Kansas State Fair announces acts

Hutchinson ? The Kansas State Fair plans a grandstand lineup that includes country and classic rock acts as well as the radio variety show “A Prairie Home Companion.”

ZZ Top, which still has its original members aboard after three decades, kicks off the entertainment schedule Sept. 9.

The next day, Garrison Keillor will bring his “A Prairie Home Companion” to life. The two-hour show features skits, music, and Keillor’s signature monologue, “The News from Lake Wobegon.”

Sept. 12 marks the first country performance when Big & Rich, a duo that melds rap and rock beats with country, appears with Cowboy Troy, a “cowboy rapper” from Dallas.

Classic rock returns to the grandstand Sept. 14 when Foreigner appears.

Switchfoot appears Sept. 17. The Contemporary Christian group will be followed Sept. 18 by country star Trace Adkins appearing with Dierks Bentley.

Tickets, except for those for “A Prairie Home Companion,” go on sale April 9 at the fair ticket office. Tickets to see Garrison Keillor are not available to the general public until May 8 but are available now to members of Radio Kansas.

Hutchinson (ap) — The Kansas State Fair will do random drug testing this year of some animals brought in for exhibit.Until now, the fair has tested only animals judged to be grand champions for the presence of steroids and painkillers. At this year’s fair in September, the Kansas Animal Health Department will test about 15 animals from among those being exhibited in the 4-H and FFA market events, at a cost of $50 each.”There have just been so many other fairs that have had real problems with it,” Debbie Anderson, the fair’s competitive exhibits director, said of the use of drugs for livestock. “We’ve tested the champions for the past five years, and now we are going to random test to let people know we are watching — to stay ahead of the curve.”