Grand Ole Opry announces 98th birthday festivities honoring country music's female stars

Alongside multiple-time Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association award winner Sara Evans' official Grand Ole Opry induction ceremony on Oct. 7, the organization and program's 98th birthday celebration week from Oct. 4-7, 2023, will celebrate the women of country music.

More information about the festivities is available at http://www.opry.com.

Opry member Lauren Alaina and CMA/ACM reigning female vocalist winner and Opry NextStage alumnus Lainey Wilson will make appearances at 2804 Opryland Drive on Oct. 4, while Opry star Crystal Gayle will be spotlighted during a special "Opry Country Classics celebrates Queens of Country" edition of the Opry a day later.

Oct. 6's lineup includes, among many, Mississippi-born recent Opry fan favorite trio Chapel Hart.

Saturday night, Oct. 7, will feature new Opry member Sara Evans making two appearances at 7 and 9 p.m. CT's editions of the Opry. Also, at 1 p.m. CT in the Opry House's Studio A earlier that day, Chapel Hart will again appear for a special performance and fan Q&A event saluting the trio's female country music heroes.

While recently onstage in concert at the Ryman Auditorium celebrating the 20th anniversary of her platinum-selling, ACM award-nominated and 2003-released album "Restless," Evans was interrupted by the Opry's newly-minted current longest-serving member, Country Music Hall of Famer Bill Anderson.

Joined by Lady A and Carly Pearce, he asked Evans if she would become the latest member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Moved to tears by the offer, she quickly agreed.

Evans' (alongside Jon Pardi's forthcoming Oct. 24 induction) induction will raise the total of Opry inductions since March 2020 to 12 Opry membership additions since Darius Rucker's January 2021 induction. Not since a 1964-65 swing of seven inductions that included membership being granted to performers including Willie Nelson and Connie Smith being added to the cast have numbers grown so significantly in such a brief period.

Oct. 7's 98th birthday packages -- plus tickets for events on the 4-6, are on sale now at https://www.opry.com/opry-celebrates-98.

Special ticket packages for a full day of Opry events on Oct. 7 include the following:

• Opry show ticket

• Matinee Studio A Event: Acoustic Performance and Interview with Chapel Hart

• Grand Ole Opry House Daytime Tour

• Opry Picnic Lunch

• Exclusive "Opry Celebrates 98" poster

Free live music and family-friendly activities celebrating the Opry's birthday will also occur in front of the venue at Opry Plaza on Oct. 6 and 7.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Grand Ole Opry to celebrate 98th birthday by honoring female stars