{"id":54557,"date":"2024-09-05T10:07:30","date_gmt":"2024-09-05T14:07:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=54557"},"modified":"2024-09-05T10:07:31","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T14:07:31","slug":"on-stage-the-claudettes-who-defy-genre-come-to-delco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=54557","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: The Claudettes, who defy genre, come to Delco"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times\u00a0<\/em><\/div>\n
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The Claudettes<\/p><\/div>\n

The Claudettes are a Chicago-based band whose music spans a wide array of genres — jazz, punk, Chicago blues, pop standards and rock.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The\u00a0Claudettes, who are driven by the music of founding member Johnny Iguana, combine the Chicago blues-piano tradition with the energy of rockabilly and punk and the sultry sound of \u201960s soul-jazz to create a thrilling new spin on American roots music.<\/div>\n
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The band has performed all over Europe and in virtually every state in the Union.<\/div>\n

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Iguana, who grew up in Fort Washington, has brought his band to play in clubs and theaters in Philadelphia, at numerous venues all around the Philly suburbs and even northern Delaware.<\/div>\n
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Amazingly, the Claudettes \u2013 pianist\/songwriter Johnny\u00a0Iguana, bassist\/singer Zach Verdoorn, vocalist Rachel Williams and drummer Michael Caskey — have never played a gig in Delaware County.<\/div>\n
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That will change on September 5 when the Claudettes make their Delco debut at Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985,www.jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>).<\/div>\n
\u201cThis will be our first time to play Jamey\u2019s,\u201d said Iguana, during a phone interview last week. \u201cWe\u2019ve heard a lot of good things about Jamey\u2019s so we\u2019re really looking forward to this show.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The show, which is the band\u2019s only Philly-area show in two years and only one of 2024, will also mark the area debut of Williams. The previous shows featured long-time Claudettes vocalist Berit Ulseth.<\/div>\n
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On the band\u2019s website, Iguana posted, \u201cHello, everybody. After three albums and an EP, spanning six years, Berit Ulseth has moved on to new chapters in life, away from the Claudettes\u2019 van. We love and miss her. As you all know, Berit is simply magnificent. We were unspeakably lucky to hear that voice all those years, in our practice space, on our stages and on our records.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe are also lucky to be able to look at a new future with a Chicago singer who already sang in a different band with our bassist Zach Verdoorn. Rachel Williams will be singing at all our shows and on some near-future recordings\u2026we have been extremely busy in the practice space and will be breaking out TONS of new songs and wide-ranging covers\u2026really, really, really wide\u2026can\u2019t wait for to see you all soon!\u201d<\/div>\n
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Iguana offered this description of the band\u2019s new singer, \u201cWe now have absolutely dynamite singer Rachel Williams (our own personal Annie Lennox, I like to say.) She\u2019s a six-foot Texan with a big soulful voice, a mohawk and dynamic stage presence.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The band\u2019s most recent album is \u201cThe Claudettes Go Out!\u201d, which was released via Forty Below in October 2022.<\/div>\n
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\u00a0The title is a statement.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe did a lot of shows in the Midwest this summer,\u201d said Iguana. \u201cNow, the Claudettes have a lot planned.<\/div>\n
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\u201cEveryone in the band is getting along and is really inspired. We had some studio time last week and everyone was smiling.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe have completed already more than an album\u2019s worth of songs. We just recorded another song, and we have two more to go.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe just put out two singles and we have a four-track EP that we\u2019re selling at our shows.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The Claudettes excel in the studio but really hit their peak when they perform live onstage.<\/div>\n
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\u201cOur shows are really special,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cTouring is great. After what we went through with the pandemic, we don\u2019t take anything for granted — including the van\u2019s checkups and oil changes.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI booked a lot of concerts this year. Curators at art centers know us. We kind of crept back in.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Iguana\u00a0wears many hats with the Claudettes. He is the singer, main writer, musical director, booking agent and spokesperson.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe percentage of time I spend writing and recording is miniscule compared to all the other things I have to do to keep things going,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI spend a lot of time booking shows, arranging for our lodging, sending out posters, arranging promo for our shows and editing our music videos.\u201d<\/div>\n
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One bright side about the band\u2019s COVID-forced break from the road was it allowed time to work on their upcoming album.<\/div>\n
