Intimate Acoustic Evening at The Ridgefield Playhouse with Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo on June 23

‘80s icon Pat Benatar joins her longtime husband and collaborator, Neil Giraldo, for an intimate acoustic evening on stage at The Ridgefield Playhouse June 23rd

In 1979, Pat Benatar burst onto the airwaves with the song “Heartbreaker” and her debut album In The Heat of the Night. An arena rocker with power chords and vocals to match, Benatar dominated radio airwaves in the early ‘80s with hits like “Hit Me With Your Best Shot," "Love Is a Battlefield," "We Belong" and "Invincible.” Her signature sound is the product of a collaboration and a 38-year love affair with husband, Neil Giraldo, who wrote, produced and arranged more than 100 songs with Benatar. Together they have formed one of the most successful partnerships in music history, winning four Grammy Awards and three American Music Awards and making Benatar, a classically trained mezzo-soprano, one of the most heavily played artists on the popular music channel during the early days of MTV. Now you have the opportunity to see this rock icon as you’ve never seen her before.

Join Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo for an intimate acoustic evening at The Ridgefield Playhouse on Saturday, June 23rd at 8pm, part of the Pepsi Rock Series powered by Xfinity. Make it a great night out with dinner and a show! Visit Bailey’s Backyard (23 Bailey Avenue • Ridgefield) for an early dinner and receive 10% off when you show your ticket! Media sponsor for the night is 95.9 The Fox.

In 1978, in between appearances at Catch a Rising Star and recording commercial jingles for Pepsi Cola, Benatar headlined New York City’s Tramps nightclub, where her performance impressed representatives from several record companies. She was signed to Chrysalis Records by co-founder Terry Ellis. In the spring of 1979, producer and writer, Mike Chapman, introduced Benatar to Neil Giraldo, an up and coming guitarist.

Giraldo began his career in 1978, as a key member of the Rick Derringer band, after beating out 200 other guitarists for the position. Chapman felt Benatar needed a musical director and partner who could establish a more aggressive sound and thought Giraldo was the perfect choice. In Giraldo, Benatar found someone as strong as her, someone who could match the same fire-power, someone who could inspire her, while being inspired by her. Their connection was instantaneous. It was indeed, a perfect fit. In the Heat of the Night, was recorded in June and July 1979. This was the first time the world was introduced to Giraldo and Benatar’s enduring partnership and their rock ‘n’ roll love affair. In The Heat Of The Night, which included the classic “Heartbreaker” as well as the Giraldo-penned hit “We Live For Love” went platinum. That was the beginning, now come see where these two musicians have landed nearly four decades later, as they share their connection with the audience in this intimate acoustic concert.

For tickets ($125-$250) call or visit the box office, 203-438-5795 or go online at ridgefieldplayhouse.org.  The Ridgefield Playhouse is a non-profit performing arts center located at 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main Street, Ridgefield, CT.