Bessie Smith News

Award-winning Porchlight Music Theatre latest mainstage production the “Best Musical” Tony Award-nominated Blues in the Night, conceived by Sheldon Epps, with the music of Bessie Smith, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Vernon Duke, Gordon Jenkins, Alberta Hunter and others, is now playing through March 13 at The Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn St.

In a tribute honoring the musical legacies paved by Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone, Bessie, Billie, and Nina: Pioneering Women in Jazz fills Popejoy Hall with the soundtrack of a social movement on Sunday, March 28 at 3 pm.

Porchlight Music Theatre has staged a number of similar revues over the years, and I look back on those most fondly for the tremendous talent they have showcased. That could not be more true of director Kenny Ingram's production of Sheldon Epps's BLUES IN THE NIGHT.

Featuring audience favorite shows as well as two Michigan Premieres, Meadow Brook Theatre's 2022-2023 season has something for everyone!

Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts has already welcomed some jazz greats to its stage this season, and there’s still more to come this spring, including a special presentation from Jazz at Lincoln Center on Sunday, March 6.

SISTAS THE MUSICAL has announced its return on April 2 at Off-Broadway's The Actors Temple Theatre for an open-ended run. This live musical production is written by Fulbright Scholar and Columbia University professor Dr. Dorothy Marcic, based on interviews with Black women over several years

In her 54 Below solo show debut, Gabrielle Lee brings the brass and the bang and a bangarang band.

Award-winning Porchlight Music Theatre latest mainstage production the “Best Musical” Tony Award-nominated Blues in the Night, conceived by Sheldon Epps, with the music of Bessie Smith, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Vernon Duke, Gordon Jenkins, Alberta Hunter and others, is now playing through March 13 at The Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn St.

The first show of the year 2022 to take place in the Vergennes Opera House will pay tribute to four amazing female Jazz/Blues singers.

This month, FEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW, Broadway’s Supper Club & Private Event Destination, will present some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond.

Northglenn Arts Presents, north metro’s professional performance series, celebrates Black History Month with two shows at the Parsons Theatre. This year features the musical storytelling of the History of African American Music Part 2 and the narrative of movement in One People, Many Voices. 

Chicago Theatre Week (#CTW22), an annual celebration of the rich tradition of theatre-going in Chicago during which visitors and residents can access value-priced tickets, returns for its 10th year and will take place February 17-27, 2022. 

Billie! Backstage with Lady Day, written and performed by Synthia L. Hardy, directed by Bryan Rasmussen, and produced by Gary Lamb, will open at the Sierra Madre Playhouse February 25-27, 2022. Fri. & Sat. at 8:00, Sun. at 2:30.

Check out what's coming to streaming this month, including new additions to Seth Rudetsky's concert series, Flying Over Sunset, the SIX alternates' concert at 54 Below, Sweet Magnolias season two and the highly-anticipated fourth season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel!

 Porchlight Music Theatre announces new dates for Porchlight Revisits Passing Strange, Wednesday, May 18 at 7 p.m. and Thursday, May 19 at 1:30 and 7 p.m. and the staged reading of Paul Oaley Stovall’s+ Clear, A New Musical Experience, Tuesday, May 31 at 7 p.m.  

Porchlight Music Theatre announces new dates for Porchlight Revisits Passing Strange, Wednesday, May 18 at 7 p.m. and Thursday, May 19 at 1:30 and 7 p.m. and the staged reading of Paul Oaley Stovall's Clear, A New Musical Experience, Tuesday, May 31 at 7 p.m.  

Trav'lin - The 1930s Harlem Musical Romance, a joyful celebration of love in the Jazz Age with a classic jazz and blues score, is receiving its Southeast regional premiere to kick off the Mainstage Series at Florida's Winter Park Playhouse.

Due to the current virus surge in Chicago and out of an abundance of caution regarding the public health concerns for artists and audiences, Award-winning Porchlight Music Theatre announces its three events scheduled for January and February 2022: Blues in the Night, Clear, A New Musical Experience and Porchlight Revisits Passing Strange have been rescheduled to later this year, new dates for Blues in the Night are listed below, new dates for Clear, A New Musical Experience and Porchlight Revisits Passing Strange are to be announced.

This week, the musical Dreamgirls is celebrating its 40th anniversary! To celebrate, the show's Tony-winning original star, Jennifer Holliday, stopped by Twitter to sing from the show's finale to help fans process the changes the pandemic has brought and to help them dream of a brighter future.

Jazz at Lincoln Center's Dizzy's Club will continue its season of in-person performances in January and February 2022, presenting a diverse lineup that pays tribute to jazz greats, showcases rising stars on the scene, and welcomes award-winning artists whose work runs the gamut of jazz styles and traditions.