Its going to be a spirited event Sunday, Sept. 21st, when the 5th Annual Divas of Jazz takes over the American Music Theatre for the benefit of The Second Mile. The event, which has sold out each year and has raised over $70,000 for local charities, is going to be bigger and better than ever with a roster of eight powerful jazz performances backed by the Andy Roberts Quartet and a rousing finale with the Divas, DJ Gerri and the McCaskey High School Gospel Choir.
Doors open at 2 p.m. for a Reception & Silent Auction, plus a series of raffles and other fun surprises. The show begins at 3 p.m. with emcees WGAL-TV8s Susan Shapiro, Smooth Jazz 92.7 program director and morning personality Paul Scott, and event co-founder Diane Dayton, host/producer of Cool Jazz Caf and SmoothTracksFM.com.
The $50/person ticket includes the show plus a reception of hors doeuvres and desserts prepared under the direction of Ralph Mazzocchi, whose new restaurant Gusto is opening soon on North Queen Street, and Steve Allegretti, General Manager of Lancasters fine-dining Rosa Rosa Restorante Italiano.
A $70/person ticket also includes a copy of the Divas of Jazz 2008 CD, sponsored by The Benecon Group and will be recorded that night.
New this year is the Giving Voice award, which is being sponsored and designed by the Jewelers Workshop especially for the event. The award was created by the Divas of Jazz to sing praises to an unsung hero within the Lancaster County community, especially with regards to The Second Mile.
All proceeds from the event and CD sales will go to The Second Mile, a non-profit organization founded in 1977 by Jerry Sandusky, to give Pennsylvania children the opportunity and tools to succeed and achieve. The Second Miles nine prevention and early intervention programs, as well as community-based services, are made possible through volunteer efforts and the financial support of community partners like the Divas of Jazz.
Divas of Jazz makes a fabulous contribution in so many areas, said co-chair Cathy Kornfield. It showcases some of Central Pennsylvanias most gifted performers, who are donating their time to help kids at risk. It gives area students, like McCaskey Highs Gospel Choir, on-stage experience in a great theatre. Our director, Millersville theatre professor Vincent Capecce, is involving several of his theatre students in the shows production. The Giving Voice award celebrates the fact one person can truly make a difference. And since the 2008 Divas of Jazz CD is sponsored by the Benecon Group, 100% of the CD sales goes straight to The Second Mile. . .and will keep on giving throughout 2009. Divas of Jazz is one of those events where everyone involved, including the audience, enjoys a positive, gratifying experience.
Of course the show is all about the Divas, who are guaranteed to bring the house down with a series of lively performances. The lineup includes (in alphabetical order):
Ruth Benns-Suter (Divas of Jazz Co-chair): A vocal jazz purist, especially when it pertains to classic jazz standards, launched her singing career at Philadelphias trendy Astral Plane and is seen at restaurants and clubs throughout Central PA. As a teen she was a member of the Philadelphia All City Choir, and returned to music as a student of legendary jazz vocalist and educator J.D. Walter. She has also studied with Paris Rutherford at University of North Texas, vocal jazz legend Sheila Jordan in New York, Jennifer Diva Jones in Puerto Rico, and takes great pride in her work with Connaitre Miller, vocal jazz director of Afro Blue, Washington, DC. A champion of forgotten songs and lesser-known songwriters, her tribute concert to the music of trumpeter Kenny Dorham, which co-starred internationally known jazz violinist John Blake, Jr., was a packed house hit.
Marion CoCo Coleman: A consummate professional whose performances grab you from the first note, CoCo has thrilled audiences in the U.S. and abroad with her jazz, R&B and blues standards, from Blues Alley in DC, to New Orleans Bourbon Street, to the Santa Fe Plaza, as well as Freemantle, Australia and Ghana, West Africa. Shes also well known at area clubs and jazz festivals, and has opened for the famed Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Roy Ayres, Kim Waters, Jean Carne and the Cab Calloway Orchestra. Her CD is called In Good Company.
