{"id":42100,"date":"2023-11-30T10:01:26","date_gmt":"2023-11-30T15:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=42100"},"modified":"2023-11-30T10:01:27","modified_gmt":"2023-11-30T15:01:27","slug":"on-stage-company-returns-to-local-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=42100","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: ‘Company’ returns to local stage"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

Company<\/p><\/div>\n

There\u2019s a new show in town that\u2019s not really a new show. The original production was in 1970 but this will be the first time this show has played Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

Now through December 10, The Kimmel Cultural Campus and The Shubert Organization is presenting the Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim\u2019s and George Furth\u2019s\u00a0\u201cCompany\u201d at the Forrest Theatre.<\/p>\n

Winner of five 2022 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival, this is the revival\u2019s premiere in Philadelphia as part of the 2023-2024 North American tour starring Britney Coleman as Bobbie. The Kimmel Cultural Campus, as a member of the Independent Presenter\u2019s Network, was a producer of the original Broadway revival production and shares in the Tony Award win.<\/p>\n

The tour follows the critically acclaimed, sold-out engagement in London\u2019s West End and Tony Award-winning run on Broadway. The most honored musical of the 2021-2022 Broadway season is directed by three-time Tony Award winner Marianne Elliott (War Horse,\u00a0The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,\u00a0Angels in America).<\/p>\n

\u201cCompany\u201d\u00a0is a\u00a0musical\u00a0with music and lyrics by\u00a0Stephen Sondheim\u00a0and book by\u00a0George Furth. The original 1970 production was nominated for a record-setting 14\u00a0Tony Awards, winning six.\u00a0\u201cCompany\u201d\u00a0was among the first\u00a0book musicals\u00a0to deal with contemporary dating, marriage, and divorce, and is a notable example of a\u00a0concept musical\u00a0lacking a linear plot.<\/p>\n

In a series of vignettes, \u201cCompany\u2019 follows Bobbie, a single woman, interacting with her married friends, who throw a party for her 35th birthday.<\/p>\n

Furth wrote 11 one-act plays planned for\u00a0Kim Stanley.\u00a0Anthony Perkins\u00a0was interested in directing and gave the material to Sondheim, who asked\u00a0Harold Prince\u00a0for his opinion. Prince said the plays could be a good basis for a musical about New York marriages with a central character to examine those marriages.<\/p>\n

In the early 1990s, Furth and Sondheim revised the\u00a0libretto, cutting and altering dialogue that had become dated and rewriting the end of act one. This synopsis is based on the revised libretto.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompany,\u201d the musical comedy masterpiece about the search for love and cocktails in New York, is turned on its head in Elliott\u2019s revelatory staging, in which musical theatre\u2019s most iconic bachelor is now a bachelorette.<\/p>\n

At Bobbie\u2019s 35th birthday party, all her friends are wondering why isn\u2019t she married? Why can\u2019t she find the right man? And why can\u2019t she settle down and have a family? As Bobbie searches for answers, she discovers why being single, being married, and being alive in the 21st-century could drive a person crazy.<\/p>\n

This smart musical comedy, given a game-changing makeover for a modern-day Manhattan, features some of Sondheim\u2019s best loved songs, including \u201cCompany,\u201d \u201cYou Could Drive a Person Crazy,\u201d \u201cThe Ladies Who Lunch,\u201d \u201cSide by Side,\u201d and the iconic \u201cBeing Alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sondheim and Elliott collaborated to update\u00a0\u201cCompany,\u201d bringing Bobbie\u2019s array of friends and lovers into the 21st century.<\/p>\n

Paul is waiting patiently for his fianc\u00e9e Jamie to get over his frantic wedding day jitters.\u00a0Sarah and Harry try jujitsu to keep their marriage alive.\u00a0Joanne is on her third husband with younger man, Larry.\u00a0Peter and Susan seem to have the perfect marriage, until perfection proves impossible.<\/p>\n

Jenny and her square husband David can\u2019t understand Bobbie\u2019s perpetually single status and are not shy about telling her.\u00a0All while Bobbie juggles three men — sexy flight attendant Andy; small-town boy Theo trying to find his way in the big city; and P.J., the native New Yorker who is more in love with his hometown than Bobbie.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompany\u201d\u00a0began preview performances on Broadway on March 2, 2020, and, following the shutdown, resumed previews on November 15, 2021. The production was in previews when on November 26, 2021, Broadway suffered the devastating loss of the titan of the American musical, composer Stephen Sondheim.<\/p>\n

