Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling explores his acting chops, joining Hadestown on Broadway on Friday, August 22.
The two-time GRAMMY Award-winning performer debuts as “Hermes” (the role originated by André De Shields) in the Tony Award-winning “Best Musical. And on the same day, August 22, Elling’s new album Wildflowers, Vol. 3, drops. But Elling is not new to theater; he has co-created multi-disciplinary performances for Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theater and the City of Chicago. Jazz at Lincoln Center presented the world premiere of The Big Blind, a new jazz musical Elling is co-writing with GRAMMY Award-nominated songwriter Phil Galdston.
Over a twenty-five year career of touring and recording, Elling has won three Prix du Jazz Vocal (France), two German Echo Awards, two Dutch Edison Awards, and has been nominated for sixteen Grammy Award. He has enjoyed a 14-year run atop the DownBeat Critics and Readers polls, and has won twelve Jazz Journalists Awards for “Male Vocalist of the Year.” He’s toured the world in a variety of contexts, including UNESCO’s “International Jazz Day” performances around the world. He has twice performed at the White House, including with the National Symphony Orchestra for President Obama’s first State Dinner. Elling spent six years serving as a Trustee and two years as Vice Chairman of The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
For more information on Hadestown, click here.
