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Overview

Synopsis

Based on the legendary Billie Holiday, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill is a play with music that will make you feel like you’re front and center witnessing the jazz legend herself perform and share anecdotes about her life. The play takes place in March of 1959 at a run-down bar in South Philadelphia, Emerson’s Bar and Grill, where Holiday performs her well-known jazz songs and charms the audience with her natural joy for music and life. Though the narrative is historical fiction, Holiday shares real stories about her life about everything from love affairs to substance abuse and segregation. The performance is one of her last before her death in July of 1959. Holiday is accompanied by Jimmy Powers on the piano, a good friend and love of hers, who calms her and helps her as she becomes increasingly intoxicated throughout the night. Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill will both warm and break your heart and leave you humming Billie Holiday’s classic tunes for the rest of the week.

Show Information

Category
Play
Age Guidance
Mature Audiences (M)
Number of Acts
1
First Produced
1986
Genres
Historical/Biographical
Time & Place
About midnight in a small bar in south Philadelphia in 1959
Cast Size
small
Licensor
Ideal For
Community Theatre, Mature Audiences, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, Small Cast, Star Vehicle Female, Includes Adult Characters

Context

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Plot

Characters

Name Part Size Gender Vocal Part

Billie Holiday

Lead

Female

Mezzo-Soprano

Jimmy Powers

Supporting

Male

Non-singer

Songs

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A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.

Monologues

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Scenes

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