This production of\u00a0Company\u00a0was the last Broadway production of his work that he saw to fruition before his passing at the age of 91 on November 26, 2021. \u201cCompany\u201d\u00a0played its final performance on Broadway on July 31, 2022, having played 300 performances.<\/p>\n

The National Tour opened on October 8, 2023, at the\u00a0Proctor’s Theatre\u00a0in\u00a0Schenectady, New York\u00a0and is slated to close on August 18, 2024 at the\u00a0Pantages Theatre\u00a0in\u00a0Los Angeles, California.<\/p>\n

The tour is led by Britney Coleman, who understudied Bobbie in the 2021 revival. Other key roles are Judy McLane as Joanne, Will Blum as David, James Earl Jones II as Harry and Javier Ignacio as Peter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw a couple revivals of \u2018Company\u2019 and I enjoy this revival very much,\u201d said Judy McLane, during a recent phone interview. \u201cIt\u2019s an old show. You\u2019ve all heard the songs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis show is a younger cast \u2013 a little crisper, a little fresher. The set is equivalent to Broadway.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Company\u2019 is a hard show to have a through line. A lot of the show takes place in Bobbie\u2019s mind. It\u2019s not a linear play.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy scene is in a nightclub \u2013 where Joanne is not comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joanne and Larry take Bobbie out to a nightclub, where Larry dances, and Joanne and Bobbie sit watching, getting thoroughly drunk. She blames Bobbie for always being an outsider, only watching life rather than living it, and also persists in berating Larry.<\/p>\n

She raises her glass in a mocking toast, passing judgment on various types of rich, middle-aged women wasting their lives away with mostly meaningless activities. Her harshest criticism is reserved for those, like herself, who \u201cjust watch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy character is very New York City snobbish,\u201d said McLane, who studied musical theater at Ithaca College. \u201cJoanne is fun \u2013 and dangerous.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen she is vulnerable, she attacks first. You don\u2019t want to be her target.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show almost seems like it could be a television sitcom.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt comes down to relationships,\u201d said McLane.\u00a0 \u201cIt looks at different kinds of couples. It\u2019s very relatable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for \u201cCompany\u201d \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/qd3ztClLQr0<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompany” will run now through December 10 at the Forrest Theater.<\/p>\n

Ticket prices start at $58.<\/p>\n

While \u201cCompany\u201d is very non-linear, there is another show that just opened locally that is nothing but linear.<\/p>\n

\"\"The Candlelight Theatre (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware,\u00a0302- 475-2313, www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org<\/a>) has just begun the run of its final show in 2023 \u2013 Christmastime favorite and iconic movie, \u201cIt\u2019s a Wonderful Life.\u201d The show is running now through December 23.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a Wonderful Life\u201d\u00a0is a 1946 American Christmas<\/a>\u00a0supernatural drama film<\/a>\u00a0produced and directed by\u00a0Frank Capra. It is based on the short story and booklet\u00a0The Greatest Gift\u00a0self-published by\u00a0Philip Van Doren Stern\u00a0in 1943, which itself is loosely based on the 1843\u00a0Charles Dickens\u00a0novella, \u201cA Christmas Carol.\u201d<\/p>\n

The film stars\u00a0James Stewart\u00a0as\u00a0George Bailey, a man who has given up his personal dreams in order to help others in his community and whose thoughts of suicide on Christmas Eve bring about the intervention of his\u00a0guardian angel,\u00a0Clarence Odbody. Clarence shows George all the lives he touched and what the world would be like if he did not exist.<\/p>\n

Today,\u00a0\u201cIt’s a Wonderful Life\u201d\u00a0is considered to be one of the\u00a0greatest films of all time\u00a0and among the best Christmas films.\u00a0It was nominated for five\u00a0Academy Awards, including\u00a0Best Picture, and has been recognized by the\u00a0American Film Institute\u00a0as one of the\u00a0100 best American films ever made.\u00a0It was No. 11 on the\u00a0American Film Institute’s\u00a01998 greatest movie list, No. 20 on its 2007 greatest movie list<\/a>, and No. 1 on its list<\/a>\u00a0of the most inspirational American films of all time.<\/p>\n

Capra revealed that it was his favorite among the films he directed and that he screened it for his family every Christmas season. It was one of Stewart’s favorite films.<\/p>\n

