28th October 2021 @ 8pm
Jazz on an Autumn Evening: the Genius of Anita O’Day
Thursday 28th Oct. Wexford Arts Centre @ 8pm
Melanie O’Reilly & Trio in affiliation with Wexford Arts Festival with Kevin Lawlor – Drums, Gediminas Karkauskas – Piano, Adrian Jackson – Bass
Back by popular demand, Melanie O’Reilly returns to the Wexford Arts Centre after her summer sell-out show with a celebration of the legendary Irish American jazz singer Anita O’Day, capturing the essence of an unconventional musical genius.
In this special show during the Wexford Arts/Opera Festival, with additional songs from the Swing era, Melanie narrates and sings the story of O’Day, who wanted to be a jazz singer and refused to let anything stop her. The show, created and devised by O’Reilly, tells of a woman who shattered the traditional role of a “girl singer” with her smoky swinging style and brilliant sense of rhythm. Overcoming the setbacks of poverty and addiction, O’Day became one of the world’s most enduring jazz artists – anointed for her legendary performance at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival captured in the ground-breaking film documentary “Jazz on a Summer’s Day”. This show is also part of Melanie’s Jazz Musician-in Residence at the Wexford Arts Centre.
“Melanie O’Reilly, with her show in celebration of Anita O’Day, brings us up close to this Irish American jazz icon. It is to me, a case of “O’Dayja Vu” such is Melanie’s success in conjuring up Anita’s jazz era and the vibrant life which accompanied her unique art…A great show & a marvellous night out!” Sean Brophy, Dublin City FM