In an electrifying fusion of stories, songs, memoir and music, Jazz Luminaries from New Orleans to L.A.’s Central Avenue are brought to life by a world-class ensemble of actors, singers and musicians in this one-night-only celebration of America’s greatest original art form…
JAZZ Re-EVOLUTION is a benefit for this literary non-profit’s in-the-schools program, WORDTheatre Campus. For over 20 years, WORDTheatre events have been shining a spotlight on literary works brought to life in performances by acclaimed actors, musicians and dancers in Los Angeles, London and New York.
“Jazz has always been a man telling the truth about himself.”
Quincy Jones
The Ford – Saturday, July 22nd – 8:00pm – Hollywood
Tickets start at $30+. For more info: visit WORDTheatre
JAZZ Re-EVOLUTION brings together acclaimed actors, singers, and world-renowned musicians on stage for an electrifying fusion of storytelling and jazz to convey the rich history and power of America’s greatest original art form. This one-night-only event shines a spotlight on many of the artists who have become jazz legends – from Buddy Bolden, Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Jelly Roll Morton and Louis Armstrong to Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and Wayne Shorter––through biographical and memoir excerpts, letters, and selections from the writings of literary luminaries such as W.E.B. DuBois, Stanley Crouch, Nora Zeale Hurston and Langston Hughes. Multi-generational audiences will be transported from the birthplace of Jazz in New Orleans to Harlem, to the Los Angeles clubs that thrived along Central Avenue and beyond.
Actors: Antonique Smith, Keith David, Glynn Turman, Gary Dourdan, Lisa Edelstein, Dave Fennoy, Jason George, Joseph Marcell, Reign Morton, Tracie Thoms, Leslie Grace, and Miguel Sandoval.
Narration: Dave Fennoy and Iona Morris.
Musicians: Suuvi – Cello, Wayne Bergeron –Trumpet, Nedra Wheeler – Bass, Terrace Martin – Saxophone with Starr Parodi – Piano & Musical Director. More TBA.
Orchestrations: Jonathan Sacks.
Curated, Produced & Directed by Cedering Fox.
About WORDTheatre
WORDTheatre is on a mission to make the world a better place –
one story at a time.
WORDTheatre, brings literature to life with unique theatrical events that engage, entertain, and inform by pairing the finest authors in the US and the UK with renowned actors, musicians, and dancers. These performers step into the story, live in the characters’ skins, feel their hidden yearnings, and transport audiences to a place of deep empathy. WORDTheatre presents themed literary productions that combine stories, music, dance, and poetry such as In the Cosmos, Mysteries of the Mind, A Tribute to Langston Hughes, and Witness: The John Edgar Wideman Experience.
Acclaimed actors that have participated in past WORDTheatre productions include: Ed Harris, Jeff Goldblum, Alfre Woodard, Lily Tomlin, Bill Pullman, Alfred Molina, Brian Cox, John Savage, Griffin Dunne, Kathy Baker, Sharon Stone, Sterling K. Brown, Amanda Seyfried, Brian Cox, and many more.
WORDTheatre Campus:
Bringing great literature to high school and college students is central to our mission. Our objective is to partner with interested schools to make available the WORDTheatre resources that best serve a school’s curriculum. WORDTheatre Campus programs are tailored to support the needs of both public and independent high schools, as well as community colleges, four year colleges and universities.
“It has been my honor to watch Cedering Fox and her performers and authors change the lives of students at Venice High School, through her amazing WORDTheatre productions. Her topics are always timely, touching and heart-wrenching, such that students, in their reflections, are left changed as they leave the room.”
– Wendy Sarnoff, Teacher at Venice High School, Venice, California, U.S.A.
