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THE SONGS OF BLUE JONI MITCHELL SYNOPSIS “As exquisite a biography as you’re likely to hear.” AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW Australian cabaret chanteuse and musical theatre star, Queenie van de Zandt, renowned for her artful storytelling and raw, emotive vocals, brings to you the songs, stories and art of the musical legend that is Joni Mitchell. Renaissance woman, painter and poet, Mitchell created a soundtrack for the Woodstock generation. “Joni is my favourite singer/songwriter and I’ve been wanting to do a show about her and her music for some time,” said Queenie. “She gave a daughter up for adoption early in her career and her music was so influenced by this experience. When I gave birth to my daughter, it felt like a perfect time to explore this mother and daughter relationship and the effect that becoming a parent has on your creativity.” In BLUE: The Songs of Joni Mitchell, Queenie, along with legendary musical director Max Lambert and a live band, explores her love of all things Joni. Using voice overs and intimate storytelling, Queenie takes us on a sonic journey through her life, loses and loves, affectionately reinterpreting Joni Mitchell’s melancholy music, and intimately revealing the stories behind some of her most haunting songs such as A Case of You, Both Sides Now and Little Green. Following rave reviews, and sell-out performances in 2017 at the Queensland and Melbourne Cabaret Festivals and the Hayes Theatre in Sydney, BLUE: The Songs of Joni Mitchell, has continued its success touring Australia and the US in 2018 with more dates set for 2019 and beyond. Along the way it has won 3 prestigious theatre awards, as well as being nominated for the Helpmann Award for Best Cabaret Performer and the Sydney Theatre Award for Best Cabaret Production. BLUE: THE Songs of Joni Mitchell, is a beguiling night of melancholic songs, poetic storytelling and haunting vocals in a perfect intimate setting. AWARDS REVIEWS “…the exceptional, “a stunning vocal powerhouse that is Queenie van de Zandt…uses evocative show… her thrilling voice and soaring range to explore the music of a highlight of the Joni Mitchell…” Queensland Cabaret KATE HERBERT, HERALD SUN Festival” “Queenie van de Zandt... MUSTDOBRISBANE.COM summoned her muse to perfection, with “The audience was enraptured and awe-inspiring soul shouting for more… This is a and emotion, in song” wonderful celebration of Joni Mitchell CAMERON WOODHEAD, SYDNEY MORNING HERALD and the emotional connections we form with music that is borne out of emotion. It deserves to be a huge success” “…perfect for SCENESTR.COM.AU ardent fans of “Queenie van de Zandt performed as exquisite a biography as you’re likely to hear. Near aural Joni and for perfection…It’s a well-written show…Queenie the novice” distilled Joni Mitchell’s life, liaisons, and art, into a tincture of love and grace… THE CREATIVE ISSUE extraordinary and emotional…Queenie does a magnificent job” AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW “A beguiling night of melancholic songs, poetic storytelling and haunting vocals…perfect intimate setting…incredible empathy and emotion…all beautifully sung…Lambert provides wonderfully sensitive accompaniment on the piano…Van de Zandt and Lambert have crafted a gently melancholic, poetic show that can speak to anyone regardless of whether you know the material, but fans of Mitchell’s music will find it particularly appealing.” JO LITSON, LIMELIGHT MAGAZINE VIDEO & PHOTOS PROMO REEL: TO WATCH THE PROMO REEL CLICK HERE PRESS IMAGES THE SONGS OF BLUE JONI MITCHELL TECHINCAL SPECS WE TOUR WITH: 66 Flickering Flameless 6pcs Battery Operated LED Pillar Candles 7 Rugs for the floor Easel Painting Cabaret stool Table cloth Tea pot Tea cup Pot full of paint brushes VENUE TO PROVIDE: 2 x hand-held microphones - Shure SM58 or equivalent 1 x round-based straight adjustable stand 1 x angled boom mic stand 2 x music stands 3 x sconces 2 DI’s 1 x small, short cocktail table 4 x fold-back wedges (2 sends) MP3 playback facilities for PA Standard lighting rig with minimum 3 focussed specials Smoke or haze (if possible) INSTRUMENTATION: Ideally, we would do the show with a 3-piece band, but if budget does not permit we can perform it with just piano/keyboard and voice. Piano (MD – Max Lambert – touring party) Guitar (Pick up local player) Double Bass (Pick up local player) THE SONGS OF BLUE JONI MITCHELL CREATIVES QUEENIE VAN DE ZANDT WRITER / PERFORMER Queenie van de Zandt is well-known for her incredible versatility as a performer having worked extensively in musical theatre, plays, cabaret, on television and film, and as a recording artist, comedienne and writer. On television Queenie has worked on: Winners & Losers, Very Small Business; City Homicide, Da Kath & Kim Code; Let Loose Live; All Saints; Denton; Mornings with Kerri-Anne; Good Morning Australia; The Midday Show; The 7.30 Report and The Mick Molloy Show