Past Events › The Green Room

Crosstown Arts presents PLOT/TWIST, a two-part performance featuring Blueshift Ensemble, Bluff City Liars improv troupe, and NYC-based composer collective ICEBERG New Music.

As the son of a musician and a guitar prodigy himself, Daniel Champagne had a head-start on a career in music, but it’s his indefatigable work ethic and exuberant appreciation for his supporters that have elevated him from simply an artistic genius to a rising international star. If he were simply a songwriter, his work would be admired throughout the industry; if he were only a singer, audiences would be engaged and enchanted by his voice; if he were just a guitarist, he would deserve world-wide acclaim for his artistry. But he’s not just any one of these, he’s all three. And he is, quite simply, amazing.

Soulful singer/pianist Susan Marshall, along with Art Edmaiston (sax), Logan Hanna (guitar) and Peewee Jackson (drums/percussion), will perform stripped down versions of Susan’s original music as well as some of her favorite cover songs. Susan’s sound is an eclectic mix of bluesy jazz and pop; emotive, evocative, soft and sensual, sometimes loud and bawdy…yet always coming straight from the soul.

Crosstown Arts Summer 2023 resident artists will present artist talks.

Crosstown Arts presents Flamenco Memphis: Noche Flamenca, an evening of flamenco music and dance. Barcelona native dancer and choreographer, Noelia Garcia Carmona, along with guitarist Roy Brewer combine their years of experience and love of Flamenco in a night of Spanish magic and “duende!” The ensemble also includes visual artist and singer Melanie Pyron and flutist Mari Kamikura, who will blend their melodies with the rhythms of the guitar and dance.

As she has so eloquently accomplished over the past 25 years, acclaimed singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier has used her art once again to traverse the uncharted waters of the past few years. Her eleventh album, the first record in over 8 years consisting of all her own songs, Dark Enough to See the Stars, follows the profound antidote to trauma, Rifles & Rosary Beads, her 2018 collaborative work with wounded Iraq war veterans. It garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album, as well as a nomination for Album of the Year by the Americana Music Association. Publication of her first book, the illuminating Saved by a Song: The Art and Healing Power of Songwriting, in 2021, amplified the specific yet relatable world view that makes her work beloved. 

Grammy-nominated organist, winner of DownBeat magazine’s 2016 rising star poll and Hot Housemagazine’s 2019 poll, Pat Bianchi has established himself as one of the premier organists on the international scene today. His command of the instrument, harmonic prowess, rhythmic intensity and versatility are rivaled by few.