“… the key to the success of this Trustus show lies squarely at the feet of the women involved in its production.”

Katrina Garvin as Billie Holiday - photo by Jerimiah Greene

Had you asked me last week if I knew who Billie Holiday was, I would have answered, Of course! Who doesn’t know about Billie Holiday?

But I would have been wrong.

I learned how much I didn’t know about Billie Holiday last Saturday night when I attended the second performance of Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill at Trustus Theatre, the company’s first presentation since quarantine.

Set in 1959 at the seedy South Philly Emerson’s Bar and Grill on a fictional night just before her death from Cirrhosis later that year, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill, written by Lanie Robertson, takes the audience back in time and gives Holiday the microphone to do more than sing. Played by seasoned musical theatre artist Katrina Garvin, Billie Holiday tells her life story in provocative anecdotes in between performing more than a dozen of the title character’s classic tunes.

In an almost disturbingly casual manner we learn throughout the evening how the abuses of her childhood, including a rape at age 10, transformed Eleanora Fagan, which was Holiday’s birth name, into the stage’s Billie Holiday who adopted the name of her father, Clarence Halliday, a jazz musician who had abandoned her and her mother when Eleanora was born. We also learn about Holiday’s struggles with addiction and crippling insecurity both likely resulting from the institutional racism that plagued her professional life from the time she began singing in nightclubs in Harlem as a teenager, to her stint in prison by way of Carnegie Hall, until her untimely death at age 44.

Lady Day premiered in Atlanta in 1986 before moving to Off-Broadway and finally to Broadway in 2014 where it featured the incredible Audra McDonald in the title role. It is remarkable how well the play has held up and how fitting it is that Trustus Theatre decided to present it at this time of a renewed dedication to social justice in the country. The fact that it is essentially a one-woman show, with a musical accompanist, makes it a good choice in our quasi post-Covid times, too.

Lady Day opened to a sold-out Columbia audience and the house was almost full on Saturday, followed by another sold-out show on Sunday afternoon. I don’t expect many empty seats in the run of this show, and the key to the success of this Trustus show lies squarely at the feet of the women involved in its production.

Katrina Garvin, who most may remember from previous Trustus performances like Dreamgirls, In the Red Brown Water, and Constance performing under the name Katrina Blanding, was perfectly cast in the starring role as Billie Holiday. To say that Garvin embodies Holiday is an understatement. Keep in mind that Garvin already brings to the stage exceptional vocal skills but fortified with the wisdom imbued via direction from Jocelyn Sanders and backed up with dialect coaching by Marybeth Gorman and vocal coaching from Katie Leitner, Garvin subsequently delivers a performance that literally takes the audience’s breath away. And this is no small challenge given Holiday’s distinctive vocal stylings.

Garvin conveys all the same pain, frustration, and despondency that Holiday brought to the stage as well as the remarkable talent behind her interpretations of such difficult numbers as What a Little Moonlight Can Do and even Strange Fruit, one of the most painfully powerful songs ever written or performed.

Garvin’s stage partner, Shannon Pinkney in the role of Holiday’s piano accompanist, Jimmy Powers, more than holds up his corner of the stage with exceptional musical chops whether he accompanies Garvin or takes over the theatre for an extended solo while Garvin exits for a brief period near the end of the performance.

Terrance Henderson, Garvin’s musical partner in IndigoSOUL (along with Kendrick Marion), served as movement coach to Garvin, and Colleen Kelly served as stage manager for Sanders. Bad Boy Roy Brasley, Jr. styled Garvin’s hair into an elegant updo with a shock of white gardenias wrapped around the back; Abigail McNeely was costume designer; and Curtis Smoak handled lighting and the simple but convincing set for the show, easily creating the feeling that we were all sipping our drinks as we watched Lady Day at the end of her career and, sadder still, the premature end of her days.

Kudos to Trustus Theatre for bringing us back in our roles as audience members with the perfectly timed presentation of a play that reminds us of the power of art to confront the inadequacies of an imperfect culture.

Lady Day will run through June 20th on Thursdays through Sundays. For tickets and more information, visit Trustus.org.

And be sure to visit the lobby for an outstanding exhibit of art by Lori Isom. (See Below)

“It’s been a journey but I’m at peace nowadays.”

Torres Fontain, Jr. photo by Brailey Johnson

Hi Torres, and thanks for agreeing to virtually talk with Jasper. We’d like to use this interview as an opportunity for readers who don’t know you yet to get to know you as an artist and arts leader, so let’s start off with an introduction that will get all those basic demographics out of the way.

● Where did you grow up and go to school, how old are you, what are your pronouns, and what terminology do you use to identify yourself as an artist?

I am happy to virtually sit down and talk with Jasper. For those who don’t know, my name is Torres Fontain (he/him) and I’m a product of Camden, SC, home of the Camden High Bulldogs. I am a 29 year old filmmaker and voiceover artist.

● I know you worked at the Nickelodeon (CFS) until a year or so ago. What did you do there and, if you’d like to, please take a moment and tell us about why you left that position?

My time at The Nick was quite unique. My last job title was Theater Operations Manager however I started as an intern after I was foisted onto the then Director of Media Education, Sherard Duvall.

Quick backstory: I had previously interned for Cynthia Hardy’s tv and radio show and I was an awful intern–just all around bad. Cynthia showed me a lot of grace though, she even paid me, which seems like a miracle in hindsight. I worked so hard though so I at least had that going for me. My transfer over to the Nick was like that episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, where Larry David couldn’t fire his assistant so he passed her off to someone else. I was the bad assistant. Luckily, Sherard, the “someone else”, took me in willingly.

