A tribute to Maya Angelou, a once-lost film and hot Latin jazz: 6 metro Detroit shows
Electrifying theater and live music are available during this surprisingly fair-weather weekend in metro Detroit. Here are just six vital options available to you.
Celebrating Black women through art
A new commission and world premiere by American composer Nkeiru Okoye, “When the Caged Bird Sings” is a collaboration between the University of Michigan’s University Musical Society and its School of Music, Theatre & Dance. It fuses elements of oratorio, theater and opera in a multi-movement musical ceremony of sorts that invokes the ritual of the concert experience as a ritual of community, drawing inspiration from the Black church. Partly in tribute to the activist and poet laureate Maya Angelou, the 75-minute performance celebrates the transformative ability of Black women rising above expectations and turning adversity into triumph, commemorating those who have paved a path for future generations in many fields of human endeavor.
Hill Auditorium, 825 N. University Ave., Ann Arbor. 734-764-2538. www.ums.org. Tickets start at $14.
An Oscar-winning jazz documentary, rediscovered
Toronto filmmaker Brigitte Berman won the Best Documentary Academy Award in 1987 for “Artie Shaw: Time is All You’ve Got,” about the legendary and influential big band leader and clarinetist. Immediately afterward, she was sued by Shaw for the film rights, and spent the next 17 years fighting in court for the rights to her film. While she eventually won, it was a lost film until 2022. Don Hicks, owner of Ann Arbor’s Blue Llama Jazz Club, stepped in to fund a 4K remaster, which will screen with the director present at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9 at Ann Arbor’s Michigan Theater. See why the New York Times described it as “dazzling!”
Michigan Theatre, 603 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor. 734-688-8397. www.michtheater.org. Tickets start at $8.50.
A Shakespeare classic
One forbidden romance, two feuding families…you already know! In this modern interpretation of “Romeo and Juliet,” set in a futuristic, urban Verona, the conflict between two dueling nightclub owners reaches a breaking point when Romeo Montague falls in love with Juliet Capulet, daughter of the enemy. Featuring powerful music, edgy design and compelling movement, their story unfolds toward its inevitable conclusion in a production by Royal Oak’s Stagecrafters opening Friday, Feb. 9 and running through Feb. 25.
The Baldwin Theatre, Royal Oak. 248-541-6430. www.stagecrafters.org. Tickets start at $25.
Groundbreaking theater
For two weekends starting Friday, Feb. 9, the University of Detroit Mercy will present the Michigan premiere of “Photograph 51,” a thought-provoking play that tells the story of Rosalind Franklin, the unsung hero of DNA research. Set in the 1950s, the play explores the intense competition between scientists as they race to unravel the secrets of the double helix structure of DNA. The production raises important questions about the nature of scientific progress, the role of women in science, and the ethics of scientific competition.
The Marlene Boll Theatre, 1401 Broadway Street, Detroit. 313-993-3270. www.udmercy.edu. General admission tickets start at $25; some performances already sold out.
Hot Latin jazz in Grosse Pointe
Grosse Pointe’s Dirty Dog Jazz Café will present the award-winning Lunar Octet for two sets on Friday and Saturday nights. Celebrating their 40th anniversary, the Ann Arbor combo will celebrate their return to the Dirty Dog with music from their new Summit Records CD, “Convergence,” which went to #1 in new Latin jazz releases on Amazon and was praised by Downbeat Magazine.
Dirty Dog Jazz Café, 97 Kercheval Ave., Grosse Pointe. 313-882-5299. www.dirtydogjazz.com. Tickets $20.
A woman, a prisoner, a life
Afong Moy is 14 years old when she’s brought to the United States from Guangzhou Province in 1834. Allegedly the first Chinese woman to set foot on U.S. soil, she has been put on display for the American public as “The Chinese Lady.” For the next half-century, she performs for curious white people, showing them how she eats, what she wears, and the highlight of the event: how she walks with bound feet. As the decades wear on, her celebrated sideshow comes to define and challenge her very sense of identity. Inspired by the true story of Afong Moy’s life, Northville’s Tipping Point Theatre presents “The Chinese Lady,” a dark, poetic yet whimsical portrait of America through the eyes of a young Chinese woman. Compelling, profound, and sharply funny, it poses a question: when we look, do we really see?
Tipping Point Theatre, 361 N. Cady St., Northville. 248-347-0003. www.tippingpointtheatre.com. Tickets start at $39.
Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at dbeddingfield@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Skipping the Super Bowl? Six metro Detroit shows to see this weekend
