Thelma Houston
Disco diva Thelma Houston makes another welcome return to Teatro ZinZanni in this production. Best known for her 1977 smash hit "Don't Leave Me This Way," a dance-floor-filling rendition of the Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes classic, Houston got her start singing gospel with the renowned Art Reynolds Singers in the late '60s. Her emotive style and passionate vocal delivery caught the attention of industry moguls and soon Houston launched a pop and r&b recording career all her own. In 1972 Houston was the first artist signed to Motown's new MoWest label and recorded several top-20 r&b hits before striking Grammy® gold in '77. Houston has performed and recorded with some of the biggest names in pop and r&b, including Aretha Franklin, Mary Wilson, Niles Rogers, Phoebe Snow, Chaka Kahn, Mavis Staples, CeCe Penison, Patti LaBelle, Sammy Davis, Jr., Lou Rawls, Smokey Robinson, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Bill Cosby, and Dionne Warwick. She has appeared in both Seattle and San Francisco ZinZanni productions.
Thelma Houston
Disco diva Thelma Houston makes another welcome return to Teatro ZinZanni in this production. Best known for her 1977 smash hit "Don't Leave Me This Way," a dance-floor-filling rendition of the Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes classic, Houston got her start singing gospel with the renowned Art Reynolds Singers in the late '60s. Her emotive style and passionate vocal delivery caught the attention of industry moguls and soon Houston launched a pop and r&b recording career all her own. In 1972 Houston was the first artist signed to Motown's new MoWest label and recorded several top-20 r&b hits before striking Grammy® gold in '77. Houston has performed and recorded with some of the biggest names in pop and r&b, including Aretha Franklin, Mary Wilson, Niles Rogers, Phoebe Snow, Chaka Kahn, Mavis Staples, CeCe Penison, Patti LaBelle, Sammy Davis, Jr., Lou Rawls, Smokey Robinson, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Bill Cosby, and Dionne Warwick. She has appeared in both Seattle and San Francisco ZinZanni productions.
Christine Deaver
An actor, singer, writer, director and voiceover artist, Christine Deaver has worked extensively in theatre, film, and television in L.A. and abroad. Some favorite roles include performance artist Elsa Lasker-Schuler in Nosferatu, the over-sexed babysitter in the CBS sitcom, Yes Dear, Tammy Wynette and Anita Bryant in Reagan's Women, white trash mama, Lacy, in the indie film Stalled, Steve Martin's Italian sister in the film My Blue Heaven (...she ended up on the cutting room floor, but she's not bitter... well, maybe a little). Christine is a nominee and recipient of numerous Garland, Ovation and L.A. Weekly awards for her work in the theatre and as a member of the Zoo District Theatre Company. She has written and performed several one-woman shows including Ah, Families, Leave it to Deaver, and Bodacious, and toured them throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Recently, Christine was seen as the formidable Russian spy in the 60's homage The Defenders, as the power-hungry fire inspector in Empire Hotel, and as the voices of Sarah Palin, Heidi Montag, Carrie Bradshaw and a plethora of others in the series The Yards. She comes direct from the highly successful run of Beaumount and Caswell in the Seattle tent, co-starring with Kevin Kent.
El Vez
Sweeping through the crowd with the grace of a 1959 Coupe de Ville, Teatro ZinZanni's glittering crooner is the legendary Mexican Elvis, El Vez. "Born" the love child of Charo and the true King, El Vez has been taking care of business and preaching Elvis love and Chicano power since he was old enough to dress himself in gold lame. Audiences around the world swoon for his twisting salsa-hips and Latino renditions of Presley classics such as "En el Barrio," "Está Bien, Mamacita," and "Viva La Raza." El Vez has numerous recordings under his studded white belt, including "Graciasland" and "G.I. Ay, Ay! Blues." He has been a popular feature of several Teatro ZinZanni productions.
Les Petits Frères
Les Petits Frères (Gregory Marquet, Mickael Bajazet, Domitil Aillot) was founded in 1993 at the internationally acclaimed Annie Fratellini Circus School in Paris, where they were trained in the fine arts of the circus by master teachers, Davis Bogino and Nelly Rachman. The European press called them the "Floating Act" because of their unique ability to defy gravity with graceful aerial acrobatics. The wit and charm of their unforgettable act has been captivating audiences around the world for many years. In 1999 they toured the U. S. with Barnum's Kaleidoscape. In recent years they have performed at some of the best venues in the world including Cirque D'Hiver Bouglione in Paris and Apollo Variété in Düsseldorf, Tiger Palast in Frankfurt, Winter Garden in Berlin, and Teatro ZinZanni in Seattle and San Francisco.
Erika & Andrew
Using the daring strength of aerial acrobatics with the passionate sensuality of dance, Andrew Adams and Erika Gilfether have been taking their love story to the air since 1999 when they first performed together with The Midnight Circus in Chicago. Andrew, a graduate of the theatre program at Bates College, trained with Vermont's Circus Smirkus and toured New England for seven summers. Erika graduated from N.Y.U.'S Tisch School of the Arts with a degree in dance and performed professionally with dance companies in New York and Chicago. Internationally they have performed with the Moers Jazz Festival in Germany, Gourmet Circus with David Dimitri in Rapperswill, Switzerland, and the Austrian National Circus in Salzburg, Austria. Other highlights include Circus Flora, Wagner's Ring Cycle with The Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Pendulum Aerial Dance Theater in Portland, Oregon. They are delighted to return to San Francisco, this time with their new baby boy, Seamus, born July 22nd, 2009.
Rachel DeShon
A Seattle native and BFA cum laude graduate of Western Illinois University, soprano Rachel DeShon has performed nationally and internationally. Highlights include winning Marvin Hamlisch's Search for a Star competition with the Seattle Symphony, performing with the Boston Pops under the direction of Keith Lockhart, The Vietnam Gala at the Esplanade in Singapore, and The International Cabaret Conference at Yale University. She received the Encouragement Award for The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, won First Place in the NATS & Pafe Auditions in Classical and Musical Theatre divisions, Western Illinois University Concerto Competition, Seattle Civic Opera Guild Auditions, and The City Opera Company Young Opera Singers Competition. Performance highlights include: Cunegonde in Candide, Yum-Yum in The Mikado, Lucille Frank in Parade, Papagena in The Magic Flute, and, of course, The Diva in Teatro ZinZanni in Seattle and San Francisco.
Vita
A featured performer in the 2003 Tiger Lillies circus tour of Finland, France, England, Germany and Greece, the sensational Ukrainian contortionist Vita Radionova made her North American debut in Teatro ZinZanni in Seattle in 2004. She graduated from the legendary Circus School of Kiev in 2002, and since then has performed her elegant and sensual act at some of the finest venues in Europe, including the Apollo in Düsseldorf, Palazzo in Munich and Frankfurt, and with Circus Salto Natale in Zurich. Vita most recently performed in Japan. Enchanting, mesmerizing, sexy and sensuous, Vita defies the laws of physics with her powerfully mesmerizing act. She has awed audiences in both the Seattle and San Francisco tents.
Featuring live music from the fabulous
Teatro ZinZanni Orchestra
Musical Director & Piano
Russ Long
Woodwinds
Karl Theobald
Bass
Wil Hendricks
Drums
David Rokeach
Guitar
Chris Carlson