and in theatre she has worked for companies throughout Australia including STC, QTC, The Ensemble, La Boite and the Malthouse, in plays such as: Women of Troy; Face to Face; Rabbit Hole; Absent Friends; Abigail’s Party; A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Barmaids; Caucasian Chalk Circle; Secret Bridesmaids’ Business; The Vagina Monologues; The Road to the She-Devil’s Salon; Furious; and Speaking in Tongues. Queenie has also had roles in the films: Scooby Doo - The Movie, Salem’s Lot, and played the leading role of Margo in the Aussie feature film Girl Clock. However, Queenie is still probably best known for her extensive work in musical theatre and cabaret. Queenie has played leading roles in hit musicals such as: Funny Girl, Into the Woods, King Kong, Smoke & Mirrors, Oliver!, The Full Monty, Anything Goes, Cabaret, The Boy from Oz, Eureka – The Musical, I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, Hair, and Follies. In her early career she also performed in such classic musicals as Les Misérables and The Threepenny Opera. As a writer, Queenie has co-written two albums of original music: Amazon Woman and Other Stories and her subsequent one-woman cabaret show, Amazon Woman and Other Stories, performed at music and cabaret festivals and music venues all over Australia. Her two other critically acclaimed and award nominated cabaret shows, CABARET - In 12 Easy Steps and The Best (and Worst) of Queenie van de Zandt have toured to every major cabaret festival in Australia. In 2014 Queenie released Queenie van de Zandt - Live in Cabaret - a live recording of one of her cabaret performances and in 2017 Queenie performed her new show, BLUE: The Songs of Joni Mitchell, to sold-out houses in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. The show was subsequently nominated for the Sydney Theatre Award, the Helpmann Award and won the Glug and Broadway World – Sydney Awards for Best Cabaret and Best Cabaret Performer. The show is touring around Australia and Internationally in 2018/19. Queenie’s alter-ego, Jan van de Stool, the madcap International Musical Therapist gathered a national cult following, when she appeared on Australia’s Got Talent in early 2016. Her one-woman show I GET THE MUSIC IN YOU an evening with Jan van de Stool which she co-wrote with Tony Taylor, performed to packed houses in Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane and Adelaide and in 2006 played to sold-out houses and great critical acclaim for an extended season at the Ensemble Theatre in Sydney. The show was nominated for both the Green Room Awards and the Sydney Theatre Awards and toured twice to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Jan van de Stool has been seen by over 1 million Australians THE SONGS OF BLUE JONI MITCHELL CREATIVES through her shows, her work in corporate theatre and her online presence on YouTube and social media. In 2017 Jan was seen on Foxtel Arts and ABC, co-hosting the Helpmann Awards. Her new show for Jan – PARTING THE RED CURTAINS – will be seen in theatres around Australia in 2019. Queenie has been nominated for 18 major theatre awards for her work in musicals, theatre and cabaret, winning 6 times, including the 2008 Jeffry Joynton-Smith Memorial Glug Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Play, the 2008 AussieTheatre.com Award for Best Female Actor and the 1997 MEAA A.C.T. Green Room Award. The many awards she has been nominated for include: 2015, 2014, 2009, 2008 and 2005 Green Room Awards; 2009 - Glug Award for Best Actress; 2007- 2 AussieTheatre.com Awards; a 2006 - Sydney Theatre Award; and a 2004 - Helpmann Award. Queenie has been a proud member of the MEAA since 1989. MAX LAMBERT WRITER / MUSICAL DIRECTOR Max Lambert is one of Australia’s most talented and prolific composers, arrangers, musicians and musical directors. Max studied at the Conservatorium of Music in Sydney. His composing credits for the STC include Two Weeks With The Queen, Miracle City (New Stages, with Nick Enright), The White Devil, Arcadia, St. Joan, The Temple, Coriolanus (with Martin Armiger), The Girl Who Saw Everything, Harold In Italy, Darlinghurst Nights, Siestas In A Pink Hotel, and Philadelphia Story. Other credits include M Butterfly, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll and Kid Stakes (MTC), A Month In The Country and After The Ball (QTC), You and the Night and the House Wine (Nimrod), On The Wallaby and Sweeney Todd (Q Theatre), Gentlemen Only (Kinselas), Sydney Dance Company’s An Evening, Sirens, Flashbacks and Deadly Sins. Max has recorded Albums with Kate Ceberano and Wendy Matthews, and with Grace Knight and Vince Jones for Stringer and Come In Spinner. He has also recorded with Judi Connelli, Renee Geyer, Paul Kelly, Iva Davies and Icehouse. He has accompanied many of Australia’s most popular artists including Judi Connelli, Rhonda Burchmore, Geraldine Turner, Todd McKenney, Christine Anu, Kerrie Biddell, Queenie van de Zandt and Su Cruickshank.