In 1990,\u00a0It’s a Wonderful Life\u00a0was selected for preservation in the United States\u00a0National Film Registry\u00a0by the\u00a0Library of Congress\u00a0for being deemed as \u201cculturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.\u201d<\/p>\n

The story starts on\u00a0Christmas Eve\u00a01945 in\u00a0Bedford Falls,\u00a0New York,\u00a0with George Bailey\u00a0contemplating\u00a0suicide. The\u00a0prayers\u00a0of his family and friends reach\u00a0Heaven, where\u00a0guardian angel\u00a0second class\u00a0Clarence Odbody\u00a0is assigned to save George in order to earn his wings.<\/p>\n

Clarence is shown flashbacks of George’s life. He watches 12-year-old George rescue his younger brother Harry from drowning, leaving George\u00a0deaf\u00a0in his left ear. George later prevents the\u00a0pharmacist, Mr. Gower, from accidentally poisoning a customer’s prescription.<\/p>\n

In 1928, George plans a world tour before college. He is reintroduced to\u00a0Mary Hatch, who has been enamored with him since childhood. When his father dies suddenly, George postpones his travel to settle the family business, Bailey Brothers\u00a0Building and Loan.<\/p>\n

Avaricious board member\u00a0Henry Potter, who controls most of the town, seeks to dissolve it, but the board votes to keep the Building and Loan open if George runs it. George acquiesces and works alongside his uncle Billy, giving his tuition savings to Harry with the understanding that Harry will run the business when he graduates.<\/p>\n

Harry returns from college, married and with a job offer from his father-in-law, and George resigns himself to running the Building and Loan. George and Mary rekindle their relationship and wed. They witness a\u00a0run on the bank\u00a0and use their\u00a0honeymoon\u00a0savings to keep the Building and Loan solvent.<\/p>\n

Under George, the company establishes Bailey Park, a housing development surpassing Potter’s overpriced\u00a0slums. Potter entices George with a $20,000\/year job but realizing that Potter’s true intention is to close the Building and Loan, George rebuffs him.<\/p>\n

On Christmas Eve 1945, the town prepares a hero’s welcome for Harry, who, as a U.S. Navy<\/a>\u00a0fighter pilot, was awarded the\u00a0Medal of Honor\u00a0for preventing a\u00a0kamikaze\u00a0attack on a troop transport. Billy goes to Potter’s bank to deposit $8,000 of the Building and Loan’s money. He taunts Potter with a newspaper headline about Harry, then absentmindedly wraps the cash in Potter’s newspaper. Potter finds and keeps the money, while Billy cannot recall how he misplaced it.<\/p>\n

With a bank examiner reviewing the company’s records, George realizes scandal and criminal charges will follow. Fruitlessly retracing Billy’s steps, George berates him and takes out his frustration on Mary and their children. George appeals to Potter for a loan, offering his\u00a0life insurance\u00a0policy as collateral. Potter scoffs that George is worth more dead than alive, refuses to help, and phones the police.<\/p>\n

George flees Potter’s office, gets drunk at a bar, and prays for help. Contemplating suicide, he goes to a nearby bridge. However, before George can jump, Clarence dives into the freezing river, and George rescues him. When George wishes he had never been born, Clarence shows George a timeline in which he never existed.<\/p>\n

Bedford Falls is now Pottersville, an unsavory town occupied by sleazy entertainment venues, crime, and callous people. Mr. Gower was imprisoned for\u00a0manslaughter\u00a0because George was not there to stop him from poisoning the customer. George’s mother does not know him.<\/p>\n

Uncle Billy was\u00a0institutionalized\u00a0after the Building and Loan failed. Bailey Park is a cemetery<\/a>, where George discovers Harry’s grave<\/a>. Without George, Harry drowned as a child, and without Harry to save them, the troops aboard the transport ship were killed. George finds Mary, now a spinster<\/a>, and when he grabs her and claims to be her husband, she screams and runs.<\/p>\n

George flees back to the bridge and begs Clarence for his life back. The original reality is restored, and a grateful George rushes home to await his arrest. Meanwhile, Mary and Billy have rallied the townspeople, who come into the Bailey home and donate more than enough to cover the missing money.<\/p>\n

Harry arrives and toasts<\/a>\u00a0George as \u201cthe richest man in town.\u201d Among the donations, George finds a copy of\u00a0\u201cThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer,\u201d a gift from Clarence and inscribed, \u201cRemember, no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings!\u201d<\/p>\n

