Muse/ique, the Pasadena-based performing arts organization led by Founder and Artistic Director Rachael Worby continues its 2021-22 season with “The House That Nat Built” at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, Sept. 22-23. (A third performance will be at the Skirball Cultural Center on Sept. 26.)
For all three performances, doors open at 6:30 p.m. with music starting at 7:30 p.m.
Joining Muse/ique’s roster of musicians are special guest vocalists Julia Harriman and Joshua Henry, and preeminent African American modern dance company, Lula Washington Dance Theatre.
“In the spirit of its 2021-22 season theme, ‘L.A. Composed: A Festival of Los Angeles Music,’ ‘The House that Nat Built’ explores the enduring music and remarkable L.A. legacy of Nat King Cole — an iconic artist who forever shaped the soundscape of the city,” a spokesperson said. “The House? Capitol Records, of course.”
Singer, actor and recording artist Julia Harriman, known for the role of Eliza Hamilton in the first national tour of “Hamilton,” makes her Muse/ique debut. Fellow “Hamilton” alum Joshua Henry returns to the Muse/ique stage. Henry is best known for portraying Haywood Patterson in “Kander” and Ebb’s 2010 musical “The Scottsboro Boys,” for which he received a Tony Award nomination. He portrayed the lead role of Aaron Burr in the first U.S. tour of “Hamilton.”
L.A.’s own Lula Washington Dance Theatre makes its Muse/ique debut as well. Founded by Lula Washington with her husband Erwin Washington, Lula Washington Dance Theatre is a “cultural force, presenting work about the Black experience locally, nationally and abroad,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
Over the past decade, Muse/ique has “curated and presented unexpected live music adventures that shake loose the customs, norms and barriers of the traditional concert-going experience,” a spokesperson said. “Muse/ique has never had a formal concert hall — the city is the venue — and no set genres or styles of performance are emphasized. Instead, cross-genre, multidisciplinary performances are placed in iconic community locales.”
General admission for nonmembers starts at $75, which includes a trial membership and admission to Muse/ique’s next three events. Members (starting at $200) will receive complimentary admission to all Muse/ique events.
For more information, visit muse-ique.com/.
