Blues in the Night - 1988 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 7

Musical virtuoso Jools Holland and his distinguished Rhythm & Blues Orchestra have announced dates and special guests for their well-renowned autumn/winter UK tour for 2019. Tickets go on general sale this Friday 1 February at 10am and can be bought on Ticketmaster, See Tickets, Ticketline and Stargreen as well as the direct venue websites.

Florida-based guitarist-vocalist JP Soars is nominated in the Blues Rock Artist category for the (2019) 40th Annual Blues Music Awards (BMA), taking place Thursday, May 9 at Cook Convention Center, 255 N. Main St. Tickets/Info: (901) 527-2583 or visit www.bluesorg.

The Philly POPS will offer free tickets for furloughed government employees during the federal government shutdown. Government employees may present their IDs at the Kimmel Center Box Office to receive one free, complimentary pair of tickets to JAZZED! running January 18, 19 and 20 (One pair per Government-issued employee ID).

On Tuesday, December 4th, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater continued its historic 60th Anniversary season with the world premiere of Ronald K. Brown's The Call, the renowned choreographer's seventh work for the Company which he describes as “a love letter to Ailey.” The New York Times says, “The Call… is something of a conversation between the choreographers, a beauty of a dance that ripples along while highlighting Ailey's formality, his ebullience and how he came to find his choreographic voice.” There are four more chances to see The Call this season: Dec. 8 mat, 9 eve, 20, and 29 mat.

Last night, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's 60th Anniversary holiday season at New York City Center kicked off with a star-studded Opening Night Gala Benefit performance and party led by Artistic Director Robert Battle, with iconic film stars Angela Bassett and Cicely Tyson as honorary chairs. Prudential Financial received the Ailey Legacy Honor for their generous support and commitment to Ailey, especially its education and community programs. The award was presented by Battle and Christopher Taylor, an alumnus of the inaugural AileyCamp Newark (2011) and a current scholarship student at The Ailey School, and accepted by Lata Reddy, Senior Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion and Impact at Prudential Financial.

February 8 will see the release via the venerable Bar/None label of Songs From Robin Hood Lane and From Memphis to New Orleans, two thought-provoking looks at an often overlooked period of Alex Chilton's long, curious career.  He was at the height of his cult star fame in the mid 1980s to mid 1990s when he made these recordings. It is some of his best most honest work oddly neglected for some time but delivered here for enthusiasts and neophytes alike. All these recordings have been out of print for decades.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Center's Principal Dance Company, returns to the theater's stage from November 28 - December 30, 2018 for a milestone season. During the Company's Ailey Ascending 60th Anniversary celebration, Artistic Director Robert Battle leads Ailey's 32 extraordinary dancers during this five-week holiday engagement that will elevate a legacy of excellence in artistry with premieres by some of today's most revered and prolific choreographers, including world premieres by Rennie Harris and Ronald K. Brown; a company premiere by Wayne McGregor; a new production of by Robert Battle; the return of a recent premiere by Jessica Lang, and special performances of rarely seen works by Alvin Ailey himself.

On the evening of October 17th, American Ballet Theatre kicked of its much-anticipated fall season at the David H. Koch Theater. Dedicated to celebrating the power and innovation of female choreography, the night welcomed a bevy of audience goers, from everyday ballet enthusiasts to arts advocates to well-known celebrities. With the mood in the air being electric, sparkling with the promise of anticipation, the program had to deliver with bold excitement.

Thirty years. It's an eternity in rock 'n' roll, and a marathon for the bands who fly its tattered flag. Revisit the class of 1988, and the casualties are piled high: a thousand bands that blew up and burnt out. In this chew-and-spit industry, the Spin Doctors are the last men standing, still making music like their lives depend on it, still riding the bus, still shaking the room. They've never been a band for backslaps and self-congratulation. Even now, plans are afoot for a seventh studio album and another swashbuckling world tour, adding to their tally of almost two thousand shows. But faced with that milestone, even a band of their velocity takes a breath for reflection. “I'd never have guessed,” admits drummer Aaron Comess, “this would have turned into thirty years of making great music together.”

Thirty years. It's an eternity in rock 'n' roll, and a marathon for the bands who fly its tattered flag. Revisit the class of 1988, and the casualties are piled high: a thousand bands that blew up and burnt out. In this chew-and-spit industry, theSpin Doctors are the last men standing, still making music like their lives depend on it, still riding the bus, still shaking the room. They've never been a band for backslaps and self-congratulation. Even now, plans are afoot for a seventh studio album and another swashbuckling world tour, adding to their tally of almost two thousand shows. But faced with that milestone, even a band of their velocity takes a breath for reflection. “I'd never have guessed,” admits drummer Aaron Comess, “this would have turned into thirty years of making great music together.”