When a bell on the\u00a0Christmas tree\u00a0rings, George\u2019s youngest daughter, Zuzu, explains that \u201cevery time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.\u201d George looks upward smiling and says, \u201cAtta boy, Clarence!\u201d<\/p>\n

The production at the Candlelight features Jared Calhoun as George Bailey, Molly Hofstaedter as Mary Hatch and Paul Weagraff as Clarence Odbody.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I like about George is that he\u2019s a very human character,\u201d said Calhoun, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from his home in Haddonfield, New Jersey.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wants to do good \u2013 to do the right thing even at a great personal sacrifice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Calhoun, whose main day job is as a standardized patient at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, is now in his 13th production at the Candlelight Theater.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0health care, a\u00a0standardized patient is an individual trained to act as a real\u00a0patient\u00a0in order to simulate a set of symptoms or problems. Simulated patients have been successfully utilized for\u00a0education, evaluation of health care professionals, as well as\u00a0basic,\u00a0applied, and\u00a0translational\u00a0medical research.<\/p>\n

Some of his previous roles at the theater in Arden have been Max Detweiler in \u201cThe Sound of Music,\u201d Sam Carmichael in \u201cMamma Mia!,\u201d Max in\u00a0 \u201cLend Me a Tenor,\u201d and Luther Billis in \u201cSouth Pacific,\u201d for which he won a prestigious and coveted Barney Award.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first role was Jeff Douglas in \u2018Brigadoon\u2019 back in 2018,\u201d said Calhoun, a native of Fredericksburg, Virginia, who earned a B.A. in acting at Liberty University.<\/p>\n

\u201cGeorge Bailey is my favorite role. Candlelight does mostly musicals and a few dramas each season. \u2018It\u2019s a Wonderful Life\u2019 is more a contemporary drama. I really had to shift my mindset about how I approached this role. It\u2019s just a genuine human emotion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Playing George Bailey includes having to deal with an iconic role immortalized by the late, great Jimmy Stewart.<\/p>\n

\u201cJimmy Stewart \u2013 those are very big shoes to fill,\u201d said Calhoun. \u201cNobody can be Jimmy Stewart. Max (director Max Redman) said \u2013 we don\u2019t want Jimmy Stewart. We want George Bailey not Jimmy Stewart.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere I get closest to him is having a speech pattern which is very similar to Jimmy Stewart \u2013 for example, elongated vowels. When I find their voice, it helps me get in character. This time, it helped me develop the character more.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith \u2018It\u2019s a Wonderful Life,\u2019 the biggest challenges are two things., The first is the emotional depth you have to go to. It\u2019s a Christmas movie but it starts with a man on a bridge contemplating suicide. For the second, early on Max said he was catching me acting.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is just the genuine story of a man and what he is going through. We wanted to show the genuine person.\u201d<\/p>\n

The story of George Bailey is a story familiar to many, many people.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe show is public domain, so it\u2019s been performed a lot \u2013 everywhere. This show is our own production. A lot of lined do come directly from the movie. And some moments have to be portrayed in a different way. It is ultimately a period piece.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a Wonderful Life\u201d is running now through December 23 at the Candlelight Theater with shows on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees.<\/p>\n

Tickets, which include a buffet meal, beverages, dessert, and free parking, are $71.50 for adults and $33 for children.<\/p>\n

Popa\u00a0Chubby\u00a0made his Gulf Coast Records label debut with a new album, \u201cLive at G. Bluey\u2019s Juke Joint NYC,\u201d which came out in\u00a0September.<\/p>\n

Popa Chubby, one of America\u2019s modern-day blues-rock\/blues masters, will make another return visit to the area when he headlines a show at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com<\/a>) on November 30.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just put out a double live album,\u201d said Popa Chubby, during a phone interview last week from a tour stop in Bradenton, Florida.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt came out in September. We\u2019ve been touring the double album ever since.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been in the Billboard Top 10 for the last six weeks. It really is a good record \u2013 one of the best I\u2019ve done. There\u2019s two hours and 20 minutes of music and all were songs requested by fans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Popa Chubby\u2019s most recent previous albums were \u201cPrime Cuts: The Very Best of the Beast from the East,\u201d \u201cIt’s a Mighty Hard Road,\u201d \u201cTinfoil Hat,\u201d and \u201cEmotional Gangster.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI toured \u2018Emotional Gangster\u2019 for a year and got great responses,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cIt was suggested to me to do a \u2018Best of\u2019 so I decided to play a live \u2018best of\u2019 to a studio audience.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is something different \u2013 something not done before. I don\u2019t think that anyone did a \u2018Best of\u2019 fan requested.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had two nights of playing for a studio audience. It wasn\u2019t recorded at a theater or a club. It was two nights live at G. Bluey\u2019s Juke Joint.\u201d<\/p>\n

