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Brace yourself this weekend and next as three performances electrify the Carpenter Performing Arts Center stage — the Miles Electric Band, guitarist Charo, and Broadway performer and actor Mandy Patinkin.
First up this Friday, Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. is the Miles Electric Band, celebrating Miles Davis’ centennial with what the Center describes as a “powerful homage” to the iconic jazz trumpeter.
Davis is perhaps best known for his 1959 album “Kind of Blue” — widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential jazz records of all time — though his decades-long career since then embraced a variety of forward-looking innovative sounds, including electronic music.
Born in May 1926, Davis would have turned 100 this year had he not passed away from a brain aneurysm in 1991, shortly after performing a career-overview concert at a jazz festival in Paris and a birthday celebration concert at the Hollywood Bowl.
An all-star ensemble at the Carpenter Center on Friday features Emmy and Grammy Award-winning producer and drummer Vince Wilburn Jr., along with Darryl Jones, Robert Irving III, Munyungo Jackson, Jean-Paul Bourelly, Antoine Roney, Keyon Harrold, DJ Logic and others.
Together, these Miles Davis alumni and next-generation innovators will create, according to the Center, a “remarkable fusion of past and present” that “expand[s] the boundaries of jazz while honoring the innovations of Miles Davis’s electric period.”
Guitarist Charo then takes the stage Saturday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m., bringing “vivacious humor, astounding flamenco guitar talent and sparkling stage presence,” according to the Carpenter Center.
Born and musically trained in Spain, Charo became a fixture on American television sitcoms and variety shows in the 1970s, known for her vibrant costuming and performance style, big hair and signature phrase “cuchi-cuchi.”
The Center describes Charo as a virtuoso guitarist, singer, composer, actress and comedienne who has been voted “Best Flamenco Guitarist” twice by Guitar Magazine.
She released the album “Fantastico! The International Remixes” in 2020, a series of dance tracks played in gay clubs around the world, and has guest-starred multiple times on the show “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and also performed on “Dancing with the Stars” in 2017 and appeared on the talk show “The View” in 2022.
“Charo is an American music and pop culture icon who has entertained millions during her stellar 50-year career,” the Center says. “She also entertains thousands of her gay fans in Pride festivals all over the country and international fans at music venues around the world.”
And next weekend, Broadway performer and Hollywood actor Mandy Patinkin brings his formidable singing to the Carpenter Center on Saturday, Feb. 7 at 8 p.m. in a “Being Alive” concert.
With Adam Ben-David on piano, Patinkin will offer a “dazzling musical celebration of life,” according to the Center.
“Mandy Patinkin electrifies our stage in an uplifting evening filled with beloved Broadway and classic American tunes — including favorites by Irving Berlin, Stephen Sondheim, Cole Porter, and Harry Chapin,” the Center says.
Beginning his career on Broadway in 1980 — winning a Tony Award as Che in “Evita” and Tony nomination for “Sunday in the Park with George” —Patinkin has also acted in films such as “The Princess Bride” and “Yentyl” and television series such as “Homeland,” “Criminal Minds,” “The Good Fight” and “Chicago Hope,” for which he won an Emmy Award.
“Whether you’ve come to love Mandy Patinkin from The Princess Bride or from his wildly popular social media posts, you have to experience him live on stage,” says Center Executive Director Megan Kline. “Mandy’s an utterly captivating force for celebrating the joys and struggles of being alive in this moment.”
Patinkin is also a prominent social activist, raising funds for organizations such as the Brady Campaign against gun violence, Doctors Without Borders, the Association to Benefit Children, the American Jewish World Service, and the ACLU. He is a board member of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies and works with the International Rescue Committee on the plight of refugees.
“Through music and storytelling,” the Center says, “Mandy captures the love, resilience and challenges of life in this powerful and passionate musical journey.”
For tickets to all three performances, visit CarpenterArts.org. The Carpenter Performing Arts Center is at 6200 E. Atherton St. on the Cal State Long Beach campus, with parking available in front of the theater in lot G12 for $10.