Jimmy Buffett christened his latest Margaritaville restaurant, and first one ever in California, with a grand opening show on Thursday afternoon.

At 5 O’Clock today, Universal CityWalk toasted the official arrival of Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville restaurant to its destination marking the occasion with an exciting performance by singer, songwriter and best-selling author, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band.

Hundreds of Parrotheads and fans alike joined in the celebration that also marked the first-ever Margaritaville restaurant to open in California.

Jimmy Buffett said, “I walked onto the site of CityWalk when it was still under construction, and my first thought was ‘I want a Margaritaville here.’ Thanks to the great folks at Universal, we made it. It’s great to play at the opening and I look forward to visiting regularly on my journeys to the West Coast. Fins Up!”

Jimmy Buffett has opened @Margaritaville @CityWalkLA pic.twitter.com/405v0FiMlK

— Theme Park Insider (@ThemePark) March 31, 2017

It's 5 o'clock at @CityWalkLA! @Margaritaville @UniStudios @jimmybuffett pic.twitter.com/TXqlVt4bpq

— Theme Park Adventure (@TPAMagazine) March 31, 2017

Jimmy Buffett performed on Tuesday night at the Belly Up in Solano Beach outside of San Diego, California. The show served as a warm up for Buffett’s 2017 tour that kicks off on Saturday in Las Vegas.

The San Diego Union Tribune reviewed the show:

n’t know what tour this is,” Jimmy Buffett said after he walked on stage Tuesday night at the Belly Up Tavern with his band, the Coral Reefers. “But we’re starting here.”

Buffett is, of course, no stranger to San Diego or the intimate Belly Up.

He and his seven-man, two-woman group performed at the same Solana Beach nightclub in 2013. And, back in the early 1980s — before he became an American pop-culture institution for a generation that favors tropical cocktails and attire — he sometimes sat in at the Belly Up with the band Billy & The Beaters.

During that same time period back then, Buffett periodically would sing, unannounced, at such North County nightspots as the Albatross and the Triton (now the Beach House). Richard Davis, his audio engineer for the past quarter-century, used to be the sound mixer at the Belly Up.

After performing a tender version of “Son of a Son of a Sailor,” Buffet said: “It’s a big honor to be doing a musical. I had the thought: ‘If you’re going to do a musical, you should probably do songs people know.’ I’m not giving away secrets, but this is in the show.” With that, be broke into the wistful ballad “Come Monday,” adding the line “at the Belly Up.”

Read the full review.

It’s been a few years since Jimmy Buffett has performed in Toronto, but that’ll change in August when he brings the Coral Reefer Band to the Budweiser Stage.

Toronto, ON
Friday, August 11th, 2017
Budweiser Stage

Tickets go on sale Friday, April 7th at 10 am through Ticketmaster and Ticketnetwork.

“Since their unforgettable performance in 2011, Toronto has been eagerly awaiting the return of Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band,” commented Paul Corcoran Executive Vice President, Venue Operations Live Nation Canada. “Transforming the Ontario Place waterfront into Margaritaville at the Budweiser Stage will be the highlight of the 2017 summer concert season.”

View all tour dates that have been announced so far here.

(hat tip Chuck)

San Diego’s La Jolla Playhouse gets the world debut of Jimmy Buffett’s new musical Escape to Margaritaville and they’ve just announced the full casting and ticket information:

Tickets go on sale to the public on Sunday, March 26 at noon and will be available online at LaJollaPlayhouse.org, by phone at (858) 550-1010, or in person at The Playhouse’s Patron Services Office (hours: Tue – Sun, noon to 6pm) at 2910 La Jolla Village Drive.

Joining the previously-announced principals – Paul Alexander Nolan as Tully, Alison Luff as Rachel and Lisa Howard as Tammy – the complete cast features Charlie Pollock as Brick, Don Sparks as J.D., Andre Ward as Jamal and Rema Webb as Marley, along with ensemble members Matt Allen, Sara Andreas, Katie Banville, Hanz Enyeart, Marjorie Failoni, Samantha Farrow, Keely Hutton, Justin Keats, Mike Millan, Justin Mortelliti, Ian Paget, Sharone Sayegh, Alex Michael Stoll and Jena VanElslander. The ensemble also includes three UC San Diego M.F.A. students: Andrew Gallop, Volen Iliev and Mo Rodvanich.

As previously announced, Escape to Margaritaville will have its world premiere at The Playhouse on May 9, 2017, and will play New Orleans’ Saenger Theatre, Houston’s Hobby Center, and make its last stop before Broadway at Chicago’s Oriental Theatre in November 2017. Escape to Margaritaville will sail into Broadway in the spring of 2018. Go to www.EscapeToMargaritavilleMusical.com for more information.

Read the full article at BroadwayWorld.com.

Jimmy Buffett has played a show at Cincinnati’s Riverbend Amphitheater every year since 1988, and he’ll do it again this summer:

Cincinnati, OH
Saturday, July 8th, 2017
Riverbend Amphitheater

Tickets go on sale Friday, March 31st at 10 am ET through Ticketmaster and Ticketnetwork.

View all concerts that have been announced so far on the tour dates page.

(hat tip Alan)