SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE to Play The Grand 1894 Opera House, 10/18

The Grand 1894 Opera House will play host to a new national tour of the longest-running musical revue in Broadway history, Smokey Joe's Café, on Saturday, October 18, 2014 at 8 pm and Sunday, October 19, 2014 at 3 pm. The acclaimed musical revue showcasing the songs of legendary Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame composers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.

Showcasing 39 Leiber-Stoller hits, Smokey Joe's Café is directed and choreographed by Broadway's award-winning PIPPIN choreographer Chet Walker. This production features '60s super group The Coasters, who recorded eight of the duo's original hit singles, including "Yakety Yak," "Poison Ivy," " Love Potion #9," and "Charlie Brown."

Smokey Joe's Café is performed in true musical-revue style, with no spoken dialogue. The performance is filled with a spectacular display of vocals on some of the most memorable songs of the '50s and '60s. Recent reviews of this new touring production have been glowing: "From peppy powerhouses to smooth and sultry, this cast does it all...the voices steal the show...try and resist singing along if you can... " - nytheatreguide.com. "A hit parade...Leiber and Stoller are the Rodgers and Hammerstein of rock 'n' roll!" - The New York Times. "A whole lot of fun" - The Daily News ."It sails and soars!" - Time Magazine. "A Vibrant Production ... as catchy as Poison Ivy" - The New York Times.

JerryLeiber and Mike Stoller were two of the most important songwriters of '50s and '60s, creating enduring classics in rhythm & blues, jazz, cabaret, and rock 'n' roll. Leiber served as the sharp-witted lyricist, while the classically trained but jazz- and R&B-loving Stoller wrote the music. As producers, Leiber and Stoller were the first to surround black R & B music with elaborate production values, enhancing its emotional power. Their catalogue includes 20 Elvis Presley hits (including "Hound Dog," and "Jailhouse Rock"), hits of The Coasters (including "Charlie Brown" and "Yakety Yak") and hits for girl groups, including the Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack" and the Dixie Cups' "Chapel of Love." They also wrote the Peggy Lee hits "I'm a Woman" and "Is That All There Is?", the latter of which won her a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Leiber and Stoller were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. Their body of work has included numerous Grammy Award-winners. Said Critic Greg Shaw in The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll: "They were the true architects of pop/rock...Their signal achievement was the marriage of rhythm & blues in its most primal form to the pop tradition."

These performances are sponsored in part by Classic Auto Group - Galveston and The Houston Chronicle. Tickets are from $22. To purchase tickets and for more information, contact The Grand's box office at 409.765.1894, 800.821.1894, or visit The Grand's website at www.thegrand.com. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, The Grand 1894 Opera House is located at 2020 Postoffice Street in Galveston's historic downtown Cultural Arts District, and is recognized as "The Official Opera House of the State of Texas." All major credit cards accepted.