New Year’s Eve at the Apollo — Featuring the Cab Calloway Orchestra and the Rhythm Revue Dance Party with Felix Hernandez
For what promises to be the biggest New Year’s bash in the city, the historic Apollo Theater will be transformed into a clubgoer’s paradise. The main theater will be converted to a dance floor as many of the seats will be removed so that patrons can break out their best moves in the orchestra - and even on the Apollo’s hallowed stage - to the sounds of the Cab Calloway Orchestra, led by the late, great bandleader’s grandson, C. Calloway Brooks, and famed Rhythm Revue DJ Felix Fernandez spinning the best in classic soul and R&B. Patrons will also be able to mingle and “get their party on” in the Apollo’s other event space, the Soundstage.
“This is the first time we have ever done something like this. The idea of turning the Apollo into a big club for the New Year’s celebration is just so unique. Only a lucky group of individuals will be able to say ‘I brought my New Year in dancing on the Apollo Stage’. It’s just going to be so much fun,” exclaims Laura Greer, VP of programming for the Apollo Theater.
Cab Calloway was born December 25, 1907 and in honor of his centennial, the evening will highlight the depth and influence of Cab Calloway’s legacy, featuring the Cab Calloway Orchestra under the direction of his grandson C. Calloway Brooks. Using vintage orchestrations from the famed bandleader as a starting point, these stellar Jazz musicians will recreate the unforgettable sensation of Calloway’s high-energy show—blending great music with the great dances of the swing era to explode onto the Apollo stage Cab Calloway once called home. This unadulterated swing orchestra will introduce new audiences to Calloway’s extensive body of work, reacquaint those already familiar with this one-of-a-kind musical genius, and will literally have partygoers dancing in the aisles.
Also on hand to entertain, will be mix master Felix Hernandez with his Rhythm Revue Dance Party. Now in its 18th year on radio, Rhythm Revue’s blend of classic soul and R&B music received the 2000 March of Dimes A.I.R. (Achievement in Radio) Award for the Best Weekend Program in New York, and was named New York’s Best Radio Show by New York Magazine. Felix’s Rhythm Revue dance parties in New York City consistently draw thousands of soul-starved dancers. The dances began in 1991 and are now in their 16th season.
About Cab Calloway
The legendary Cab Calloway was an energetic showman, a gifted singer, a talented actor and a trendsetting fashion plate. Calloway was the first African American to sell over one million copies with his song “Minnie the Moocher” and managed to shatter every record for all-black band audiences.
Hired as a replacement for the Duke Ellington Orchestra in the early 1930s at The Cotton Club, Cab Calloway and his Orchestra proved so popular that his band became the “co-house” band with Ellington’s. Their popularity grew even more because of the NBC, twice-weekly, live national radio broadcasts from the club. As a result of these appearances, Calloway was able to break the major broadcast network color barrier to become one of the top grossing acts in Jazz. His orchestra became the launching pad for such Jazz greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Ben Webster, Milt Hinton, and Doc Cheatham, among others.
His lasting influence on popular music and culture is undeniable. Several of his songs including “Minnie the Moocher”, “St. James Infirmary Blues” and “The Old Man Of The Mountain” went on to be immortalized in such animated shorts as Betty Boop and Snow White. Through the magic of rotoscoping, audiences watching these cartoons were able to experience not only Calloway’s inimitable vocal stylings, but his trademark dances as well. Cab’s singing, dancing, comedic personality and flashy elegance made him a star well beyond the confines of the Jazz world as he appeared in a number of films and stage productions that utilized both his acting and singing talents including The Cincinnati Kid alongside Steve McQueen and Ann-Margret; a very successful all-black revival of Hello, Dolly! starring Pearl Bailey and the 80’s hit film The Blues Brothers. Calloway’s impact could have ended there, but cameo appearances in film and videos for the likes of Spike Lee and Janet Jackson further imbedded his signature style in the iconography of today’s popular culture. An artist leagues ahead of his time, Cab Calloway never stopped performing until his death in 1995.