GB\u2019s Juke Joint is a full-service recording studio and event space in Long Island City, Queens located by the East River just across midtown Manhattan. It features analog and digital capabilities, a vast collection of instruments, microphones, and vintage and modern gear.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an invitation only event \u2013 friends and family,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cI played songs from all my albums. Luckily, I have a really good band and it all came together pretty easily.\u201d<\/p>\n

Popa Chubby\u2019s stellar \u201cBeast Band\u201d features Mike Merritt on bass (Conan O\u2019Brien, Billy Gibbons); Mike Dimeo on keyboards (Johnny Winter, Tommy James); and Stefano Giudici on drums.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was remarkable,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cWe had two nights of shows to pick from when putting the album together. Everything was perfect. The band was an important part.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe shows were in November in Long Island City at an amazing sound stage. We also shot a five-camera video for our YouTube website. I\u2019m just giving the videos away.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2019, the veteran rocker just released another \u2018Best of\u2019 album — \u201cPrime Cuts \u2013 The Very Best of the Beast from the East.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a career spanning more than 30 years, Popa Chubby delivered a hand-picked anthology of 15 tracks from his prolific and ever-expanding catalogue. \u201cPrime Cuts\u201d reflects Popa\u2019s choice of the best of his best \u2014 tracks that keep the Chubby legacy fresh and the fans happy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went all the way back and picked the best stuff from my last 38 records,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cThere were two criteria. First, I had to really like the song. Second, it had to be music the fans request.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of it was easy. A a lot came down to the fans \u2013 \u2018Sweet Goddess of Love and Beer,\u2019 \u2018Angel on My Shoulder,\u2019 \u2018Light of Day\u2019 \u2013 give the people what they want.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were all original album tracks, but some were alternate mixes. I did a lot of re-mastering. There were also two new tracks \u2013 and a Christmas song. It took a couple months to put it all together. It just came out at the end of November.\u201d<\/p>\n

Popa Chubby\u2019s two prior studio albums were \u201cThe Catfish\u201d in 2016 and \u201cTwo Dogs\u201d in 2017.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never stop recording,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cI recorded \u2018Two Dogs\u2019 right after I finished making \u2018The Catfish.\u2019 I\u2019m working on my next album now. I\u2019m starting to come up with new ideas. I want to do something original.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a studio in my home. For D.I.Y. stuff, I use ProTools. My studio is filled with vintage stuff \u2013 RCA mics, old compressors and vintage guitars and drums.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a background in recording. I worked as an engineer, and I started out working with tape. It\u2019s all digital now \u2014 but I have an analog way of getting in and an analog way of getting out.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was working with Tom Dowd, a legendary engineer, he was so happy to go to digital instead of tape. He explained that each time the tape goes over the (recording) head, it loses particles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding time to get in the studio is a luxury for Popa Chubby.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m never home,\u201d said Popa Chubby. \u201cIt seems that I\u2019m always touring a lot. The progression of my career has been slow and steady. I like to give people real music. The best music for me comes from not making music. It comes from me jamming with myself.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn this tour, we\u2019re playing the new double record in its entirety \u2013 and there are some surprises. From start-to-finish, it\u2019s over two hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Popa Chubby — https:\/\/youtu.be\/axnycInQKGo<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Sellersville will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $25 and $40.<\/p>\n

Other upcoming shows at the Sellersville Theater are Joan Osborne on December 1, Rachel Feinstein on December 2, Anthony Nunziata on December 3, Jared James on December 5 and Pokey LaFarge on December 6.<\/p>\n

Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985, www.jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>) will present a very special event \u2013 the Grand Opening of The Littler Gallery<\/p>\n

Doors for Gallery Opening Soiree\u00a0and Happy Hour discounts\u00a0on food and drink open at 6 p.m.,\u00a0followed by Guest Vocalist Khadijah Renee\u00a0at 7 p.m., and the Open-Mic Jazz Jam\u00a0with the Dave Reiter Trio at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Music inspires in many ways, primarily through sound — but also visually through the medium of the visual arts.<\/p>\n