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\u201cLater in 2020, we got together to make a new album,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cThe new album was done in several sessions. Because of the lockdown, it was done piecemeal.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI recorded piano to a click track. Berit did the vocals on her own. Michael and Zach practiced and came up with the right parts to overdub. We play together enough so we knew how to do it tightly.\u201d<\/div>\n
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For \u201cThe Claudettes Go Out!,\u201d\u00a0the band completed two sessions.<\/div>\n
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The first was recorded and co-produced in Chicago by recent Grammy nominee Anthony Gravino (Kurt Elling, Charlie Hunter) and mixed in NYC by Grammy-winning legend Kevin Killen (David Bowie, U2, Elvis Costello).<\/div>\n
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The second session, in Chicago, was helmed by Grammy-winning producer Ted Hutt (Violent Femmes, Old Crow Medicine Show) and mixed in LA by Hutt and Ryan Mall. It was mastered by\u00a0Joe La Porta at Sterling Sound.<\/div>\n
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Iguana\u00a0is a prolific writer.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI\u2019m writing all the time,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cFor us, new songs are the most exciting thing.\u00a0\u00a0I start with chords and melodies. I start with building blocks.<\/div>\n
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\u201cAnd we record a lot of our shows. We listen to them over and over and learn a lot from listening.<\/div>\n
\u201cWriting music is a good expenditure of time \u2013 doing stuff you love.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Iguana\u00a0first gained renown as pianist for blues giant Junior Wells and as co-founder of punk-organ band Oh My God. He has toured or recorded with Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Johnny Winter, Derek Trucks, Gary Clark Jr., Shemekia Copeland, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, James Cotton and more. He has played on three Grammy-nominated albums and earned a 2021 Blues Music Award nomination for Piano Player of the Year.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe Claudettes recorded their 2018 album, \u201cDance Scandal At The Gymnasium!,\u201d with Grammy-winning producer Mark Neill (Black Keys, Old 97\u2019s, J. Roddy Walston, J.D. McPherson).<\/div>\n
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A few years ago,\u00a0Iguana\u00a0released an album on his own \u2013 \u201cJohnny\u00a0Iguana\u2019s Chicago Spectacular\u201d on Delmark Records.<\/div>\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s a Chicago blues piano album,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cI figured who would be good to sing on it. I got Billy Boy Arnold, who is 84 and played harmonica for Bo Diddley, and John Primer.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Iguana\u00a0also got musical contributions from Bob Margolin, Matthew Skoller, Billy Flynn, Kenny Smith, Bill Dickens, Michael Caskey and Lil\u2019 Ed.<\/div>\n
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This was\u00a0Iguana\u2019s first blues album as a leader, and it\u2019s not your typical blues album. That\u2019s because\u00a0Iguana\u00a0is not your typical blues piano player.<\/div>\n
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At a time when bold originality is less welcomed in blues than it is in other music,\u00a0Iguana\u00a0stands out as an artist who has reached the apex of his craft but who has not allowed a strict definition of blues to limit his expression.<\/div>\n
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\u201cIt was produced by Matthew Skoller,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cI got the chance to play a 100-year-old Chicago-made upright piano.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe recorded the album in January 2020. We didn\u2019t realize then what was coming.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The Claudettes\u2019 have a strange history \u2013 and an interesting story behind their name.<\/div>\n
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\u201cMichael Caskey, a drummer from Chicago, and I had a piano-and-drum duo,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe called a place called Claudette\u2019s Bar in 2010 looking for a gig in between Chicago and St. Louis. Claudette booked us into her bar in Oglesby (Illinois) and fell in love with the band.<\/div>\n
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\u201cSo, she hired us as her house band and put them. That drummer\u2019s wife had a baby, so we hired a new drummer and then expanded to a four-piece. Since then, we\u2019ve done a ton of shows.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The show in suburban Philly this week will be a homecoming for\u00a0Iguana.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI was born in New Jersey and grew up in the Philly area,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana. \u201cI graduated from Upper Dublin High School and the University of Pennsylvania.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThen, I moved to New York City where I worked in publishing and played piano. I began meeting blues musicians and playing in blues bands. I met Junior Wells in Chicago and played piano in his band.\u201d<\/div>\n
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In addition to touring internationally and recording six albums with his cult-favorite rock band oh my god,\u00a0Iguana\u00a0has played live or recorded with Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Koko Taylor, James Cotton, Lil\u2019 Ed, Carey Bell, Billy Boy Arnold, Lurrie Bell, John Primer, Billy Branch, Carlos Johnson, Sugar Blue, Dave Myers and Eddie Shaw.<\/div>\n
