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A FREDDIE MERCURY JAZZ TRIBUTE
written and performed by
COURTNEY FREED
Courtney Freed’s one-woman show "Mercury Rising" highlights Freddie Mercury's incredible range and dynamic stage presence through vocal driven jazz arrangements. Freed also brings to light the life experiences that shaped his talent and ultimately led to his untimely AIDS related death in 1991. "Mercury Rising" is not simply a concert of Queen’s music, but rather an homage paid to Mercury through the art of cabaret storytelling and a fresh musical take on his most beloved songs.
"If you've seen Freed before, you already know what a captivating performer she is. In this show, she positively dazzles, and not just because she's wearing a dress made entirely out of silver sequins. On opening night, from the moment she came out and sang the first few notes of "Take My Breath Away," Freed had the audience in the palm of her hand."
-- Krista Garver, Broadway World
"The main attraction is Freed herself, who is a whirlwind of excitement as she travels through more than a dozen songs of Mercury’s, lead singer of Queen, as he travels, through Freed’s extraordinary vocal range, the “road[s] not taken.”
--Dennis Sparks, Reviewer
Instrumentation: piano, bass, drums, horn, vocals
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RUNNING TIME: 70 MINUTES
MINIMAL TECHNICAL ASPECTS
Arranged by Reece Marshburn
Directed by Isaac Lamb
Originally produced by John Oules, Live On Stage Productions at Coho Theater, April 4-8, 2018.
COURTNEY FREED is a dynamic and unstoppable vocalist and who has spent the last 15 years performing in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and currently resides in Portland OR. No stranger to the local theatre scene, her most favorite recent role was Trina (Drammy nom!) in Live on Stage's Falsettos. She has also tread the boards of Portland Center Stage, Pixiedust Productions, Broadway Rose, Lakewood, Profile, Triangle Productions and many more. Courtney is the creator of the wildly popular local concert series, Portland Sings!, bringing together some of the city's finest vocalists for a magical evening in a variety of musical themes, a highlight being a fundraiser for the ACLU in 2017 called "Rise Up." An avid lover of vintage jazz, her first album titled "Happy Little Bluebird" lovingly celebrates the timeless melodies of Harold Arlen. Courtney is also the lead singer of local gypsy swing band, The Jenny Finn Orchestra!
All photos by Sara Schumacher
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