In order to honor the fullness of music’s impact on our lives, Jamey\u2019s has added gallery space at its venue to display the artistic creations of those who devote themselves to music through painting and photography.<\/p>\n

The exhibits not only extend the palette of the artists, who in most cases are also musicians, but allow guests at musical events to experience a fuller sensory impression of the all-encompassing beauty inspired by music during normal hours from Thursdays through Sundays.<\/p>\n

The Little Gallery mounts rolling monthly non-exclusive exhibitions of anywhere from six to 40 works and hosts an opening night for the artist at the earliest Thursday\u00a0Jazz At Jamey’s\u00a0night featuring live jazz by the Dave Reiter Trio and guest musicians from 8-10 p.m. There is no charge for admission.<\/p>\n

The kitchen is open with a full dinner menu selection, and the Conshohocken Brewing Co bar is open as well, with happy hour food and drink discounts from 6-7 p.m.<\/p>\n

The first exhibitor will be David Reiter, whose photography show, \u201cClose Up — A Musician\u2019s Perspective,\u201d will run for the month of December, with an opening soiree on November 30 at the Thursday night Jazz At Jamey’s.<\/p>\n

For more than 50 years, Reiter has been capturing the spirit of life in images taken around the world. He\u2019s been a street photographer since his high school years, making artful and often ironic images that tell stories about his subjects. He also makes the occasional image that\u2019s totally devoid of meaning but is just plain fun to view.<\/p>\n

Over many years of processing film and printing his work in various darkened rooms, he progressed through better equipment and facilities until digital imaging became good enough to adopt. He\u2019s been exclusively digital since 2003, an easy adoption once he accepted that there\u2019s as much work in digital imaging as there is in emulsion-based photography.<\/p>\n

Reiter is a past winner of Philly Photo Night (a juried competition run by the Photographic Society of Philadelphia in years past) and has exhibited at shops and galleries around the Delaware Valley for many years.<\/p>\n

Khadijah\u00a0\u201cRenee\u201d is a jazz songstress in the vein of the Great Ladies of Jazz. Her resonant tones remind you of the ladies who paved their way through the male dominated syncopated instrumental ingenious sounds of Be-Bop and Classical Jazz from as early as the 1950\u2032s. If you close your eyes while listening to her, you may hear reminiscent echoes of Sarah, Ella, Billie, Nancy, Dinah and Gloria.
\nKhadijah\u00a0is a contralto whose range is deep and sweet at the same time. She has been performing jazz since the late 80\u2032s in and around the Tri-State area. Khadijah\u00a0is always accompanied by the best musicians the area has to offer. She has been recorded live at the East Coast Jazz Festival now called the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival in Maryland and heard on WRTI 90.1 Jazz Radio.
\nBorn and raised in Chester, Renee currently lives and works in Philadelphia, where the jazz audiences there accepted and adopted her as their own. A former member of the Delaware Council of Jazz Advocates, she recently graced the stage of their tribute to Clifford Brown at the Delaware School of Music with a rendition of Sassy\u2019s \u201cSeptember Song.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Khadijah\u00a0Renee — https:\/\/youtu.be\/c74l3jLvyNQ<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On December 2, the headline act will be Deni Bonet.<\/p>\n

A few days ago, Bonet was sitting in the Suwarnabumi Airport Thailand in Bangkok, Thailand, waiting for flights to bring her back home to New York City.<\/p>\n

Now back in the states after two weeks in Thailand and Cambodia, Bonet has no time to be weary \u2013 no time to give in to jet lag.<\/p>\n

Bonet has concerts scheduled for Horn’s Hook Tavern in Manhattan on Friday night, Jamey’s House of Music on Saturday night, and the New City NY Public Library on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Bonet, who played Jamey\u2019s earlier this year, is making a return visit just before the holidays \u2013 and she\u2019s bringing along a new holiday song.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t Wait To See You On Christmas\u201d is the first writing collaboration between Americana duo, Deni Bonet and Chris Flynn. Inspired by an improvisation that was captured by a fan at a gig, they’ve written a catchy, upbeat Christmas song that taps into the energy of the title track of the movie, \u201cThat Thing You Do!”<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the link to the holiday single — https:\/\/linktr.ee\/denibonet<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bonet takes the violin to places most musicians don\u2019t even dream about \u2013 and gladly takes listeners along for the ride.<\/p>\n

Bonet will be taking the audience at Jamey\u2019s along for the ride \u2013 a thrilling ride that spans musical genres and gets audience members out of their seats.<\/p>\n

