Concert
Backstage at Carnegie Hall
an opera about racism and the electric guitar
Past event
Meet Charlie Christian, a jazz guitar pioneer, backstage at his now legendary December 24, 1939 concert at Carnegie Hall, as a panic attack takes hold of the 23-year-old. In his delirium, he is projected in time and space, between dream and reality. His journey takes him from the slaveholding United States to Little Burgundy in Montreal. A gallery of characters crosses his path, including his ancestors, his father, the founder of the Montreal jazz club Rockhead's Paradise, Rufus Rockhead, the luthier Orville Gibson, the clarinetist and bandleader Benny Goodman, and the singer Marian Anderson, emblematic figure of the American civil rights movement of the 1930s.
Tim Brady composed the music for this chamber opera, while Audrey Dwyer wrote the libretto. The production features a stellar cast with tenor Ruben Brutus in the title role, Alicia Ault, Frédéricka Petit-Homme, and Clayton Kennedy accompanied by Bradyworks musicians under the musical direction of Véronique Lussier with staging by Cherissa Richards.
Credits
- Tim Brady composer and artistic director
- Audrey Dwyer librettist
- Véronique Lussier musical direction
- Ruben Brutus tenor - Charlie Christian
- Alicia Ault soprano - time traveller
- Fredericka Petit-Homme soprano - old lady, woman in a bar, demonstrator, Marian Anderson
- Clayton Kennedy baritone - Benny Goodman, man in a bar, Orville Gibson, Cop
- Justin Welsh baritone - Rufus Rockhead, Clarence Christian, old man
- Tim Brady electric guitar, Bradyworks / Instruments of Happiness
- Pamela Reimer keyboard, Bradyworks / Instruments of Happiness
- Ryan Truby violin, Bradyworks / Instruments of Happiness
- Charlotte Layec bass clarinet, Bradyworks / Instruments of Happiness
Programme
Audrey Dwyer, Tim Brady Backstage at Carnegie hall2022
Practical information
Where is the concert held?
Centaur Theater, 453 rue Saint-Francois-Xavier, Montréal
How do I get to the venue?
Metro : Place d'Armes
How long is the performance?
What are the ticket prices?
| Adult | 46$* |
| Senior (65+) | 31$* |
| Student | 31$* |
*incl. 6$
