Billie Holiday News

Geva Theatre Center's 2018-2019 Fielding Studio Series continues with the world premiere of The Magician's Daughter, written by Lila Rose Kaplan and directed by Shelley Butler. This production marks the second world premiere of the season, following hot on the heels of the world premiere of Brent Askari's Hard Cell - also premiering in January. The Magician's Daughter begins performances on January 24 and runs in the Fielding Stage through February 10.

The Philly POPS presents Jazzed! The Philly POPS BIG Band with Terell Stafford, a swinging program honoring Philadelphia's unique contributions to the history of jazz, January 18 20 at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. This performance is a part of The Philly POPS 40th Anniversary Season, which celebrates artists and music with connections to Philadelphia and the POPS.

The month marks the start of my 7th year as a reviewer for Broadway World Los Angeles. With awards season in full bloom each January, many people ask me what my favorite shows were for the previous year. Since I see 3-5 shows per week, that is a difficult and time-consuming task for me to accomplish. But for 2018, I decided to go back through all the 188 reviews/articles I wrote for every show I saw and selected my top shows month-by-month. And what fun it was to go back and select one photo from each of the top 39 shows I selected.

It's the last week to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld Tallahassee Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

Get ready for some new music from Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award winner Cynthia Erivo. According to Billboard, Cynthia Erivo has signed to Verve Records and plans to start on a new album in 2019. 

The Public Theater announced initial casting today for the world premiere of WHITE NOISE, written by Public Theater Master Writer Chair and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks. 

There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld Tallahassee Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

Strong female singers and songwriters are celebrated by six magnificent singers supported by a fabulous all female 8 piece band in HEAR ME ROAR.

The Philly POPS presents Jazzed! The Philly POPS BIG Band with Terell Stafford, a swinging program honoring Philadelphia's unique contributions to the history of jazz, January 18-20 at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. This performance is a part of The Philly POPS 40th Anniversary Season, which celebrates artists and music with connections to Philadelphia and the POPS.

This undiscovered artist is as beautiful as she is talented. She has laid down her version of 9 of the world's greatest Christmas hits, on her album, titled, 'A Classic Christmas: Joy.' LaQuenta Bastian, stage name 'La Que,' is a 22 year old singer song writer, out of Winter Haven Florida. This album is La Que's first professional release of any kind, and hints back to the styles of classic Christmas music, but with a modern jazz feel. Her version of the timeless hits like 'Santa Baby,' makes the song like new again. Her voice and style is compared to greats, such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. 

Curator and producer Peter Musante (Andrew Schneider's YOUARENOWHERE; Blue Man Group; Trusty Sidekick's Up and Away, a groundbreaking show for kids with autism, called 'immersive theater at its most thoughtful' by the New York Times) joins West Coast physical comedienne Summer Shapiro ('raises the craft of clowning to new levels'- NYTheatre.org) to conceive of a new immersive theater festival for the entire family, inspired by the community organizing principles of Jane Jacobs. With seven new works based on true events from Greenwich Village history, the festival brings together leading NYC experimental theatre artists, musicians, physical comedians and clowns for two programs, each consisting of an interactive pre-show and four short stories that bring the surrounding neighborhood to life. The event, recommended for ages 5 and up, is presented by New Ohio Theatre as part of its Theatre for Young Minds holiday series. The performances run from December 20 thru 31 at 154 Christopher Street, NYC. Tickets are $25 ($18 for groups of three or more with the code 'family') and can be purchased through OvationTix (https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/1001863) or by calling 866-811-4111.

There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld Tallahassee Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

NBC begins 2019 with music's biggest names in an evening that can't be missed. "NBC's New Year's Eve" will feature performances by the incredible Diana Ross, Kelly Clarkson, Andy Grammer, John Legend and Blake Shelton. 

Actor Nixon Cesar has joined the cast of the world premiere production of Paul Calderon's play, Master of The Crossroads which will open at The Bridge Theater next month for a limited run.

92Y announces a Valentine's Day concert with Dee Dee Bridgewater, NEA Jazz Master, triple Grammy Award winner, Tony Award winner and UN Ambassador. A singer who can expertly channel Ella, Billie, and Josephine Baker, Dee Dee is also an original and captivating song stylist. She comes to 92Y with her trio on Sunday, February 14 for an unforgettable evening of romantic standards and celebration of love.

Boxcar Theatre is pleased to announce its inaugural SUNDAY SOLO SERIES at The Palace Theatre, home of The Speakeasy, starting in January. The Series will feature three exceptional artists: magician-storyteller Kevin Blake and actor-singers Doris Bumpus and Dedrick Weathersby.

Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) continues its 2018-19 season with Paula Vogel's 'A Civil War Christmas: An American Musical Celebration.' Elizabeth VanDyke will direct. Performances will be held in the Harriet S. Jorgenson Theatre from November 29th - December 9th, 2018. For tickets and information please visit crt.uconn.edu or call (860) 486-2113.

Broadway, film and television actress Lizan Mitchell, a Drama Desk Award nominee for The Trojan Women, has joined the cast of the staged reading of Tylie Shider's Parable of the Backyard Roots. The reading is an installment in the Frank Silvera Writers' Workshop monthly play reading series in partnership with The Billie Holiday Theatre, and will be held at The Billie on Monday, December 10 at 7 pm.

Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) continues its 2018-19 season with Paula Vogel's 'A Civil War Christmas: An American Musical Celebration.' Elizabeth VanDyke will direct. Performances will be held in the Harriet S. Jorgenson Theatre from November 29th - December 9th, 2018. For tickets and information please visit crt.uconn.edu or call (860) 486-2113.

The Apollo Theater announced today that it is undertaking the initial phase of the iconic Theater's transformation into the Apollo Performing Arts Center through two new theaters within the Victoria Theater Redevelopment Project at 233 West 125th Street.