Billie Holiday News

On Monday 13th July 2015 SimG Records is to release the Original London Cast Recording of A SPOONFUL OF SHERMAN - the critically acclaimed cabaret revue that celebrates 90 years and 3 generations of Sherman family songwriting.

It's an undeniable, outstanding, and extraordinary musical milestone, to be sure: 2015 marks the thirtieth anniversary of The Mabel Mercer Foundation! Not only has the organization survived the ongoing and vastly fluctuating public tastes in music, lyrics, and performers, it has proliferated and burgeoned in its three decades of commitment to the classic, "Great Popular Songbook" -- both past and present.

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation announced today that 41 organizations in its New York Theater Program will receive grants totaling $4.1 million. Ranging from $10,000 to $160,000, the grants will be used toward operating support over the next two years.

Ken Greves, performing music from his new CD, will appear at Cafe Noctambulo on Thursday, July 2nd at 8pm with Frank Ponzio (piano), Saadi Zain (bass) and Jacob Melchior (drums). 

MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL, the hit musical celebration of the life and music of the original 1970s 'Queen of Disco,' Sylvester, will be featured on TV One's award-winning series 'Unsung.' 

No Name producer Eric Vetter wraps up the   Uptown Cabaret Second Monday'  monthly singers showcase  at Manhattan's Indian Road Cafe on Monday, July 13 with a featured performance by vocalist / actress  Amanda Baker.  

The Kimmel Center announces four new shows added to the stellar line-up of pop and jazz performances, as part of the 2015-16 season. Tickets are now available for performances ranging from rising star jazz chanteuse Cecile McLorin Salvant performing an intimate solo jazz recital (Oct. 17), 10 time Grammy Award-winning Latin jazz duo Arturo Sandoval & Poncho Sanchez making their debut (Nov. 8), the return of international touring sensation Canadian Brass with Jeffrey Brillhart (Oct. 17), and the Philadelphia premiere of Potted Potter -- the Unauthorized Harry Experience (Oct. 20-25) performing a stage adaptation of family-friendly wizardry. 

Carnegie Hall's 125th anniversary season is fast approaching, and we are looking forward to a variety of exciting new projects and exceptional programming. Listed below are jazz, pop, and world music highlights at Carnegie Hall for the 2015-2016 season.

The Music Institute of Chicago announces the 2015-16 season of its Faculty and Guest Artist Series, showcasing women in jazz, illustrious alumni, and the 10th anniversary of its Academy for training gifted pre-college musicians. All concerts take place at the historic Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Avenue in the heart of downtown Evanston.

Jasmine Saunise completes casting for the upcoming reading of Steven Carl McCasland's new play Memorare. The reading, which is open to the public, will take place at the Arthur Seelen Theatre (located at the Tony Award-winning Drama Bookshop) on Wednesday, July 15th at 7:00pm. The reading is free to the public. 

Axis Theatre will present the world premiere of The Vast Machine, a new play written and directed by Randy Sharp about the dilemmas facing the crew of a slave ship at sea in the Middle Passage. Performances will take place October 1-24 at Axis Theatre (1 Sheridan Square) in the West Village.

MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL, the hit musical celebration of the life and music of the original 1970s "Queen of Disco," Sylvester, will be featured on TV One's award-winning series "Unsung." 

A limited New York audience will soon be able to attend the first reading of Steven Carl McCasland's new play MEMORARE. The reading, which is open to the public, will take place at the Arthur Seelen Theatre (located at the Tony Award-winning Drama Bookshop) on Wednesday, July 15th at 7:00pm. The reading is free to the public. 

Practically a resident company for the Music Hall, the world-renown New York City based dance company, Complexions once again returns to Detroit for their annual summer appearance. Artistic Directors Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson have nurtured a lifelong appreciation for the artistic and aesthetic appeal of the multicultural, which forms the cornerstone of Complexions' singular approach to reinventing dance. Founded in 1994, their groundbreaking mix of methods, styles, and cultures has created an entirely new and exciting vision of human movement.

The Ensemble Theatre in Houston, Texas, is offering Trav'lin - the 1930s Harlem Musical as its season finale, Artistic Director Eileen J. Morris has announced. Official opening is June 25, 2015 with performances from tonight,  June 20 through July 26. The new staging follows a sold-out run of the show at the 2010 New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) and a successful 2013 production at the Jubilee Theatre in Fort Worth, Texas.

Seven of Australia's Diva's come together for a very special one-off event at The Sydney Opera House to pay tribute to the late Billie Holiday, otherwise known as 'Lady Day'. The concert Ladies Sing the Blues, will feature Lady Cool, Amanda Easton, Liza Ohlback, Lucinda Peters, Lindsay Drummond, Joy Yates and Dahlia Dior. 

Almost as long as there has been photography, performers have used portraits to represent themselves for casting and promotion. In the new exhibition Head Shots: Performer Portraits from Daguerreotype to Digital, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center in Lincoln Center showcases its vast collection of head shots to illustrate the photos' role in the casting and marketing process, as well as how these pictures evolved alongside modern technology. Head Shots is currently on display in The Library for the Performing Arts' Vincent Astor Gallery, Shelby Cullom Davis Museum through August 8, 2015. 

The standard of performances this year was as high as we have come to expect from these marvellous young artists.

The spirit of Hawaii will come alive when Society of Seven brings its lively variety show to the Suncoast Showroom, July 25 and 26.

IRT and Ricochet Collective welcome Jody Flader (The Slug Bearers... at The Vineyard) to the cast of the World Premiere of GORDY CRASHES, by Sam Byron. Directed by Sherri Eden Barber, previews began June 5 at IRT Theater with opening night slated for tonight, June 12. Flader replaces Clea Alsip, who leaves to join the cast of Neil Labute's The Way We Get By with Amanda Seyfried and Thomas Sadoski.