Bonet can rock a violin like nobody\u2019s business and writes memorable songs that make you want to listen again and again. For years, Bonet has been honing her craft as a violinist, singer, songwriter and performer. Her style\u00a0ranges from pop to roots rock to new folk.<\/p>\n

On her latest album,\u00a0\u201cBright Shiny Objects,\u201d she delivers ultra-high voltage, genre-defying brilliance,\u00a0with pure classical training and precision playing.<\/p>\n

\u201cBright Shiny Objects\u201d was recorded in New York City with the cream of New York musicians, including Liberty DeVitto (Billy Joel’s drummer of 30 years), Graham Maby (Joe Jackson), Shawn Pelton (SNL, Rod Stewart), Will Lee (Letterman, Mick Jagger), Steve Holley (Paul McCartney), Ben Butler (Chris Botti) and Matt Beck (Matchbox 20). This is Bonet\u2019s first all-instrumental album and it shows off her skills as a virtuoso violin player, composer and arranger.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had a very interesting career,\u201d said Bonet, during a phone interview Wednesday evening from her home in New York City.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in northern Virginia \u2013 Woodbridge \u2013 and got a full ride to West Virginia University.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight out of school, I got on Mountain Stage. I was part of the original cast. A cool thing \u2013 I went back recently as a full guest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bonet first came to widespread attention as a founding member of National Public Radio\u2019s premier music show,\u00a0Mountain Stage, where she built a following as a member of the broadcast\u2019s house band along with singing and playing in her own right and backing up artists as diverse as the Indigo Girls, Richard Thompson and Allen Toussaint.<\/p>\n

In the 90s, Bonet relocated to London, where she worked with alternative rock legend, Robyn Hitchcock, including a series of concerts as a duo that won praise from\u00a0USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post\u00a0and\u00a0The Boston Globe. She played on Hitchcock\u2019s album\u00a0\u201cMoss Elixir,\u201d\u00a0and even appeared in the Jonathan Demme concert film,\u00a0\u201cStorefront Hitchcock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eventually, Bonet decided it was time to go solo.<\/p>\n

At Jamey\u2019s, Bonet will be performing with her musical partner \u2013 guitarist Chris Flynn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do play with a band occasionally,\u201d said Bonet. \u201cSince the plague hit, I go out mostly with Chris. It\u2019s a duo. He\u2019s not a side guy. We have a chemistry.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hooked up a few years back. I was asked to plat the New York Irish Rock Review show at City Winery. I was in the house band and Chris was the musical director. The second year I did it, we hung out a little more and I asked him to do a gig with me. From then on, we started to work together. We\u2019ve played Carnegie Hall four times.\u201d<\/p>\n

After moving to New York, Bonet released an initial EP (titled, simply,\u00a0\u201cEP\u201d) and then her full-length debut,\u00a0\u201cBigger Is Always Better.\u201d The disc, which featured guest appearances from Hitchcock and The Soft Boys\u2019 Kimberly Rew (writer of Katrina and the Waves\u2019 classic hit\u00a0\u201cWalking On Sunshine\u201d), garnered rave reviews.<\/p>\n

Bonet has hosted her own cable TV show,\u00a0\u201cDuets With Deni,\u201d\u00a0a combination of music and chat featuring a series of all-star guests, which was the subject of a rave\u00a0Billboard\u00a0feature. She has performed highly regarded showcases at CMJ and SXSW, and took her act on the road with Lilith Fair.<\/p>\n

And she\u2019s remained one of the most in-demand session players and sidewomen around, adding her violin to albums by an impressive variety of artists \u2014 from the introspective Sarah McLachlan to techno-metal band Gravity Kills \u2014 and making TV appearances on\u00a0The Today Show, SNL\u00a0and\u00a0Late Night With Conan O\u2019Brien.<\/p>\n

As she established herself as a solo act, Bonet impressed artists like Patti Smith, Lisa Loeb, Gin Blossoms, Cracker, Midnight Oil, The Saw Doctors, Fairport Convention, Marshall Crenshaw and Kansas, all of whom have invited her to open their shows. She spent several years touring the globe as the violinist in Cyndi Lauper\u2019s band.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spent a couple years touring with Cyndi and that was a lot of fun,\u201d said Bonet.<\/p>\n

