1 + 1 Productions
EVENTS
Rap Tour
The Youth Company ~ TYC
Young Adult Acting Group
WOMEN OF SEASON
"Them Women Got The Spirit"
"Shakespeare's Women"
"The Strong Black Woman"
"For Colored Girls..."
"Let's Talk"
"Sapphire"
Beside The Man
Accomplished Black Women
Harlem Renaissance
"SangItGurl"

1plus1 Productions

"There's No Phire Like Sapphire"

Lena Horne
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Prized since ancient times, the sapphire has been called the "gem of the heavens". 
 
 
 
(Spoken as he shakes his head and watches her walk away) "Umph...Umph... there is no phire like sapphire..." 
 
~James M.K. Spriggs   1992 Audio Recording Gig - Barring Springs, MI
 
 
 
This saying rings true with song stylists such as Etta James, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Lena Horne, Bessie Smith, Sarah Vaughan, ...the list is endless!
 
From the early 1900s until the present day, an incredible group of women jazz vocalists emerged from the ashes of disadvantage.  Many beginnings came from singing in the church choir, as the church was then and is now, a refuge in the Black community.  The fact that jazz grew out of the tradition of spirituals which evolved from recollections of the Mother country and African rhythms explains why there is an abundance of jazz singers that have been African-American.

A mellow mixture of voices as smooth as silk and as mighty as thunder, have flung open doors for the likes of Aretha, Melba, Dione, Jill Scott, india.arie, Whitney, and hundreds more...

The African-American female vocalists, some of whom are unknown to many, represented in "There's No Phire Like Sapphire" are forerunners in every sense of the word. They pursued their art during an era when skin color caused many doors to be slammed in their faces.

This production reinvests and honors the contributions of the women who sang from their spirits, and lent America the fare to take a free ride filled with sultry, sizzling, low-down, romantic, and all-inspiring song.

The performance artists/vocalist in this one hour staged production, in no way claim to possess the ability to sing like these greats.  What we do offer is our genuine radiation, from intense study,  research, and rehearsals.  Being vocalist within our own rights, we commemorate our ancestors, both living and passed on. We extend with great humility the contribution of our God-given talents, and lovingkindness. This production is surely one that all will enjoy! 
 

    "Let the blare of Negro jazz and the bellowing voice of Bessie Smith singing the blues penetrate the closed ears of the colored near-intellectuals until they listen and perhaps understand." ~Langston Hughes~

 
 

Ma Rainey
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Bessie Smith
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Ethel Waters
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Etta James
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Josephine Baker
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Ella Fitzgerald
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Ertha Kitt
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Dinah Washington
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and more...
 
 
 
 
 
Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog Jr.

Them that’s got shall get
Them that’s not shall lose
So the Bible said and it still is news
Mama may have, papa may have
But God bless the child that’s got his own
That’s got his own

Yes, the strong gets more
While the weak ones fade
Empty pockets don’t ever make the grade
Mama may have, papa may have
But God bless the child that’s got his own
That’s got his own...

 

 

Our 2010 "Sapphire" Tour is dedicated to the memory of

James M.K. Spriggs.

He gave us the name of this show.  Thank you brother/friend. 

Take Wings and FLY!

 

 



Billie Holiday Commerative Stamp
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Click On Stamp For Stamp Collection Information

For Tour Informantion and Scheduling
poetandactor@hotmail.com
 

"Edutainment At Its Finest"