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Showing posts with label JAMAICA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label JAMAICA. Show all posts

Thursday, November 8, 2018

INCOMING: The Skatalites and More at Chicago's Beat Kitchen Friday, November 9th, 2018

Chi,IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:
SKA, ROCKSTEADY, REGGAE - IT ALL BEGAN WITH
THE SKA-TALITES


This Friday I'll be ChiILin' at Chi, IL's Beat Kitchen, covering The Skatalites for ChiIL Live Shows. Their Chicago show is officially sold out, so check back soon for our recap.


ABOUT THE SKA-TALITES
CURRENT MEMBERS


The Skatalites are Jamaica's premier ska band since 1964 who backed artists like Bob Marley, Toots and The Maytals, Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe and most of the singers of the day. Their infectious brand of bluesy,jazzy ska spread like wildfire around the island and spawned the entire genres of ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub, two-tone, and 3rd wave ska. The tiny island of Jamaica has probably had more effect on music globally than any other country or place in the world, and The Skatalites were the pioneers of the music that originally caused this. 

The original lineup lasted only 14 months but recorded thousands of tunes, some of which are still being discovered in the archives today. Although the group broke up in 1965, the members remained active in the evolution of Jamaican popular music as it increased in popularity. After hearing about the resurgence of interest in their music they reunited in 1983 to perform at Jamaica's famed Sunsplash festival. Subsequently in 1986 they migrated to the USA and began performing and touring all over the world as they continue to do now after 52 years in the music business. 

Despite changes in personnel over the years, the band has continued to stay viable in the market, recording and performing at some of the world's largest festivals and has been nominated twice for The Grammys. Their most recent recording "Platinum Ska" features some tracks with Lloyd Knibb , the original drummer who passed away in 2011 and was widely regarded as the creator of the ska beat as well as the "onedrop" rhythm that is the foundation of most reggae music. Also on some tracks is original alto sax man Lester Sterling who is still active but no longer touring regularly with the band. Original vocalist Doreen Shaffer contributes a vocal track on this cd and continues leading the band on it's path as it continues it's great legacy bringing joy to fans, old and new, all over the world. 





LEGENDARY MEMBERS



Click the image to view legendary members




Forever indebted to the inspiration and talent of: Roland Alphonso, Lloyd Brevett, Tony DaCosta, Rupert Dillon , Don Drummond, Joseph " Lord Tanamo" Gordon, Jerome "Jah Jerry" Haynes, Lloyd Knibb, Tommy McCook, Donat Roy "Jackie" Mittoo, John " Dizzy Johnny" Moore, Jackie Opel, Doreen Shaffer, Lester Sterling.

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

OPENING: JAMAICA, FAREWELL at The Royal George Theatre #TheatreChicago

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

From the Director of the Smash Hit Comedy “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” Joel Zwick, comes a new play
JAMAICA, FAREWELL
Presented by Hershey Felder
Performances Begin Tuesday, Sept. 8 at The Royal George Theatre



Performances of JAMAICA, FAREWELL begin Tuesday, September 8 at 7:30 p.m. and continue as follows: Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m., Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. All tickets are $50. Tickets are on sale at The Royal George Theatre and may be purchased by calling 312.988.9000. Box office hours are 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com 

Continuing to bring exciting stories and new productions to Chicago audiences, ‘Hershey Felder Presents’ (George Gershwin Alone, Maestro Bernstein, The Pianist of Willesden Lane, Louis and Keely ‘Live’ at the Sahara) now brings a newly designed production of the award-winning and internationally acclaimed play JAMAICA, FAREWELL, written and performed by Debra Ehrhardt and directed by Joel Zwick (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), to Chicago’s Royal George Theatre. Based on her true life story, writer-performer Ehrhardt’s JAMAICA, FAREWELL chronicles her escape from revolution-torn Jamaica in the 1970’s to fulfill her lifelong dream of coming to America. Performances begin at Chicago’s Royal George Theatre, 1641 North Halsted, 60614, on Tuesday, September 8, and continue through Sunday, October 11.    Tickets are $50 each for all performances.

The New York Times calls JAMAICA, FAREWELL “One loopy, increasingly funny story.” The production sold out in a critically acclaimed production at Chicago’s Chopin Theater in May, 2012. The Chicago Tribune’s Chris Jones raved “A very funny and fast-paced piece – ninety highly enjoyable minutes,” and the Chicago Sun-Times’ Hedy Weiss called Ehrhardt “A storyteller who can fill up empty space with the sheer power of her exuberant storytelling.”

