Ernestine Jackson Stars in Long Wharf’s Lady Day

Two-time Tony Award nominee Ernestine Jackson will play legendary singer Billie Holliday in the Long Wharf Theatre production of Lanie Robertson’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill. Directed by Lonny Price, the show will run October 26-November 20 and will open officially on November 2.

Darryl G. Ivey will serve as musical director for the production and will play Jimmy Powers. The creative team also includes James Noone (sets), Tracy Christensen (costumes), Robert Wietzel (lighting), and David Stephen Baker (sound design).

The action of Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill takes place during one of Holliday’s last stage engagements. The show was produced Off-Broadway in 1986 and ran for nearly 300 performances. Robertson’s other plays include Nasty Little Secrets (about playwright Joe Orton) and Woman Before a Glass (about art collector Peggy Guggenheim).

Jackson received Tony nominations for her performances in Raisin and the 1977 revival of Guys and Dolls. She has also been seen on Broadway in the original production of Hello, Dolly! (Pearl Bailey company), Applause, and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. Price’s directorial credits include the Broadway productions of Master Harold and the Boys, A Class Act, and Urban Cowboy, as well as the Lincoln Center concert presentations of Passion, Candide, and Sweeney Todd.