Join us SUNDAY, MAY 17 @ 2:30 PM for the AmBlue Jubilee from the incredible company of Always…Patsy Cline. Runs 70 minutes with no intermission. Tickets are $35 – no added fees.
Inspired by the Ozark Jubilee that featured Patsy Cline and other recording artists, don’t miss this one-day-only concert! The Jubilee will include original music and covers of beloved songs by Bob Dylan, George Jones, Joni Mitchell, Kacy Musgraves, Neil Young, and many more.
ARTISTS
NILKO ANDREAS – Since his Carnegie Hall solo debut in 2009, Colombian/American artists Nilko Andreas has established an international career as an award-winning classical guitarist, composer, music director, singer, and actor. He has performed across three continents as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral collaborator, and has spent over two decades living, producing, and performing in New York City. Mr. Andreas has appeared as soloist with orchestras including the Prague Symphony Orchestra, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra (China), Surabaya Symphony Orchestra (Indonesia), Baja California Orchestra (Mexico), and leading ensembles in Brazil and the United States. He has been featured in major international festivals in the U.S., Europe, and Latin America, and has collaborated with prominent composers and conductors from around the world. His work has been broadcast on Univision, WQXR, Time Warner TV, RCN, Fox News, and other international media, and he has recorded with multi-platinum artists. Deeply committed to Latin American music, Andreas frequently commissions and premieres new works. At Carnegie Hall he premiered Tukanos by Alba Potes and Concierto Camaleón by Ricardo Calderoni as part of the Amazonas Series, which he founded in 2010 to promote Latin American composers and environmental awareness. As a composer, his music spans film, theater, and dance; highlights include the acclaimed score for the silent film Pancho Villa’s Revenge (Flaherty Film Seminar) and award-winning collaborations with Artificio Theater on works by Federico García Lorca. An accomplished educator, he has given master classes and lectures at institutions such as Columbia University, Manhattan School of Music, NYU, Berklee College of Music, and universities throughout Latin America, Europe, and Asia. As an actor and singer, he is a member of Actors’ Equity and has portrayed Don Quixote (Man of La Mancha) and most recently 2026 El Gallo (The Fantasticks) to critical acclaim. He holds BM and MM degrees from the Manhattan School of Music in classical guitar, composition, and orchestral conducting, and began his musical training as a cellist at age five. Nilko Andreas currently lives in New York City with his partner Liz Chidester.www.lizandthelovelies.com/lizandnilko . He is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Latin American Chamber Music Society of New York and serves as Artistic Director of The AZLO Foundation. www.nilkoandreas.com
LIZ CHIDESTER is a proud Ensemble Member of American Blues Theatre! American Blues credits: Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. Other theatre credits: Lizzie, Queen of the Mist, Always, Patsy Cline (Firebrand Theatre – Company Member), The Old Man and the Old Moon, Phantom Folktales (PigPen Theatre Co./KC Rep), Así Canta Federico (Teatro La Tea NYC), Sundown, Yellow Moon (Raven Theatre), High Fidelity (Refuge Theatre Co.), Big River, Pumpboys and the Dinettes (Theatre at the Center), Frederick (Chicago Children’s Theatre) Ring of Fire (Mercury Theatre) Stupid F***ing Bird (Sideshow Theatre Co). Liz is an award winning singer/songwriter, actor, and teaching artist originally from the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. Chris Jones from the Chicago Tribune called her “one of the most truthful actors in this city.” She was a teaching artist for almost a decade at the Old Town School of Folk Music. She now resides in NYC and has performed in various cities throughout Europe and South America. She thanks everyone on the American Blues team for making it possible for her to perform in sweet home Chicago. www.lizandthelovelies.com
IAN PAUL CUSTER (keys & conductor) is a Chicago actor and musician and a proud ensemble member of American Blues Theater. American Blues credits include: Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (Jeff Award, Best Ensemble, Best Musical – Midsize), The Columnist, Little Shop of Horrors, It’s A Wonderful Life: Live in Chicago! (Jeff Nominations for Best Play/Musical of the Year) and The Spitfire Grill. Chicago credits: Ian has worked with the Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, TimeLine, Drury Lane, Marriott Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Writers Theatre and The Lyric Opera of Chicago. He is an accomplished jazz, blues, and rock n’ roll piano player, a rhythm guitarist, and a saxophonist. You can see Ian playing piano with his band The Real Time (@therealtime_band) and in his solo show, Piano Man, honoring the music of Billy Joel and other rock pianists from over the past 80 years. Ian received his BFA from The Theatre School at DePaul University. Check out what else Ian is up to at www.ianpaulcuster.com.
