Bay Street Theater’s musical weekend will pivot from alternative rock to the soul sound of Motown, starting tomorrow at 8 with a performance by Radio Alanis, a tribute band that celebrates the music of Alanis Morissette, the Canadian-American singer-songwriter who burst onto the scene in 1995 with her album “Jagged Little Pill.”
The performance will draw heavily from that album, about which Owen Chaber of American University’s student radio station, writing 30 years after its release, said, “What stands out to me about this album, beyond just the insanely talented lyricism that Morissette wields, is its general impact that has surfaced in pop culture throughout the decades. It spoke to the angst of the 90s, and triggered a whole movement of record labels trying to capitalize that same gutsy and raw alternative essence.”
Radio Alanis, whose lead vocalist is Adrienne Ghilani, approaches the material with respect rather than imitation, according to Bay Street, going for musical precision and emotional authenticity over caricature. The result is a full-band rock show that invites audiences to reconnect with such classic songs as “You Oughta Know,” “Ironic,” “Hand in My Pocket,” and “All I Really Want.”
Tickets range from $44 to $56. A full-service lobby bar will open an hour before showtime.
That Motown Band will take the theater’s stage on Saturday afternoon at 4 in a benefit for the Butterfly Effect Project. The audience can expect such classics as “Heat Wave,” “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” “Baby Love,” “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” and “My Girl.”
While the band is familiar to East End music fans, it has played in New York City at The Bitter End and The Town Hall, as well as in Philadelphia’s Center City and Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. A veritable big band, it features the vocalists Garfield Fleming, William (Huddy-Hud) Hudson, Kevin Morris, Rosalind Brown, Tanesha Gary, Emily Grace Lucas, Natasha Nadia, and Nathina, as well as Lon Dolber, bass, Mike Marcos, percussion, Mike Vitale and Sanford Marten, saxophone, Tom Schizzano, keyboards, Keith Yaun, guitar, Shawn Murray, drums, and founding member, Johnny Gale.
The Butterfly Effect Project is dedicated to creating “safe spaces for young people to dream and succeed,” with a special commitment to those whose voices are often overlooked and opportunities limited. Its programs stretch across Long Island and provide options such as arts education, academic support, career preparation, college access and retention, garden clubs, and dance teams.
Tickets are $65.
