Radium Runway Kicks Off Bay Area Performances With Jazz Mafia, Circus Bella & Frederica Von Stade With Island Opera

Performances come complete with the dramatic backdrop of the San Francisco skyline, Friday, October 21 through October 23 at Alameda Point.

By: Sep. 22, 2022
Enter Your Email to Unlock This Article

Plus, get the best of BroadwayWorld delivered to your inbox, and unlimited access to our editorial content across the globe.




Existing user? Just click login.

Radium Runway Kicks Off Bay Area Performances With Jazz Mafia, Circus Bella & Frederica Von Stade With Island Opera

 

The three-day event featuring Jazz Mafia, Circus Bella and Island City Opera-with an appearance from internationally renowned mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade-will be the first in a series of events through 2023 to mark the proposed footprint of RADIUM, the future state of the art 500 seat theater and arts center on the grounds of the former Naval Air Station

Performances come complete with the dramatic backdrop of the San Francisco skyline, Friday, October 21 through October 23 at Alameda Point; all events are FREE and open to the public but RSVP via radiumpresents.org/radiumrunway is strongly encouraged


San Francisco, CA September 15 - RADIUM Presents is proud to announce Radium Runway, the first in a series of events at the former Alameda Naval Air station through 2023 in support of their ambitious plan to build RADIUM, a 500 seat theater and arts center there. The three-day event is FREE and will show off some prime examples of the talent who call the Bay Area home: Jazz Mafia, Circus Bella, and Island City Opera, that will include an appearance by the legendary mezzo soprano Frederica von Stade, who not only lives in Alameda, but is a key player in the drive to make RADIUM a reality. Radium Runway will take place on the proposed footprint of the theater and performance center and can be thought of as an early prototype of sorts.

"Bringing the arts to Alameda in a significant way is a very important piece in completing the intriguing puzzle that is the Alameda of tomorrow," says Christopher Seiwald, the founder of RADIUM PRESENTS. "And we are committed to making that happen. I'm excited and proud to be part of the effort alongside Fredericka von Stade. When it comes to creating and building community, the arts matter, full stop."

The variety of talents taking the stage is a deft mix designed to appeal to a cross section of audiences. Fans of Jazz and Hip Hop will have the opportunity to watch and listen to Jazz Mafia starting at 6PM the evening of Friday, October 21. Known for their adventurous sound that fuses strings, beats, vocalists and rappers, the group might be local, but have achieved national headlining status with gigs at the Monterey Jazz Festival, Newport Jazz Festival and albums featuring a number of stellar collaborators including Lyrics Born, Ledesi, Blackalicious and others. The San Francisco Chronicle described their sound as a "mix 'n' mash of funk, hip-hop and jazz" that "embraces the genre-crossing tradition of great Bay Area bands like Tower of Power and Santana." jazzmafia.com


Saturday and Sunday sees the exuberance meter holding steading with two performances each afternoon from Circus Bella who will bring Flip * Flop * Fly to the shores of Alameda. In their quest to delight and amaze, the troupe of acrobats, aerialists, jugglers and clowns will pull out the stops for audiences of all ages in what is now the company's 13th season. Clocking in at 60 minutes and accompanied live by Rob Reich and his six-piece Circus Bella All-Star band, this show is billed as a "modern twist on a One-Ring Circus." www.circusbella.org


On Saturday evening Island City Opera will take to the stage and present a line-up of brilliant singers, including the internationally beloved Frederica von Stade, Island City Opera founder Eileen Meredith, as well as Alameda's own Chelsea Hollow (who counts glorious high whistle tones like no one else .... we're talking to you Mariah Carey), as well as the glorious sounds of tenor Alex Boyer.

The program will be a mix of favorite standards, original compositions and inspiring classics. Alex Katsman and Ron Borelli will accompany the singers in the style to which they've become accustomed!

Both Frederica and Eileen have dedicated themselves to the mission of RADIUM and are driving forces behind the entire Radium Runway series. islandcityopera.org

Plans call for the proposed theater and performance venue RADIUM to be built on the Alameda waterfront as part of the newly revitalized Alameda Point. With its breathtaking views of the San Francisco skyline and bay the aim is for RADIUM to be home to live and broadcast performances from internationally-acclaimed guest performers. In addition,it will offer a rich selection of new work from East Bay artists, as well as function a space for creation and learning for students in the fields of music, dance, opera, theater, literary and visual arts.

The organization behind RADIUM is Radiumpresents.org founded by Christopher Seiwald who is also the founder of Perforce Software; Fredericka von Stade is Artistic Advisor to the organization.

 




Videos