Seven scintillating events loaded with lots of snap, crackle and pop make up the ABAC Presents! Performing Arts Series for the 2018-19 season at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

In his 30th year at ABAC, Arts Connection Director Wayne Jones put his long years of experience to work, crafting the best set of shows possible for the students of ABAC and patrons from the community.

“I love this lineup of performers,” Jones said. “We are reaching out to artists who at one time we could not afford to bring to Tifton. We build the series for our students and then offer it to the public at a quite economical price.”

The University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra kicks off the series on Sept. 9 followed by Chanticleer on Oct. 11, “Broadway’s Next H!t Musical” on Nov. 29, “The Crucible” on Feb. 7, the Albany Symphony Orchestra featuring Chris Brubeck’s Triple Play on March 2, the Turtle Island String Quartet on March 28, and Byron Stripling with the ABAC Jazz Ensemble on April 18.

Tickets for the entire series are $80 for adults and $25 for students under 18 years of age. Individual ticket costs vary based on the performance. Tickets can be purchased online at www.purplepass.com/abac or by phone at (229) 391-4895. ABAC students are admitted free.

ABAC Presents! is supported in part by Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. Georgia Council for the Arts also receives support from its partner agency, the National Endowment for the Arts.

Weaving musical depictions of some treasured classic stories from your childhood, the UGA Symphony Orchestra’s “Mother Goose Suite” is sure to delight young and old alike with a 3 p.m. performance on Sept. 9 at the Tift Theatre. The orchestra will also honor the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth with “Symphonic Dances” from “West Side Story.” For a slam bang finish, the orchestra shakes the legendary theater with the jaw-dropping refrains from Beethoven’s immortal “Fifth Symphony.”

Called the “world’s reigning male chorus” by “The New Yorker,” Chanticleer will perform at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11 in Howard Auditorium.

“They are one of the most recognized male chorus names in the world,” Jones said. “Always a top tier group, they were last here in the early 90s.”

Improvisational comedy at its best will take the Howard Auditorium spotlight on Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. with “Broadway’s Next H!t Musical.”

“This show combines the skill of Broadway artists with the comic ability of improv comedy,” Jones said. “Everything is improv. It’s one of the most amazing shows I have ever seen.”

Audience members will be transported to Salem in 1692 when the National Players present “The Crucible” on Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. at the Tift County High School Performing Arts Center. The searing drama by Arthur Miller delves into the hysteria over the presumed witches in the tiny New England town.

Led by Peter “Madcat” Ruth, Joel Brown, and Chris Brubeck, the Albany Symphony Orchestra visits the Tift County High School Performing Arts Center on March 3 at 3 p.m. Music ranging from folk rock to classical will delight the musical palate of all in attendance.

The Turtle Island String Quartet “approaches string music very differently,” according to Jones. “There’s something for everybody in this concert,” Jones said of the group which will perform on March 28 at 7 p.m. in Howard Auditorium. “They incorporate popular and jazz elements into their music.”

Magic will happen on stage at Howard Auditorium when Byron Stripling and his trumpet get together with the ABAC Jazz Ensemble on April 18 at 7 p.m.

“Byron was here in January with Doc Severinsen,” Jones said. “He is one of the most respected jazz figures in the nation. This is also a great chance to showcase the ABAC jazz ensemble.”

Bell Plantation is the ABAC Presents! series sponsor. Tift Regional Health System is a Premium Event sponsor. Single Event sponsors are Hilton Garden Inn Tifton and Ponder’s Office Products. Preferred sponsors include Captain D’s, McDonald’s, South Georgia Banking Company, the Tifton Housing Authority, and the Tifton Rotary Club.

Community partners are Colony Bank, Bowen Donaldson Home for Funerals, Dave’s Bread and Coffee House, the Georgia Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village, The Local, 41 and Main, Chicago Pizza and Pasta, and Southern Station.