Jazz Room @ the Stage Door Theater

Overview

JAZZ ROOM Special Edition: Melissa Morgan sings Billie Holiday

After much-acclaim and sold-out performances, Charlotte’s Jazz Arts Initiative’s (JAI) monthly series—The Jazz Room @ The Stage Door Theater – wraps up season 9 on September 15 & 16 as vocalist Melissa Morgan pays a special musical tribute to jazz icon Billie Holiday. The Stage Door Theater is part of Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, at the corner of 5th and College in Uptown Charlotte.

“Billie Holiday was a true artist of her day and rose as a social phenomenon in the 1950s. Her soulful, unique singing voice and her ability to boldly turn any material that she confronted into her own music made her a superstar of her time. Today, Holiday is remembered for her masterpieces, creativity and vivacity, as many of Holiday’s songs are as well known today as they were decades ago. Holiday’s poignant voice is still considered to be one of the greatest jazz voices of all time.” ~Billieholiday.com Some of Holiday’s most famous renditions include Summertime, God Bless the Child, Don’t Explain, and Strange Fruit.

“Every once in a while, a jazz singer appears with a voice so filled with soul and deeper meaning that you wonder how you could have possibly survived so long without her. That singer is Melissa Morgan…Morgan’s voice speaks with knowing sophistication; her mastery of innuendo is supreme. Backed by an excellent rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass drums) and horns, she has an uncanny ability to bring a contemporary outlook to the classic jazz sound of the 1950s and ’60s…As Morgan grooves through 11 selections that range from ballads to blues, prepare to fall in love.”

- Bay Area Reporter