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| Karole Foreman |
By Darlene Donloe
When
Karole Foreman was 10-years-old, she put on a Billie Holiday song and upon
hearing the haunting voice was devastated and began to cry.
“I
took the record off,” she said. “It was so sad.”
Fast
forward and Foreman is playing the troubled torch singer in Lady
Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill at the Ebony Repertory Theatre through Sunday, March 1, 2020. The show is directed by Wren T. Brown, Ebony
Repertory Theatre’s founding artistic director.
The
show, which presents a portrait of Holiday’s highs and lows, is staged as an
intimate evening with the legendary jazz singer in 1959 at a shabby
Philadelphia club during what would be her final live performance. Holiday
died July 17, 1959. Playwright Lanie Robertson was reportedly inspired by the
performance Holiday gave before a very small audience in a Philadelphia club
(not named Emerson's Bar & Grill) just four months before her death at age
44.
At that time Holiday’s voice and body had been ravaged by
years of heroin and alcohol abuse. Nevertheless, Holiday still made a
connection with the audience. The show, recommended for ages 16 and up,
contains adult situations and explicit language. It’s about 90 minutes and features
14 songs, including the classics Strange Fruit, God Bless the Child,
Crazy He Calls Me, and T’ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do.
Foreman is a seasoned award-winning theater, television and
film actress whose credits are vast and impressive.
She was born in Morocco, grew up in San Diego, and now lives
in Signal Hill with her husband of eight years, Peter Zokosky.
She credits vocal coach Michael Scott Harris and dialect
coach Denise Woods for helping her find Holiday’s voice.
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| Karole Foreman as Lady Day |
I caught up with Foreman to talk about her role as
the legendary Billie Holiday.
DD:
Describe the show
KF:
We are doing Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill. The show takes place in
Philadelphia where she performed her last show before 7-12 patrons. Can you
imagine? At that time, New York had revoked her cabaret card so she was doing
small clubs out of state. She was fighting for her life and career. She’s a
survivor. Her best friend, Lester Young, had passed away in early
1959. She reportedly said, ‘you know I’m next.’
DD:
Is this a concert?
KF:
This is set up as an intimate atmosphere. The tone of the show is a play with
music. It is not a concert. Everything about Billie is exposed. It’s just
myself and a pianist. We are recreating a memorable night.
DD:
Were you able to collaborate with your director Wren T. Brown?
KF:
He wanted to strip away everything that didn't have to do with the story. We
talked about dignity. She never saw herself as a victim. That’s our take away
from it. We wanted to show she had an exuberance for life.
DD:
Talk about your singing background.
KF:
Growing up I was told I couldn’t sing. I was 13 when I became interested in
music. My personality loved being told I couldn’t do something. I
was shy growing up. When I came to L.A. doing auditions, they would ask me to
sing. I always loved singing. I grew up listening to Sarah Vaughn, Nancy
Wilson, and Ella Fitzgerald. It’s been challenging. I love jazz. To step into
something like this is a gift.
DD:
Why did you decide to do a show about Billie Holiday?
KF: Being
older you really want to know who our artists are and were. It’s important to
document. She is our history. She is our legacy. The more you research, the
more elusive she becomes. She was a formidable
artist to be reckoned with.
DD:
Lots of actresses have played Lady Day. What are you going to bring to the role
that others haven’t?
KF:
I missed Deirdre Henry’s. I saw Audra’s (McDonald) I was intimidated. You
always bring yourself. For me, it’s how can I bring her humanity to life, her
vulnerability. I became attracted because of Wren T. Brown. We’ve always
admired each other’s work. I want to explore his vision. We’ve known each other
since the 80s. Investigating any human being like this is a chance to honor her
and to learn more about my humanity. It’s about surrendering to something
greater than myself.
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| Wren T. Brown |
DD:
What kind of a director is Wren T. Brown?
KF:
He’s generous. He also brings a great personal history. He comes from a long
history of entertainers and musicians. Being in the room with him is like being
in a room with music history royalty. He infuses a sensibility. I’m
safe in the rehearsal space with Wren. He’s given me freedom and faith. I
really wanted to get this right. I came in off-book. That’s the kind of
attention this piece deserves. I let the words sink in.
DD: There are lots of shows
in and around Los Angeles. Why should we come to see yours?
KF:
It’s a wonderful, intimate night of theater. They will be moved by
her stories. Audience members can sit on stage while we’re doing the show. They
will be moved in a way you can’t get in a movie theater. Theater changes our
DNA.
DD:
How do you “become” a character?
KF:
It depends on the character. This is a sacred space we’re working in. I
understand the need to understand her relationships. I have to fill my life
with her life experiences. My mind is in communication with her spirit.
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| Karole Foreman as Lady Day |
DD: In
your research what did you learn about Billie that you didn’t already know?
KF: That
she was bisexual. Also, I don’t know the extent of the sexual abuse she
encountered. The true terror of what she had to go through. The life she lived
and how she made it through and transcended the bullshit. I can build on the
foundation they laid. That’s why the show is still being produced and why it
needs to be out in this zeitgeist.
DD: Why
are you the right person to bring this show to life?
KF: Ask
my director. The director said he felt my artistry was right. I think it’s my
approach to the role. My vulnerability and humanity. It’s all about the human
being. It’s about the music. I’m an actor first. She knew how to tell a story.
She was always inside a story. I also love being inside a song.
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| Karole Foreman and Stephan Terry |
DD:
You are working under the music direction of Stephan Terry.
KF: We
have a wonderful music director, just wonderful. He is a dream.
The creative team for LADY DAY AT EMERSON’S BAR & GRILL includes
set designer Edward E. Haynes,
costume designer Kim DeShazo,
lighting designer Donna Ruzika,
sound designer Corwin Evans,
prop designers Patty and Gordon Briles, and hair and wig
designer Anthony Gagliardi.
Casting is by Michael Donovan.
Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, Nate Holden Performing Arts Center, 4718 West Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles. The regular performance schedule is Saturday (Feb. 8) at 8 p.m, and Sunday (Feb. 9) at 3 p.m. Regular tickets range from $30 - $50 and are available online at ebonyrep.org or by phone at 323-964-9766. Groups of 10 or more are available via email at groups@ebonyrep.org or 323-964-9766.
Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill premiered
at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia in 1986 and was produced
off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre later that year, winning the 1987 Outer
Critics Circle Award for “Best Off-Broadway Book.” It opened on Broadway at
Circle in the Square in 2014 starring Audra McDonald, who won her
record-breaking sixth Tony Award for the production and became the only person
to win in all four acting categories, this time for Best Actress in a Play. The
Broadway production was later filmed at the Cafe Brasil in New Orleans and
broadcast on HBO.