Bonet, a true globetrotter, also had a fun time in Zanzibar.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to Africa \u2013 to Tanzania \u2013 on safari,\u201d said Bonet. \u201cIt was on my bucket list. I was in Zanzibar for a week.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the next-to-last day, I met some musicians at a traditional dinner. I jammed with these musicians, gave a workshop to teachers, and performed a mini concert.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey asked me to come back and do a residency. I got a nice size grant and went back to Stone Town for a month. I spent three-and-a-half weeks teaching rock-and-roll, songwriting and violin.\u201d<\/p>\n

In January 2020, Bonet returned to Zanzibar to record original music with local Tanzanian band Stone Town Rockerz which will appear on her new album, to be released later this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted them on my new album,\u201d said Bonet. \u201cThe track we did together is called, \u201cAll Around the World Music Is Love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I started making the new album, I called in favors. Some of the musicians who played on the album were Will Lee, Andy York, Leland Sklar, Shawn Pelton and most of the Spin Doctors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bonet plays the violin like no other. Although classically trained, Bonet\u00a0quit the classical world because she hated having to wear black and sit still.<\/p>\n

\u201cI approach it more like a guitar than a violin,\u201d said Bonet.<\/p>\n

Bonet is also known for her signature bright blue violin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was originally given the guitar from the company \u2014 Barcus-Berry \u2013 when I was touring with Cyndi,\u201d said Bonet. \u201cThey gave me violins in every color. Blue is the one that sounds the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

Audience members at Jamey\u2019s will be seeing blue but not feeling blue when Bonet rips into her intense solos.<\/p>\n

\u2018We tend to do a mix of songs with vocals and instrumentals,\u201d said Bonet. \u201cOur most recent album, \u2018Bright Shiny Objects,\u2019 is our first all-instrumental album \u2013 sand it rocks. Chris and I both sing and we\u2019ll be doing songs from all my albums.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen people leave our shows, they feel really good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Deni Bonet \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/7vHjx4Lp5Pw<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Jamey\u2019s on December 2 will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.<\/p>\n

On December 1, the show at Jamey\u2019s will feature Stew Cutler and Friends with special guest Jesse Loewy.<\/p>\n

Born and raised in The Bronx, Cutler\u00a0picked up the guitar at an early age, and proceeded to teach himself. By the age of 19, he had landed his first gig with Blues legend Z.Z. Hill. Fast forward four decades, this NYC musician has had an extensive recording career, with seven albums to his name. Additionally, he has recorded and\/or performed with some of the world\u2019s greatest musicians including Wilson Pickett, Eddie Floyd, David Sanborn, Mike Stern, and Percy Sledge.<\/p>\n

Accompanying him on organ will be Judd Nielsen, a native of New York, and current resident of Philadelphia. Nielsen has had an extensive musical career spanning for many years, which include working with world class musicians including Trombone Shorty, Walter Wolfman Washington, and Lee Fields, among many others.<\/p>\n

Chicago born musician, Bill McClellan, is a current resident of Brooklyn, and will be playing drums. His musical career includes working with Casandra Wilson, Michael Hill\u2019s Blues Mob, Oliver Lake, and Henry Threadgill.<\/p>\n

Special guest guitarist\/vocalist Jesse Loewy will also be joining them for the evening. Loewy has worked with Marcus Miller, David Bromberg, Al Chez (former trumpet player for the Late Show with David Letterman), and Lonnie Shields.<\/p>\n

Their musical repertoire for the evening will consist of a variety of original material derived from Cutler\u2019s recording projects, along with some covers.<\/p>\n

Video link for Stew Cutler — https:\/\/youtu.be\/iQIHCYwQZFg<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Jamey\u2019s on December 1 will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door.<\/p>\n

On November 11, Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http:\/\/www.kennettflash.org<\/a>) will have Antje Duvekot with special guest Kathy Moser on November 30 and A Not So Silent Night on December 2.<\/p>\n

Elkton Music Hall (107 North Street, Elkton, Md., www.elktonmusichall.com<\/a>) will present Steve Forbert on December 1, Kendra Morris on December 2 and Jon Spencer on December 4.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times There\u2019s a new show in town that\u2019s not really a new show. The original production was in 1970 but this will be the first time this show has played Philadelphia. Now through December 10, The Kimmel Cultural Campus and The Shubert Organization is presenting the Broadway revival of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7529],"tags":[14496,6518,14497],"class_list":["post-42100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-company","tag-featured","tag-its-a-wonderful-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42100"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42101,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42100\/revisions\/42101"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/42098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}