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Musical about nightclub plans fundraising partyBy Times staff writer© St. Petersburg Times published October 27, 2002 ST. PETERSBURG -- A jazz band, an art auction and a chance to win a Satchmo photo print are among features at Monday's "rent party" for The Manhattan Casino, a musical about one of St. Petersburg's famous nightclubs. The event, which is to raise money for the production, is from 7 to 10 p.m. at the St. Petersburg Clay Co., 420 22nd St. S. Tickets are $10. They can purchased at the clay company, either in advance or at the door. For information, call 565-0196. The Manhattan was a major entertainment and social venue for the African-American community. The 22nd Street S club was host to blues, jazz and gospel stars from the 1930s to the 1960s. Louis Armstrong, James Brown, Mahalia Jackson, Dizzy Gillespie and Ray Charles are among the big-name performers who played there. A documentary about the club will be shown at the party, the 42nd Street Big Band will play, and one of the musical's songs will be performed. The 14-member 42nd Street band, directed by Bob Boyd, is one of the Tampa Bay area's musical fixtures. The Manhattan Casino, which opens in February at the Coliseum, is set in one of the Manhattan's heyday years, 1947. Bob Devin Jones, a playwright who specializes in African-American drama, wrote the play and is co-lyricist with actor Michele Lamar Richards. The production company is LiveArts Peninsula Foundation, the same group that put on Webb's City: The Musical. Bill Leavengood, who wrote the Webb's City script, is artistic director for The Manhattan Casino.
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