When Debra Ehrhardt was an eighteen-year-old secretary in Kingston, Jamaica, she bumped into a handsome CIA agent over a bowl of oxtail soup on her lunch break. During the turbulent 70s of the Manley Era she saw her chance – a pinhole of opportunity that she could squeeze through with the help of this love-struck American, to potentially make it to America. She began a dangerous adventure that only the single-minded passion of a teenage girl would chance, blurring the lines between bravery and foolishness as she became more desperate: agreeing to smuggle a million US dollars in cash to a mysterious contact somewhere in Miami, with the agent unknowingly becoming her accomplice.

See what happens when the audacity of youth comes smack up against the impossibility of escaping from the war-torn class struggle that seized Jamaica in the 1970s. With all the surprise and ingenuity of the best make-believe tales, the true story of Debra Ehrhardt's dangerous journey from the island of her youth to the country of her dreams will enthrall you, charm you, and ultimately leave you celebrating at the triumphant conclusion of her autobiographical one-woman show.

JAMAICA, FAREWELL is Kingston-born Debra Ehrhardt’s third one-woman show. Previous productions include the award-winning Mango Mango, and Invisible Chairs, which was produced by David Strasberg at the Marilyn Monroe Theatre in West Hollywood and subsequently optioned as a situation comedy by Fox. Ehrhardt was also a 2007 NYC Fringe festival award-winner and received a 2007 Proclamation from the City of New York for JAMAICA, FAREWELL for her outstanding contribution to the Jamaican community. JAMAICA, FAREWELL was optioned by Rita Wilson-Hanks who produced the play with Garry Marshall at the Falcon Theatre. Ehrhardt is currently adapting JAMAICA, FAREWELL for the big screen. More info at www.jamaicafarewelltheplay.com

Joel Zwick (Director) directed My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the highest-grossing romantic comedy of all time. Recent films include Fat Albert and Elvis Has Left the Building. Zwick directed the Broadway production of Hershey Felder’s George Gershwin Alone at the Helen Hayes Theatre, as well as Felder’s Monsieur Chopin, Beethoven as I Knew Him, and Maestro Bernstein. He began his theatrical career at La Mama E.T.C. as director of the La Mama Plexus. He has directed on Broadway, Off-Broadway and for Broadway touring companies. Zwick is recognized as one of Hollywood’s most prolific directors of episodic television, having directed over 550 TV episodes. He is currently directing Shake it Up for the Disney Channel. Zwick has taught drama at Yale University, Brooklyn College, Queens College, Wheaton College and USC and has made his home in Hollywood for the past decade.

Hershey Felder (Producer)
Broadway, London's West End: George Gershwin Alone (Helen Hayes Theatre, Duchess Theatre). Regional and international appearances of “Composers Sonata” (1999-2014) – George Gershwin Alone, Monsieur Chopin, Beethoven, As I Knew Him, and Maestro: Leonard Bernstein and Hershey Felder as IRVING BERLIN (Geffen Theatre LA World Premiere, Laguna Playhouse, upcoming: Majestic Theatre Boston, La Jolla Playhouse, Theatreworks Palo Alto, Arizona Theatre Company and more). He is the winner of the 2007 Los Angeles Ovation Awards, Best Musical and Best Actor for George Gershwin Alone. Worldwide live broadcasts, George Gershwin Alone, 2005 and 2011 for the WFMT Network. Direction includes Mona Golabek in The Pianist of Willesden Lane (National Tour), Current projects include Abe Lincoln’s Piano, Hershey Felder as IRVING BERLIN and several other titles in development for various artists. Mr. Felder is a Steinway Concert Artist, and has been a Scholar in Residence at Harvard University's Department of Music. He is the President of Eighty-Eight Entertainment and is married to Kim Campbell, the former Prime Minister of Canada.

The artistic team for JAMAICA, FAREWELL is led by Director Joel Zwick. Scenic Design is by Hershey Felder and Trevor Hay, Sound Design is by Erik Carstensen, Lighting Design is by Richard Norwood and Video Design is by Andrew Wilder. Scenic Decoration is by Meghan Maiya and Stacy Nezda. Matt Marsden serves as General Manager and the Production Stage Manager is Rebecca Peters.  Karen Racanelli serves as executive producer, and Samantha F. Voxakis serves as associate producer.



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