ATP begins season with evening of big band swing
N’Kenge performs during Alpine Theatre Project’s In the Mood: an Evening of Big Band Swing on Feb. 10-11 at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center. (Courtesy photo)
Just days ago, she was rubbing elbows with music industry elites at the 2023 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. Now, Broadway and opera star N’Kenge is in Whitefish rehearsing with Alpine Theatre Project on their first show of the year.
In the Mood: an Evening of Big Band Swing will be on stage Friday, Feb. 10 and Saturday, Feb. 11. N’Kenge returns to Whitefish along with one of America’s most electrifying tap dancers, DeWitt Fleming Jr, for a new version of last year’s hit salute to nostalgic big band music. The show will be at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center, 127 Spokane Ave.
N’Kenge had been in Los Angeles over the weekend with the Grammy-nominated Broadway revival cast of “Caroline, or Change,” in which she had played a starring role. She brings her five-octave powerhouse vocals to a multi-artist lineup to perform favorites from the 1920s to 1940s. Joining her is master tap dancer DeWitt Fleming Jr who has performed on Broadway and all over the world with Riverdance and Cirque du Soleil and who the New York Times once called, “A nonstop source of rhythmic variety and surprise.”
“We’re thrilled to bring the band back together,” says ATP Artistic Director Betsi Morrison, “And what a band it is. We have 15 of the finest musicians in the valley and beyond playing some of the most romantic music ever written. To spice things up this Valentine’s Day, we’re bringing more of a Latin flavor to the concert.”
These two artists will be joined onstage by powerhouse singers and ATP favorites, Eric Krop, Tracy McDowell and Luke Walrath. Krop has been a featured vocalist on FOX television’s “I Can See Your Voice.” McDowell performed on Broadway in “RENT” and has been a force behind many of ATP’s recent themed concerts.
Also featured will be a 15-piece big band led by the Flathead Valley’s best musicians.
The evening will include American songbook classics by Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, Irving Berlin, the Gershwins, and more. Guests can now receive discounts on tickets and other perks by joining ATP’s new membership program. Information can be found at atpwhitefish.org/membership.
The production In the Mood: An Evening of Big Band Swing is sponsored by Glacier Bank and The Pine Lodge.
Tickets are $25-$50 and can be purchased by calling the ATP Box Office at 406-862-7649 or via ATP’s website, atpwhitefish.org.