Richey Suncoast Theatre closes out its rock-heavy August calendar the way it should — loud. On Friday, August 28, Completely Unchained: The Ultimate Van Halen Tribute takes the historic downtown New Port Richey stage for a full-throttle run through one of rock’s most technically demanding catalogs, six days after The Seger Experience plays the same room.
The band splits the difference between Van Halen’s two eras rather than picking a lane: Gene “Little Geno” Henriksen handles the David Lee Roth-era showmanship on vocals, Jake C. Miller takes on Eddie Van Halen’s famously hard-to-replicate “brown sound” on guitar, Clint Ettore covers Michael Anthony’s bass and backing vocals, and Ronnie Sciascia holds down Alex Van Halen’s drum parts. Expect the set to move between both lineups’ hits — “Jump,” “Panama,” and “Hot for Teacher” among them — rather than sticking strictly to one Van Halen frontman’s catalog.
It’s a genuinely tall order for a tribute act — Van Halen’s guitar work in particular is the kind of material that separates a competent cover band from one that can actually pull the songs off — and landing it in a 250-ish seat historic theater rather than an arena means the guitar tone and drum fills are close enough to actually hear cleanly, which is part of why Richey Suncoast has built a reputation as one of Pasco County’s more reliable spots for this exact kind of high-energy tribute night.
What: Completely Unchained: The Ultimate Van Halen Tribute
When: Friday, August 28, 2026, 8:00 PM (doors 7:15 PM)
Where: Richey Suncoast Theatre, 6237 Grand Blvd, New Port Richey, FL 34652
Tickets: $31–$42 plus taxes and fees; VIP box seating $177. Book through richeysuncoasttheatre.com.