Swing, Baby, Swing! Opening Night Program

Dance Houston presents

SWING, BABY, SWING!

Directed and Choreographed by Carla Earle

PROLOGUE

Overture

ACT 1

“Swing, Baby, Swing!”
“Sophisticated Lady”
“Am I Blue”
“Sing, Sing, Sing”
“A-Tisket, A-Tasket”
“Here in this House”
“Caravan”
“Jumpin’ at the Woodside”

ACT 2

“I Decided to Make Jesus My Choice” / “I’ll Fly Away”
“Easter Parade Stroll”
“Sweet Georgia Brown”
“It Don’t Mean a Thing” / “Swing, Baby, Swing! (Reprise)”

CAST

Joel Aguilera, Gonzalo Andre, Hindolo Bongay (dance captain, assistant choreographer), Robin Carlson, Veronica Carroll (Mama), Susana Collins, Leandre Douglas, Sydney Felton, Jerry Foote, Sabrina Gatson (Aunt Eunice), Geneva Gordon, LaKendra Howard, Darius Johnson, Silvanus LaToison (Will), Jeffrey Louis, Venishia Marthrel, Kierra McKay (Dot), Olivia Oliveras, Shamond Powell, Crystal Rae (Sweet Georgia Brown, narrator), Samantha Taborda, Kijana Wiseman (Ella Fitzgerald)

MUSICIANS
Nazaret Castillo, Henry Darragh (composer, arranger, conductor, piano) Nicolas Diaz, Grace Estrada, Erik Estrada, Greg Goods, Fabian Ibarra, Rickey Harding (guest performer, gospel piano) Chris Kreger, Victor Mambru, Noe Marmolejo (trumpet), Matthew Mondragon, Julian Moolchan, Bret Ryan, Jordan Stephens, Chris Valero, Trenton Whitehead

WRITERS
Dwight Baxter, Andrea Cody, Carla Earle, Sonya Lucas, and Norma Miller

WHO’S WHO

CARLA EARLE, Director, attended the High School of Performing Arts in NYC, and trained as a singer, dancer and actress at Alvin Ailey, School Of American Ballet, and Joffrey Ballet. She has appeared in productions on Broadway and National touring companies of The Wiz, 42nd Street, Chicago, Ragtime and Bubblin Brown Sugar. She has been directed and mentored by amazing people like George Faison, Gregory Hines, Bob Fosse, Cab Calloway, Bernice Johnson and Lionel Hampton.  She appeared in Coming To America, sang background for Bette Midler in Beaches, and was the original choreographer for the hit Fox TV series, “In Living Color” and directed “The Fly Girls.”

DWIGHT BAXTER, Co-Producer, born in Houston, Texas, educated at Purchase College of S.U.N.Y, and trained at Pasty Swayze’s School of Dance and the Dance Theater of Harlem. He performed in TreemonishaBubbling Brown SugarGuys and DollsDaddy GoodnessThree MusketeersGrindWoman of The Year and Ain’t Mis’Behavin. He worked with directors Harold Prince, Joe Layton, Billy Wilson, Israel Hicks, Lester Wilson, Michael Peters, Louis Johnson, George Faison, Kenny Ortega, Tony Charmoli and the great Bob Fosse. Baxter’s television and film credits include The WizHairBeat Street, Berry Gordy’s Last DragonRaquel Welch with LoveCookieTrue IdentityCher: I Love New YorkOne Life to Live and The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

HENRY DARRAGH, Music Director, received his Doctrate of Musical Arts from the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston in December 2015 and teaches as adjunct faculty at University of Houston-Clear Lake and privately.  He has produced albums “Tell Her for Me” and “Too Much Monday” and completed a commission for the Houston Grand Opera’s Veterans Songbook.

JACK JACOBS, Lighting Designer, lit Full Circle’s Out of the Bachs at the Kennedy Center, Victoria’s Secret Angel Launch, and TUTS Underground Lizzie and Dreamgirls. Currently in Las Vegas he is represented at the Luxor with Criss Angel’s MINDFREAK LIVE!, and previously was an associate with David Agress on Liza Minnelli at Radio City as well as The The Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular Tour.

Founder/Executive Director/Co-Producer: Andrea Cody
Co-Producer/Production Manager/Stage Manager: Dwight Baxter
Lindy Hop Consultant: Tena Morales
Lighting Design: Jack Jacobs
Set Design: Edgar Guajardo
Wardrobe: Rita Brosh, Andrea Cody, Maxine Silberstein (assistant)
Photography: James Wiseman
Videography: Jessie Mann
Development Associate: Pat Silver
Graphic Design: Dorielisa Velasquez
Public Relations: Linda Ragland

ABOUT DANCE HOUSTON

Dance Houston is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2003 with a mission to advance dance as an art form and an instrument to serve the community. We perform, teach, collaborate, produce, and host summer camps for ages 7 – 17.  We give special thanks and the Houston Swing Dance Society for providing support, training, and inspiration in Lindy hop since 1997.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Claudette Lloyd, President
Naana Danquah, Treasurer
Shenequa Aranda
Alison Scott, DDS
Roslyn Bazzelle, Advisory Board Chair

SPONSORS

Ray of Sunshine Foundation
Preston Theater and Chuy Terrazas
The City of Houston through the Miller Theatre Advisory Board
National Endowment for the Arts
Texas Commission on the Arts
The Humphreys Foundation
Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts
Houston Endowment
H-E-B
Google
Microsoft
Shell
Schlumberger
Lasting Impressions

DONORS

Patrick Walsh, Claudette Lloyd, Anonymous, David and Janie Yao, Ed Peine, Meera Naehr, Mitsi Shen, Alison Scott, DDS, Shenequa Aranda, Don and Susie Pine, Naana Danquah Jefferson, Jay and Jackie Smyre, Kathy Singleton, David and Kathy Mailman, Toni Meason, Nancy Parra, Maxine Silberstein, Roderick and Amanda Austin, Sue Shefman, Robert Furse, Jayne Allen