Erin Cruise: Tough to capture in one paragraph, bandleader/vocalist Erin Cruise moved to Harrisburg seven years ago from New York City, where she spent 14 years as a jingle/demo singer, solo artist (part of the time with RCA Records), promoting her own 1992 hit record “Cold Shower," doing backup vocals on a number of albums, and spending much of that time as a bandleader. She formed her successful Cruise Control Band six years ago, continues to sing on studio album projects and is working on her own album, and in August was a vocalist in the sell-out production of Tear Jar: An Original Blues Show at the Whitaker Center. Tear Jar will be repeated at Philadelphias World Caf, Upstairs Live on Sept. 23rd.
Rose Hudson: An electrifying jazz/blues vocalist from York, Rose performs the role of Chandra in Tear Jar and is enjoying the success of her first CD, Like a Rose. Her musical roots are deeply grounded in the classic and diverse Top 40, rock and soul of the 60s and 70s, with a strong devotional affinity for gospel music. She has a solid following in the Central PA jazz scene singing with Extremity, 3 Trainscoming, Blue Light Specials, The Berks Jazz Project and her own Rose Hudson Trio. In 2006 Rose was invited to the Copenhagen Blues Festival, where her sound was described as start-of-the-art blues-soul-gospel.
Michelle Leigh: With a major in jazz performance at Temple University, and years of performing and studying with some of the areas greats (including the late Mike Falcone, Glenn Ferracone, Papa John DeFrancesco and his bluesman son Johnny DeFrancesco, and the ever inventive Shawn Quissaunee in whom she has found a musical soulmate), Michelle Leigh moves seamlessly from the Philadelphia and West Chester scenes to appearances throughout Central Pennsylvania. She has also performed at the Chaddsford Winery Jazz Festival.
Sonia V (Vrooman): Known for her interpretations of popular jazz standards, from Cole Porter to Antonio Carlos Jobim, Sonia V is also a Sweet Adeline singing with the Red Rose City Chorus. Throughout the 70s and 80s she sang in a Top 40s band with keyboardist husband Harry Vrooman, plus she has performed in Munich, Vienna and Salzburg. Sonia and Harry Vrooman continue to wow the crowds at local venues and jazz festivals, and have recorded several CDs including the popular I Wish You Love.
Diane Wilson: The 2007 winner of Pennsylvania State Senior Idol, Diane has been tearing down the house all of her life. In 1975 she became the lead singer in her very first band experience, Young Unlimited, performing tunes by Chaka Khan, Natalie Cole and Stephanie Mills. In 1980 Diane had the pleasure to tour with a local recording group, Positive Force their hit single being “We Got The Funk." She is well known throughout the Central PA music scene, and most recently played the role of Savannah in Tear Jar. She is also the proud mother of four equally musically gifted daughters and grandmother of eight.
Robin Work: Has performed throughout the Eastern US and Canada for the past 25 years, in musical genres ranging from Pop to Big Band to Jazz. She has performed and recorded with national and internationally respected musicians and has been featured at Jazz festivals in Rehoboth Beach, Cape May and the well known COTA festival in Delaware Water Gap. Her first CD Pure Imagination, features Paul Langosch (bassist for Tony Bennett) and Bill Goodwin (Phil Woods drummer). Currently she is a featured vocalist and has recorded with the Rob Stoneback Big Band, the Dave Stahl Sacred Orchestra and the Andy Roberts Group who made history last year performing for the first live transatlantic radio broadcast from Avatar Studios in New York City to national radio in Iceland. She is also featured on the newly released Andy Roberts Group CD Under The Radar.
Because almost everyone involved donates their time and talent to the Divas of Jazz benefit, virtually 100% of the moneys raised will go to The Second Mile. Special thanks go to the Benecon Group (CD Sponsor), Susquehanna Bank (Program Sponsor) and Jewelers Workshop (Award Sponsor), as well as the American Music Theatre, Dayton Communications, Lancaster County Magazine, Smooth Jazz 92.7, Stauffers of Kissel Hill, Special Occasions, WGAL-TV8, as well as Steve Stoltzfus of 911 Photo Graphics who handles promotional photography, Holly Doench of Boardroom Graphics for poster design.
For more information log onto www.divasofjazz.org. $50 tickets include the show and reception. $70 tickets also include the Divas of Jazz 2008 CD, to be mailed upon completion. Tickets can be purchased at The American Music Theatre box office, or online at www.amtshows.com.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
