MUSIC IN THE MOONLIGHT: AN INTIMATE EVENING OF JAZZ
featuring Jazz and The American Songbook with SARAH PARTRIDGE
WHEN: Sunday, November 20, at 7 PM
WHERE: Luna Stage, 555 Valley Road, West Orange
TICKETS: $15 in advance, $18 at the door and can be purchased in person, on the phone at 973.395.5551 or www.lunastage.org.
The theater is handicapped accessible and assisted listening devices are available.
Ms. Partridge will be accompanied by pianist Allen Farnham (RIGHT). This inaugural performance entitled Jazz and The American Songbook is the first of three concerts that Luna Stage will be presenting this season as part of the new series. The subsequent performances will be held in February and April, with exact dates and artists to be announced.
Throughout the last half-century, many renowned Jazz artists have embraced American popular standards, and in some cases, the Jazz versions of these songs have become more popular than the original versions. To name just a few, April in Paris will always be linked with Count Basie, Jerome Kern’s All the Things You Are is a favorite of Jazz musicians and was a classic recording of the late alto saxophonist Charlie Parker and Richard Rodgers’ My Favorite Things was written for The Sound of Music, but was also the title track of a classic John Coltrane album.
In a 90-minute concert entitled Jazz and The American Songbook, vocalist Sarah Partridge and pianist Allen Farnham will explore this connection that not only crosses genres of music, but various performance media as well.
For the past 20 years, Luna Stage has gained a reputation as a premiere producer of outstanding, critically acclaimed new and classical work for the stage. In the fall of 2010, after 18 years in Montclair, Luna Stage moved to its current home in West Orange, and became a proud member of The Valley Arts District. Luna Stage believes that all of the arts have the power to bring vitality and cohesion to a community. The company is committed to establishing partnerships and collaborations with artists of multiple disciplines to illuminate the diverse perspectives of society. This commitment led to the connections that make this Jazz series possible.
There is an inherent theatricality in the performance of Jazz, and a large number of outstanding Jazz musicians reside and work in and around The Valley Arts District. So, when Jazz scholar, Sanford Josephson approached Luna Stage about doing a series of Jazz concerts at the Theatre, it seemed a natural fit. Mr. Josephson, the curator of the Music In The Moonlight series at Luna Stage, will make an effort to program artists and/or performances that are thematically linked to the theatrical productions on Luna’s Mainstage Theatre. Ms. Partridge is a resident of South Orange, and future concerts will feature musicians from the communities in and near The Valley Arts District.
