London's smash hit musical: "The All New Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers(TM)" | Press Releases

8 p.m., Friday, February 24, 2012
Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts
Ticket: $40, $35, $30
Dust off your pork pie hat and buff up those dancing shoes - Jake and Elwood are back! "The All New Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers(TM)," the smash hit featuring cast members from the original London run, comes to town for one night only, 8 p.m., Friday, February 24, 2012, at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. Tickets are $40, $35, and $30.

Jake and Elwood Blues will once again be donning their iconic hats, sunglasses and suits to bring to life a host of the duo's most memorable hits, including "Think," "Respect," "Gimme Some Loving" and toe-tapping classics like "Shake A Tail Feather" and "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love." This brand new reworking of the celebrated show is directed by Brad Henshaw, an established name on the international music stage, who will also star in the show as Jake. Daniel Flechter stars as Elwood, and the duo is backed by one of Europe's finest six piece bands, along with three soulful and sassy singers, Jocasta Almgill, Victoria Ekanoye and Victoria Goddard, aptly named The Bluettes. The memorable songs and characters live on in "The All New Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers (TM)." The hit West End show is being upgraded for Jake and Elwood's return to the U.S. with a brand new set, updated choreography and new songs.

The Blues Brothers had its origins in the late '70s, when Saturday Night Live original cast members John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd channelled the fictional characters of "Joliet" Jake Blues and Elwood Blues, a blues shouter and his harmonica-playing and singing brother. The animated pair fronted the SNL Band dressed in dark suits, hats, and shades, rollicking to soul, R&B, and blues classics in front of a live nationwide television audience. The band soon took a life well beyond the confines of the television screen. "The Blues Brothers" (1980) movie, directed by John Landis with a screenplay by Aydroyd, featured appearances by many music legends, including James Brown, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, and Cab Calloway, along with SWAT teams, helicopters, Sherman Tanks, and the Bluesmobile, a 1974 Dodge Monaco. Over the years, "The Blues Brothers" film grossed more than $100 million internationally. A sequal, "Blues Brothers 2000" followed in 1998, along with an album "Briefcase Full of Blues."

Following its modest premiere overseas in a small seaside pub in Brighton in 1991, "The All New Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers (TM)" quickly became a runaway success. It was picked up by theater producer David Pugh and film director David Leyland, who opened the show in the West End just six months later. The run was extended from six to an unprecedented 46 weeks, playing to more than 150,000 people. UK's Jersey Evening Post describes the show as "two hours of superb tributes to blues music." The Daily Mail calls is "A rip-roaring foot stomping boogie." And the Chicago Sun-Times says "it would be difficult to argue with the obvious pleasure that its zesty, often hard-rocking performance ... brought to opening night." "The All New Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers (TM)" is a joint production by Charles Aerts Theatre Productions and EJB Entertainment.

Tickets are available through the Quick Center Box Office: (203) 254-4010, or toll-free 1-877-ARTS-396 (1-877-278-7396). Tickets can also be purchased online at www.fairfield.edu/quick .

The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts is located on the campus of Fairfield University at 1073 North Benson Road in Fairfield, Connecticut. Entrance to the Quick Center is through the Barlow Road gate at 200 Barlow Road. Free, secure parking is available. Access for people with disabilities is available throughout the Quick Center for audience members and performers. Hearing amplification devices are available upon request at the Box Office. Fairfield University is located off exit 22 of Interstate-95. For further information and directions, call (203) 254-4010 or 1-877-278-7396, or visit www.fairfield.edu/quick .