By Endera Allen Stevens
Can you tell us a little bit about Theater Works’?
Theater Works was founded in 1985 and it is a contemporary black box theater that focuses on storytelling, and crafting production that can one day change the world. It was once a home to a gas company which is why we have such high ceilings. We have recently had some renovations done that add to the immersive ambiance that the audience can expect from us.
With your history in music how did you get involved with the living room series and how do you feel about it?
My background is in music not necessarily theater, however, I have a deep appreciation for all performing arts. I’ve been a vocalist performing for most of my life and touring on and off for around a decade. I am currently a founding member of 2 bands and I had an offshoot project that was more of a 4 piece versus an 8-9 piece then COVID hit and I had to reevaluate my touring schedule and was rediscovering other passions. A good friend of mine Dwayne Keith who is a drummer had done a virtual Living Room series and that piqued my interest. I said to myself “Wow, Theater Works does more than just theater!” So when an opportunity came up for me to work with Theater Works I jumped on it. And when I was able to do more event planning and utilize my curatorial background in music it just seemed like a natural fit.
This is a passion project for me. It is a culmination of all that I have learned as an artist and a music enthusiast. All of my experience has come together to foster a better environment for musicians and for the people who come to enjoy our living room productions.
How do you select talent for the living room series?
A lot of the talent is CT-based or CT-associated. Some of the talents we have selected are musicians that I have had the opportunity to play with. As well as some fellow alumni from The Hartt School a performance art conservatory. We want to showcase the best of what CT has to offer on a local level. We can offer people a beautiful space good accommodations incredible staff. We focus on smaller acts for right now which has the added benefit of allowing the musicians to try different things in an intimate setting with a built-in audience of their CT peers. It is very important to me to find people who are skilled at what they do. So, genre is less important to me than just guild musical talent.
What local partnerships is Theater Works doing with their living room series?
Black Eyed Sally’s is a new partner for the Living Room Series but we have done other events with them before. And it works out well for both of us as they are very close by. We also like to work with a lot of local caterers for the living room series. We didn’t always have food available but it is something we have added intentionally for free to heighten the overall experience. Food gets people in, it keeps people happy and it cools to highlight different local caterers. The idea is to keep it as local as possible so that people get to interact and explore what is around them. It’s been a cool addition and it is something that we try to vary.
What genres can people expect when they come into the living room series?
Hartford loves jazz, there is no denying that. I just love artists that do what they do well and I am leading with the knowledge of what this area appreciates. So you will see a lot of Jazz with us and jazz is so diverse you have neo-soul, smooth jazz, classical and so much more. I try to steer clear of ONLY doing straight-ahead jazz. I would like to curate a diverse experience for the audience that allows them to expand their musical sensibilities. The audience will definitely get a diverse experience with us.
We had a Grammy award-winning artist for one performance and the next we had an emerging and upcoming artist. We want to highlight the diversity of experience and showmanship that you can expect to grace the living room stage. Emerging artists are getting outside the box and bringing their new and unique voice to the scene and then you have seasoned artists who bring their own aura and diverse toolbelt to the stage.
What can we look forward to?
Please come join us on July 11th for an African diaspora-inspired experience featuring drummer Jocelyn Pleasant and guitarists Matt Belliveau and Doug Wilson. We look forward to having you!
