Divas take stage in CT
Featuring a Broadway legend, ‘Real Housewives’ countess and Spanish spitfire
Is Connecticut big enough for so many divas? Broadway legend Patti LuPone, sharp-tongued drag queen Bianca Del Rio, Countess Luann from “Real Housewives of New York City” and the irrepressible Charo all have concerts in the state this week.
Those women stand alone, but elsewhere duos and trios are all the rage with folk trios Talisk and Trials of Cato at The Kate, two “Wild ‘N Out” comedians at the Funny Bone, and musicians Dustin Bushnell and Rome Ramirez pairing up to try a new sound.
Another exciting pairing is that of a new Holocaust-themed documentary with a performance by Emmanuel Ax at the Garde Arts Center in New London. That stage will also accommodate at least two choirs and an orchestra.
Here are some of the top things to do and see this week in Connecticut.
BIANCA DEL RIO
The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Ave., Hartford
Still one of the most popular drag queens ever to appear on “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” Bianca Del Rio likes to challenge and provoke while dressed to the nines. She’s over-thetop hilarious even when her latest tour is titled “Dead Inside.” Feb. 28 at 8 p.m. $65. bushnell.org.
TALISK KATHARINE HEPBURN
Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook
The Irish folk trio Talisk returns to The Kate just over a year since they last played the venue. The Welsh/English folk trio The Trials of Cato is opening the show. Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m. $38. thekate.org.
‘HENNY: A LEGACY OF HOPE’
Garde Arts Center, 325 State St., New London
The Garde is screening a documentary about a German-born longtime Connecticut resident Henny Simon who, late in life, began telling her story of survival. The screening is a world premiere, and the event is augmented with a live performance of Beethoven’s Sonata Pathetique and Schoenberg’s Three Pieces for Piano, Opus 11 by world-renowned Emmanuel Ax, backed by the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and children’s choirs from New London and Simon’s hometown of Colchester. Feb. 29 at 7:30 p.m. $29-$138. gardearts. org.
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‘THE MOUSETRAP’ Curtain Call, 1349 Newfield Ave., Stamford
People must have been reading many mystery novels during the COVID shutdown because when they started returning to the theaters they wanted to see Agatha Christie plays. The Windham Theatre Guild did “Murder on the Orient Express” in March 2023, Westport Playhouse had a reading of “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” in June 2023 and White Rabbit Theatre did “And Then There Were None” in Feb. 2023, to name a few. The community theater institution Curtain Call in Stamford, which staged Christie’s “A Murder is Announced” a year ago, is now doing her most famous script, “The Mousetrap,” which Hartford Stage did extravagantly in the fall of 2022. Feb. 29 through March 24. Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. $35, $31 seniors, $23 students. curtaincallinc.com.
WE AIN’T DONE
YET WILD ‘N OUT COMEDY TOUR
Funny Bone Comedy Club, 194 Buckland Hills Dr. Suite 1054, Manchester
Mope Williams and Jay “Big JJ” Lewis have both been part of the “Wild ‘N Out” sketch comedy show on MTV. They’re both multi-threat talents whose other projects may include acting, playing music and rapping. March 1 at 7 p.m. at the Funny Bone Comedy Club. $32. hartford.funnybone.com.
BABYTRON
Toad’s Place, 300 York St., New Haven
Babytron, the Michigan rapper who gave us “Jesus Shuttleworth,” is at Toad’s Place with opening act Certified Trapper from Milwaukee. March 1 at 7:30 p.m. $30, $25 in advance, $175 meet and greet package. toadsplace.com/.
CHARO
Mohegan Sun Wolf Den, 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd., Uncasville
There was a time in the 1970s when you couldn’t turn on a TV talk show, a variety show or a “Love Boat/Fantasy Island” type series without encountering Charo. Known for her “Cuchi Cuchi” catchphrase and bubbly comedy routines based around her lack of fluency in English, she was also an accomplished flamenco guitarist who studied with Andrés Segovia and an all-around entertainer who worked with legendary bandleader husband Xavier Cugat. Charo is still entertaining in her early 70s and is doing a free show on March 1 at 8 p.m. at the Mohegan Sun Wolf Den. mohegansun. com.
COUNTESS LUANN Foxwoods Resort Casino, 350 Trolley Line Blvd., Mashantucket
Luann de Lesseps, aka Countess Luann, is arguably the most famous of all TV’s “The Real Housewives of New York City.” She’s still a TV star, most recently with “Luann and Sonja: Welcome To Crappie Lake.” Now she has a live cabaret show, “The Countess Cabaret,” which she is performing on March 2 at 8 p.m. at Foxwoods’ Great Cedar Showroom. $55.50$96.75. foxwoods.com.
PATTI LUPONE Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge, Ridgefield
Broadway diva Patti LuPone brings her latest solo concert act to Connecticut, where she
has lived for decades. In New York, her career started in the 1970s but soared when she starred in the original Broadway production of “Evita” in 1980. She’s known for enlivening major revivals of everything from “Gypsy” to “Sweeney Todd” to “Company.” She has a gift for making her solo number in any of those musicals into full little shows unto themselves, so you can imagine what she’s like in concert. LuPone will be accompanied by her musical director Joseph Thalken, an accomplished composer who has taught musical theater composition at Yale. March 2 at 7:30 p.m. $140-$195. ridgefieldplayhouse.org.
BLACK STONE CHERRY AND SAINT ANSONIA
The Webster, 31 Webster St., Hartford
Black Stone Cherry, the hard rock band from Kentucky, released their latest album “Screamin’ at the Sky” in September. It’s their eighth album in 18 years. The opening acts are somewhat less prolific. Saint Asonia, from Canada, was formed in 2014 and has two albums and two EPs (delightfully titled “Introvert” and “Extrovert”) to their name, while Maryland’s Any Given Sin has one album and one EP. March 2 at 7 p.m. $35, $800 VIP booth, $1,500 VIP suite. thewebsterct.com.
ROME & DUDDY Infinity Hall, 32 Front St., Hartford
They’ve been in the studio together, their bands have toured together and now they’re performing live as a duo. Rome Ramirez has been the lead singer for Sublime with Rome since 2008, and recently announced that he’ll be leaving that band sometime this year. Duddy B (or Dustin Bushnell) is the singer/guitarist for
The Dirty Heads. Ramirez co-wrote and sang The Dirty Heads’ hit “Lay Me Down.” Both their bands were full-blown blends of ska, hip-hop, funk and rock styles, so scaling it down has meant creating a whole new sound. Rome & Duddy tried touring together before, but COVID happened. This is something they’ve wanted to do for ages, and you’ll get to see why on March 2 at 8 p.m. at Infinity Hall Hartford. $35. infinityhall.com.