THEATRE REVIEW
“Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill” at Garry Marshall Theater (Photo – Aaron Batzdorff)
It’s 1959, Billie Holiday (Deidrie Henry) is back in Philly for one of her last performances, occurring just four months before her death.
By Carol Edger Germain
Due to her drug conviction and cold turkey stint in prison, she has deteriorated physically and mentally, and has lost her cabaret card which allowed her to perform in New York. One of her few options is to return to her roots, even though she hates Philly (which she makes crystal clear when she states “When I die, I don’t care if I go to heaven or hell long’s it ain’t in Philly.” She looks older than 44, hard times show in her walk and her words.
The staging effectively transported us to that long ago jazz club. There were 8 tables on the sides of the stage, complete with bar lamps and cocktail service and patrons could purchase those seats. The lighting, Billie occasionally calling out to her bartender friend in the back of the “lounge,” reminiscing about shared memories, all came together to make us feel we were really in that bar. Billie was obviously high or drunk during that performance, and there are some moments in the evening where it interfered and had to be accommodated, but piano player Jimmy Powers (Abdul Hamid Royal) keeps the show flowing (with the back-up of bassist James Leary) and endures occasionally being called “Sonny,” Billie’s boyfriend who was despised by her mother and who fulfilled her dire prediction by hiding drugs in Billie’s suitcase, leading to her arrest.
Henry did not try to imitate Billie’s voice, she has a beautiful, powerful voice that honored Billie’s songs. We were treated to at least a dozen of her most beloved numbers – including “What a Moonlight Can Do,” “Crazy He Calls Me,” “Easy Living,” “Strange Fruit,” “Taint Nobody’s Biz-ness If I Do,” and “God Bless the Child.” Effectively woven among the songs are raw reminiscences of hard times, and sometimes good times, some humorous, others painful, others recreating demeaning experiences in a racist country nowhere near considering civil rights (such as when the all-white Artie Shaw band was told they could eat in the main dining room of a restaurant but the star, Billie, could not. She was begrudgingly allowed to eat in the kitchen (but not allowed to use the restroom) and the band insisted on eating there as well.
I cried, I laughed, my heart was twisted by the vividly scenes her words created in my mind. The pace and back-and-forth rhythm of songs and stories was just right, I was riveted every minute, and glad there was no intermission to break the spell. Director Gregg T. Daniel did an excellent job of bringing Lanie Robertson’s book to life.
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