In 2013 I worked with him teaching Come Around My Way, a new after school media literacy and film production class that we taught at CA Johnson High School. I worked with Sherard for a bit and when he left, I taught CAMW with two other amazing artists, Jessa Gaitor and Josh Yates. At the same time I was working part-time as a theater manager and volunteer coordinator. I ended up moving to Atlanta in 2017 where I freelanced but moved right back to Columbia after I was presented with some stability in the form of a job offer from The Nick.

As the Operations Manager, I did a little bit of everything but mostly I managed the part-time staff and the volunteers. I also took care of the facilities which, in that old building, took up way too much of my time. My ultimate goal in that position was to help make the space more safe and inclusive. I kept this in mind when hiring and when bringing in new volunteers. I’m all about people. I put a lot of care into the folx I worked with and definitely got a lot back. This is why being laid off in May of last year was disappointing. My friends at the Nick were my friends outside of the Nick.

● We’d love to hear more about how you perceive the situation at the Nick now. Are you satisfied with the response of the board of directors to the important problems you and Mahkia Greene identified?

I think we made it pretty clear in our open letter what our departure was like. To be blunt: the CFS leaders used the pandemic to fire everyone. It was done sloppily with zero care. They also made a couple of “fuck you” moves just to let us know that they didn’t take too kindly to a few of us raising concerns about the culture of the Nick before the pandemic hit. People can read all about that in the letter.

I do not currently support the Columbia Film Society nor do I support or approve of its current leaders. It honestly feels strange and a bit bold to think I should have some sort of approval over anything that goes on there now, but in my experience it has done more harm than good when I take the “humble” route and fail to stand in my power. I was there for almost a 5th of the organization's existence. Only a handful of people had been there longer. What was even more valuable was that I spoke to the folx who held positions at CFS before me and the folx who held positions before them. I’m even friends with volunteers who were there since day 1. I think it’s safe that I have a little audacity to express my disapproval.

With that being said, we were very disappointed in the board’s response or rather their lack of response to our open letter. Some of us got severance packages and I think they expected us to be happy with that but our letter was written to address things we did not want to see continue. Mahkia and I were prepared to support the Nick in becoming as safe of a space as possible. Unfortunately they doubled down on the white supremacy. Of all the bullshit though I think I’m most upset that I had to reactivate my Facebook page to keep people updated with everything. This, to me, is truly unforgivable.

● How have you been using your time since leaving the Nick?

Well in a way, being laid off was the best thing that could have happened for me. It was a chance to take a real break. I had been working so hard and my position was taking a toll on me. I’m used to doing a lot of physical work, pushing the limits of my body. I’ve been an athlete my whole life. I did not expect to be so burnt out emotionally though. So I spent some time grieving, while collecting money from the government of course. I have to mention how grateful I am to have an amazing family. The support from my Mama and Daddy saved me. Spending time with my sisters and my nephews saved me. I owe it all to them.

But I had to get to work eventually. So I did some work with SCRJI (South Carolina Restorative Justice Initiative) and I also did a few podcast episodes with some amazing artists and friends. I joined a virtual workout group, edited a film, and recommitted to my spiritual practices. It’s been a journey but I’m at peace nowadays. Now if only this country could conquer a global pandemic we might be cookin’ with grease!

● I understand that you have some work with the Sundance Film Festival coming up. What can you tell us about that?

Yes! So Sundance chose the Luminal Theater to host films here in Columbia and I’m helping the founder of the Luminal, Curtis Caesar John, with some editing. I’m also helping host some panel discussions. The only thing I love more than talking about film is listening to other filmmakers talk about film so it’s really exciting to get paid to do that.

● And if I’m not mistaken you are one of the organizers of the Frame x Frame Club, is that right? Can you tell us more about this project? Is the Frame x Frame club open to the public or is it by invitation only?

Yes, FxF is our baby. We’re lovers of independent film and for the past few years, this team of people have been the ones moderating the critical dialogue in our community. We want to continue to engage with our people in this way. “Think book club but with films”– is what we say. Our contributors are all former CFS employees but anyone can join the discussions. We go live once a month and discuss a film selected by one of our contributors. For now, we only choose films that are available on Kanopy because it’s free with an active library card. Maybe we’ll expand to Netflix or something else in the future we’ll see.

● What else is going on with you? We’d love to hear about any other projects you have going on.

I’m currently working on launching my podcast next month. I don’t want to drop the name yet because it might change but it’s going to be something special. I’m also writing and editing for a web series that I can’t say much about but some real talented people are involved and I think it will be huge for SC.

● Is there anything that I didn’t ask you about that you’d like to talk about?

I wouldn’t have expected anyone to know to ask about it because this is a new very new thing for me but I’m finally pursuing my lifelong dream of being a voiceover artist! I’m still working on my demo reel but it’s been a fun and difficult journey so far. If there’s anyone reading this that needs a good voice for something, hit me up, I’m available!

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Thanks, Torres, for bringing us up to date on what you’re up to and some other happenings in the MIdlands-area film community.

While Sundance at the Luminal ends today, you can read more about the project at Luminal Theatre. (The Luminal Theater is a nomadic cinema that brings Black film straight to the people.)

REVIEW: Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Brings Billie Holiday Back