Fats Waller Dance Party

The Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile present a week-long festival with performances and events at the Apollo, Harlem Stage Gatehouse, Minton's Playhouse, Lenox Lounge, Showman's Cafe, the Alhambra Ballroom, and at Columbia University's Miller Theatre. This interactive production featuring live music, dance and audience participation toured the international circuit with performances at the Kennedy Center, Chicago Jazz Festival, San Francisco Jazz Festival, Toronto Jazz Festival and UMS in Ann Arbor, MI.
Aside from its regular nightly sets, Smalls was famous for its after hours jams and rent parties. Among the many artists Smalls hosted, Fats Waller was a regular who set the joint jumpin’ with late night jams and rent parties. This tribute concert would look back at that legacy, the stride tradition and music for which Waller was a seminal figure and how it presents itself in the musical innovations of contemporary forms. Fats Waller is a recognized genius hailing from the stride piano tradition. He is noted for developing a unique piano technique and his prolific compositional history. This event is conceived as a dance party, a re-envisioning of the importance of moving to this music. In this event, Jason Moran and Meshell Ndegeocello will re-envision Waller’s music to create a dance event that has a current feel but uses Waller’s music— joined by a 6-7 piece band. Moran’s playing, composition and arrangement skills will shape the event while Ndegeocello, a master at creating an intimate and enticing connection to the audience through her bass playing and vocalizing, will take Waller’s words and rework them to seem natural for today and get people to dance.