Sing Sistah Sing! brings the spirit of African American Christmas to Scotland
The five-star Fringe hit, Sing Sistah Sing!, returns to Edinburgh this month with a very special festive edition. If you fancy something a little different to the panto this year, Sing Sistah Sing! The Christmas Celebration is the perfect show to get you in the festive mood.
Featuring internationally-renowned opera singer Andrea Baker and professional pianist Richard Lewis, the tinsel-tinged version of the show will bring the joy and spirit of an African American Christmas to Edinburgh’s Rose Theatre.
A soulful soundtrack of jazz, blues and gospel is accompanied by popular holiday favourites, performed live on stage by the talented duo.
The show gained rave reviews at 2018’s Festival Fringe, with sell-out performances and five-star reviews across the board. The festive version promises to be just as enthralling, celebrating both the cheer of the holiday season and the sound and breadth of the African American female voice.
Baker, who conceived and wrote the production, is the first African American to sing Fricka, Waltraute, Erda and 2nd Norn in Wagner’s great Ring Cycle in the Chinese premiere of the work at the Beijing Arts Festival, the first African American Carmen in Australia at the Sydney Opera House and the first African American to sing the role of Ortrud in the South Korean premiere of Wagner’s Lohengrin at the Daegu Opera Festival.
Former SNP councillor Lewis, who attended the capital’s James Gillespie’s High School before graduating from Oxford University and completing a Masters in music at University of Edinburgh, served as convenor of City of Edinburgh Council’s culture and sport committee from 2012-2017. He is a guest lecturer at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and has conducted The Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Danish Radio Sinfonietta, the Edinburgh Chamber Orchestra, National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, The Queensland Orchestra and the Shanghai City Symphony Orchestra.
Sing Sistah Sing! will show at Edinburgh’s Rose Theatre between December 20-23 and 27-30. The city centre venue (together with the iconic St Stephen’s Church in Stockbridge) was purchased by the Olivier Award-winning performer Peter Schaufuss two years ago and transformed into a modern space for performance and training.