday night, an autograph and Q&A session with Derek Hough and Emma Slater from &#8220;Dancing With The Stars&#8221; in the Seasons Ballroom on Sunday, a concert by David Foster & The Mohegan Sun All-Stars at Breakers on Sunday night, and a just-added afternoon session with rock star and former &#8220;American Idol&#8221; contestant Chris Daughtry at Breakers on Monday.
Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs president Mike Bean said the convention center is 20,000 square feet, with 17,000 of it being usable event space and 3,000 consisting of meeting rooms, a pool and fitness center.
The Keystone Grand Ballroom will hold about 1,200 to 1,400 for concerts.
&#8220;The space can be divided into thirds, eighths or other combinations so we can accommodate a number of events at the same time,&#8221; Bean said. &#8220;The 238-room hotel opened in November, and the pool and fitness center are up and running. The spa will be opening (soon) as well.&#8221;
According to information on the complex&#8217;s website, the casino portion opened on Nov. 14, 2006 &#8212; the convention center and hotel was announced on the seventh anniversary of the opening &#8212; and now has 82,000 square feet of gaming space including 82 live table games and 2,300 slot machines and electronic table games. Live horse racing, the staple of the complex for many years, returns on March 22.
Other upcoming concerts at the new venue include comedian and &#8220;Saturday Night Live&#8221; alum Darrell Hammond on Feb. 8 and John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band (the band behind the band in the &#8220;Eddie and the Cruisers&#8221; movies) on Feb. 21.
A partnership with Wise Crackers Comedy Club was announced in late October with Hammond in attendance. In a permanent space where the original Seasons Ballroom once stood, the comedy club presents live comedians every Thursday, Friday and Saturday beginning at 9.
Saturday&#8217;s show with Jay Leno, making his first appearance since wrapping up his tenure as the host of &#8220;The Tonight Show,&#8221; is for invited casino guests only. Sunday&#8217;s show with Turner and up-and-coming singer-songwriter Rachel Bradshaw starts at 8, and doors open at 7.
&#8220;We are continuing to book into the future, and the goal is to have about three concerts a month beginning in May,&#8221; Bean said, noting the popular &#8220;Party on the Patio&#8221; series of concerts with tribute acts will continue as well.
&#8220;So we will have a lot going on every weekend, beginning on Thursdays.&#8221;

A new addition to casino nightlife