AFTER A one-year hiatus, the All-American Days Festival will be making a big return in Bellaire, featuring top notch entertainment and plenty of activities for young and old alike, including the internationally famous “The Vogues” on Saturday.

Throughout the three-day event there will be plenty of vendors and activities.

The festival kicks off Thursday at 5 p.m. at the recently renovated historic Bellaire City Park. The opening ceremonies will be done by American Legion Post 52 and the national anthem will be sung by Moose Dodrill, followed by welcoming remarks by Mayor Vince DiFabrizio.

On Thursday, from 5:30-6 p.m., The Bellaire Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Mary Catherine Allodi, will perform on the main stage, followed by one of the festival’s biggest crowd pleaser – The All-American Idol Contest – featuring some of the best homegrown talent in the Ohio Valley from 6-7 p.m.

Living Water will take the stage from 7-7:30 p.m. and Moose Dodrill will be around to cap-off the first night of the festival with “An Evening Under the Stars with Elvis.”

Also during all three days of the festival, there will be a displays of World War II memorabilia set up at the Carnes Senior Center on Belmont Street, diagonal from the park.

Friday’s events also start at 5 p.m. with Karaoke until 5:30 p.m.

The Dance Difference will perform from 5:30-6 p.m. followed by the All-American Idol Contest finals.

To end the evening, the popular band “Stampede” will take the stage at 8 p.m. and perform until 10 p.m. playing the best in Rock and County music.

A full slate of events is on the agenda for Saturday. The final day of the festival will feature a parade at 11 a.m., as well as plenty of live entertainment, activities and a fireworks show.

“A Walk in the Park,” historic reenactments of speeches given by notable residents and famous visitors to Bellaire in period costume, will take place from noon until 1:30 p.m. Speeches or words written by Col. Christian Poorman, Brig. Gen. Benjamin Rush Cowen, presidents William Howard Taft and Theodore Roosevelt, U.S. Sen. Stephen Douglas, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and Col. John H. Sullivan be recreated for the event.

The Cumberland Trail Genealogical Society is sponsoring a cemetery walk through Greenwood Cemetery, 2-4 p.m. while back at the festival there will be live entertainment.

From 2-3 p.m., there will be an USO Show with Kristen Allodi on the main stage.

Chris Volpini and Essence will then take the stage from 3-4 p.m., playing their blend of urban contemporary Christian music.

Something extra fun for the kids will be a magic show on the kids stage from 2-4 p.m. Prior to that, there will also be a clown from noon until 2 p.m, while the “Kiddie Olympics” are slated to take place from 4-5 p.m.

Also on Saturday, a car show, one of the staple events of the All-American Days will take place on Guernsey Street near the park.

Another tradition at the All-American Days is the Gulla Hot Dog Eating Contest taking place at 4 p.m. Participants will get seven minutes to eat as many hot dogs, smothered in the traditional Gulla Sauce, as they can. Past winners have been known to eat more than 20! There is a $5 entry fee and all participants get a t-shirt and a Gulla’s Lunch Gift Certificate.

To help burn off those calories, the public will get the chance to learn one of the latest exercise trends with a Zumba demonstration at 4:30 p.m.

From 6-8 p.m., Kody Stormn and The Winds will perform, playing country music, followed one of the most popular bands of all time The Vogues – who will take the stage from 9-10:30 p.m.

They have a fresh, original blend of vocal harmony that left an indelible mark in the world of popular music. Inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001, The Vogues remain one of the top vocal groups on the oldies scene today.

Even though their first hit “You’re the One” was released over 40 years ago, the Vogues continue to attract sellout audiences at concerts and club appearances around the country.

Some of their other hits include “My Special Angel,” “Till,” “5 O’Clock World,” “Earth Angel,” “Turn Around Look at Me,” and “Land of Milk and Honey.”

Their outstanding talent, stylish delivery and excellent choice of material, coupled with their vital, poised performance, makes this group one of the world’s top oldies acts. The return of original tenor Hugh Geyer and lead vocalist Bill Burkette serves to enhance that authentic Vogues’ sound which includes Jim Campanga, tenor vocalist, Troy and Stan Elich, vocalists, Dean Mastrangelo on keyboards, Artie DeLeonardis on drums, Tom Lamb, guitarist and Rich Gooch on bass.

It’s a performance you won’t want to miss.

But the fun doesn’t stop there.

After The Vogues, the Bellaire Area of Chamber of Commerce will be putting on its annual fireworks display at 10:30 p.m. to wrap up the festival’s events.

Schuler may be reached at shoe@timesleaderonline.com