MOLLY HERNÁNDEZ is a proud artistic affiliate of American Blues Theater. Buddy Holly Story* (American Blues Theater); Berlin* (World Premiere Court Theatre); The Little Mermaid (Drury Lane); Revolution(s), Lucha Teotl*, American Mariachi*, Rust, A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre); Buddy Holly Story (Marriott Theatre); The Scorpions’ Sting (Lyric Opera); Into the Woods* (Paramount Theatre); Alice Through the Lookingglass* (Lookingglass Theatre, PBS); Into the Woods (Writer’s Theatre); Into the Breeches (Northlight Theatre); Masterclass (TimeLine Theatre); The Most Happy Fella (Theo Ubique). Television – Power: Book IV (STARZ); Chicago Med (NBC); Chicago PD (NBC); APB (FOX). Actors Gymnasium Circus Conservatory 2019, BA Spanish Loyola University Chicago 2018. Proud member of AEA and SAG/AFTRA. @mollymhernandez *Jeff Award
MICHAEL MAHLER is a proud ensemble member of American Blues Theater. Past Blues productions: It’s a Wonderful Life: Live in Chicago!, The Last Wide Open, Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story (Jeff Award – Best Music Direction), Little Shop of Horrors (Jeff nomination musical-midsize), Hank Williams: Lost Highway (Jeff Award musical midsize), and Side Man. Other recent roles include Pianist/Ensemble in The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk (Northlight); The Baker in Into the Woods (Writers); Ewart Dunlop in The Music Man, Jim Hardy in Holiday Inn, and Jack Singer in Honeymoon in Vegas (Marriott Theatre). Michael co-wrote the songs for the Netflix movie My Little Pony: A New Generation and contributed additional lyrics to Cameron Mackintosh’s most recent Broadway production of Miss Saigon. Other works as a composer/lyricist include An American Tail, The Secret of My Success, Miracle (Jeff Award – Best New Work), Diary of a Wimpy Kid, October Sky, The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes (Jeff Award – Best New Work), and Hero (Jeff Award – Best New Work). Michael is married to fellow ensemble member Dara Cameron and proud father to their son Ezra.
KIERAN McCABE was last seen at American Blues Theater in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (2018, Jeff Award – Best Ensemble), and he is happy to be back behind the kit. Local Chicago credits include: Sunny Afternoon (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre); Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (Marriott Theatre, Jeff Nom – Actor in Leading Role); Rock of Ages (Paramount Theatre); Verböten (The House Theatre); As You Like It, Next to Normal (Writer’s Theatre). He’s also worked regionally at Theatre Under the Stars, Ogunquit Playhouse, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Timber Lake Playhouse. Kieran holds a BA in English Creative Writing from Loyola University of Chicago. Kieran is a published recording artist as well as a licensed street performer in Chicago. You can listen to his musical projects Pinnings and The Oh Boys at kieranpmccabe.com / @kpmcbabe
LIOR SHRAGG – recent percussion/drumming work includes Waitress, Million Dollar Quartet (Paramount Theatre), The Band’s Visit (Writer’s Theatre), Brigadoon, Avenue Q (Music Theatre Works), Anthony Rapp’s Home for the Holidays (Lookingglass Theatre), It Came From Outer Space (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Spring Awakening, Rent (Porchlight Music Theatre), and Young Frankenstein (Mercury Theater Chicago). Proud WSU (BA), UA (MM), and OU (PHD) alum. Lior proudly endorses Omete Cymbals and ADV Pro-Audio IEMs. Instagram: @liornoteeyore and @liorratesgummies
LAUREN VOGEL – Wait, she’s… back? Yes, it would appear that Lauren Vogel is back (in baby’s arms), at the American Blues Theater, where she was once seen in the Jeff Award Winning Ensemble and Production of Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story. She has spent the last five years as a Los Felizian in Los Angeles, acting in films and trying to be on television. She currently is the producer of a Secret Radio Show, which, if you try hard enough, you might just find it. When she isn’t acting or producing, she settles for making a living at slangin’ the fiddle—something that you’ll see her do here. Thank you for coming, and remember, “If ever my life can be of any use to you, come take it.”