Theatre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK), the innovative performance space at Le Lycee Francais de Los Angeles, kicks off its' 18th season in grand style today, September 21, 2018 with Robben Ford Quartet in concert at 7:00pm and 9:30pm.

Sony Music Entertainment and Legacy Recordings, a division of SME, have entered into an historic new agreement with Blackheart Records, the groundbreaking American music label founded in 1980 by rock icon Joan Jett, legendary songwriter/producer Kenny Laguna and Meryl Laguna.  The new SME/Legacy/Blackheart pact covers the worldwide rights to Joan Jett's recorded music catalog, including indelible classics and global hits such as 'I Love Rock 'N' Roll,' 'Crimson and Clover,' 'Bad Reputation,' 'Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)' and more.

Actor Patrick Cassidy, best known for his roles in musical theatre and television, headlines Some Enchanted Evening ~ A Night of Broadway Song & Dance to benefit Inland Pacific Ballet, the professional ballet company based in the Inland Empire. This 2nd annual intimate cabaret evening features song and dance by Inland Pacific Ballet dancers and Academy students, cocktails, hor d'oeuvres, dessert, silent/live auction, and is hosted by IPB Associate Director Jonathan Sharp (The Red Shoes, Carousel, The Rocky Horror Show Live, The Dance of the Vampires, Fiddler on the Roof). Some Enchanted Evening takes place on Saturday, September 22 at 6 p.m., at Inland Pacific Ballet located at 9061 Central Avenue, Montclair, 91763.

BroadwayWorld is sad to report that legendary playwright Neil Simon has died at 91. 

Theatre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK), the innovative performance space at Le Lycee Francais de Los Angeles, kicks off its' 18th season in grand style on Friday, September 21, 2018 with Robben Ford Quartet in concert at 7:00pm and 9:30pm.

Hulu is a leading premium streaming service that offers instant access to live and on demand channels, original series and films, and a premium library of TV and movies to more than 20 million subscribers in the U.S.  Here's what is coming to Hulu for September:

Birdland will kick-off their great week of programming with Count Basie Orchestra, Natalie Douglas Tributes: Ella Fitzgerald, The Renee Manning/Earl McIntyre Septet, Nina Storey at the Birdland Theater, and more!

Lookingglass Theatre Company announces an extension of 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas adapted by David Kersnar and Althos Low, from the books by Jules Verne, directed by Ensemble Member David Kersnar. Due to high ticket demand, additional dates, August 30 - September 9, 2018, have been added. 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas plays at Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. This marks the second and final extension of the production.

MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL, the hit musical celebration of the life and music of the original 1970s "Queen of Disco," Sylvester, returns to New York City August 11th, 2018. 

Lookingglass Theatre Company announces an extension of 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas adapted by David Kersnar and Althos Low, from the books by Jules Verne, directed by Ensemble Member David Kersnar. Due to high ticket demand, additional dates, August 22 - 26, 2018, have been added. 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas plays at Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson.

Long Island's newest theatrical venue The Argyle Theatre (Evan Pappas, Artistic Director) presents the Tony Award winning hit Broadway musical Hairspray with book by Marc O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, music by Marc Shaiman, and lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman at The Argyle Theatre (34 West Main Street, Babylon, Long Island).  Performances are set to begin Thursday, July 12, 2018 for a limited run through Sunday, August 26, 2018. 

The Theatre Group at SBCC will start the season July 11-28, 2018 in the Garvin Theatre with the musical, GREASE.  Book, lyrics and music by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey.

Birdland Jazz Club will present New York, Old Friend-The Songs of Ken Laub, a celebration of the sights, scenes and relationships in New York City, for one night only as part of the "Broadway at Birdland" concert series, on Monday, June 25, 2018 @7pm.

The 72nd Annual Tony Awards are this Sunday June 10th at 8/9c hosted by Josh Groban and Sara Bareilles. It's the biggest award show of the Broadway season and it closes out a long awards season for Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals and plays. We can't help but wonder what chances this year's Best Musical and Best Play nominees have of taking home the ultimate prize...

The Wallis production of BLUES IN THE NIGHT, conceived and directed by Sheldon Epps, starts performances next week in the intimate Lovelace Theater! Artistic Director Paul Crewes snuck into rehearsal to chat with cast members Yvette Cason, Bryce Charles, Chester Gregory, and Paulette Ivory about this exciting new production.