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As fans of the\u00a0Claudettes know, the band has created its own genre.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe\u00a0Claudettes\u00a0blazed a new trail masquerading as a blues\/roots bands but it\u2019s a punk band at its core,\u201d said\u00a0Iguana.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe can play a punk bill as a rock band or a different bill as a blues band.We\u00a0really put a lot of heart into our live show. We combine musicianship and humor.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Video link for The Claudettes \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/Sb87i8s-nQo<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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The show at Jamey\u2019s on September 5 will start at 8 p.m.<\/div>\n
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Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door.<\/div>\n
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\"\"Jamey\u2019s House of Music will present Swing That Cat on September 6 and Debra Devi on September 7.<\/div>\n
Tickets for either show are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.<\/div>\n
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All three shows will be available on pay-per-view at $15 per show.<\/div>\n
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Over the last few years, Swing That Cat has emerged as one of the most unique, original, and engaging live acts in the Philly-NJ-DE area.<\/div>\n
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As featured performers at the City of Philadelphia 4th of July, Musikfest, The Sellersville Theater, and NoLibs 2nd St Festivals, Swing That Cat has earned their stripes at more than 350 shows in the Mid-Atlantic region, and on radio, podcasts, and streams around the world.<\/div>\n
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The City of Philadelphia office of the Arts has twice selected Swing That Cat as a Top 5 PHL Live in 2018 and 2022.<\/div>\n
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Debra\u00a0Devi\u00a0is a multi-talented modern woman. She fronts a blues\/rock band, is an author and has composed music for film and television.<\/div>\n
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The concert is sure to be a pleasurable experience for both the band and the audience.<\/div>\n
Jamey\u2019s is one of the premier music clubs in the Philadelphia suburbs and\u00a0Devi\u00a0is one of the most talented young blues\/rock guitarists on the East Coast.<\/div>\n
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Devi\u00a0plays powerful blues-rockers and blistering psychedelic jams flavored with her soulful voice and expressive guitar playing.<\/div>\n
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Devi\u2019s new live EP,\u00a0\u201cJamification Station Vol. 1,\u201d captures her Jersey City band at full throttle. The EP reached #5 on the\u00a0Relix\/Jambands.com<\/a>\u00a0Top 30 Radio Chart and then stayed on the chart for three months.<\/div>\n
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Devi, who has lived all over the country, has called Jersey City home for the last six years.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI was born in Florida — in Jacksonville– and then grew up in Milwaukee,\u201d said\u00a0Devi, during a phone interview from her home in North Jersey. \u201cGrowing up in Milwaukee, I was exposed to a lot of Chicago blues.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI went to high school in Milwaukee and then got a degree in economics at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI always wanted to be a writer, but my parents wanted me to choose a more practical career. I had a journalism minor at the University of Wisconsin and then got into Columbia University for grad school where I majored in journalism.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI put it to good use. When I first was living in New York, I was a little punk rocker in the East Village. I also played in different kinds of bands. I had been playing electric guitar for about six months.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI always loved the blues, so I started writing and singing my own songs. It was more 70s blues\/rock than punk.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Devi\u2019s self-produced debut,\u00a0\u201cGet Free\u201d\u00a0(True Nature Records\/Redeye), received raves from\u00a0Vintage Guitar,\u00a0Jambase,\u00a0Marie Claire\u00a0(Italy) and Guitar International.<\/div>\n
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\u201cMy guitar playing is very influenced by Chicago blues,\u201d said\u00a0Devi. \u201cThe first show I saw was Son Seals and Koko Taylor at the Metropole. I try to do what Son does \u2013 not play a lot of notes but just play the right note.<\/div>\n
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\u201cBlues has been a guidepost ever since. Blues taught me what I know about music.<\/div>\n
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\u201cMy band and I play blues\/rock with improvisation \u2013 with jamming. We love to improvise. People love that spontaneity.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWhat is exciting today is the jam band scene. They\u2019re taking flight from improvisation. I\u2019m one of the few females in the jam band scene.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Devi\u00a0has opened for Joan Osborne, Jesse Malin, Ana Popovic, Sarah Shook and the Disarmers, Uprooted (Michael Glialiki) and Marshall Crenshaw. In 2023, she co-headlined the Haverford Music Festival with Joe Louis Walker and The Bongos, and the East Pete Blues Festival with Greg Sover.<\/div>\n
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Gov’t Mule bassist Jorgen Carlsson joined\u00a0Devi\u00a0on her previous EP, \u201cA Zillion Stars Overhead.\u201d<\/div>\n
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\u201cI released that album in April 2020 \u2013 not a good time to do that with the pandemic just starting,\u201d said\u00a0Devi. \u201cMy most recent album is \u2018Jamification Station Vol. 1.\u2019\u201d<\/div>\n
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\u201cJamification Station Vol. 1\u201d is a live EP culled from\u00a0Devi\u2019s livestream show, \u201cJamification Station,\u201d hosted by American Blues Scene. Four tracks capture\u00a0Devi\u00a0and her band at full throttle, from catchy \u201cHome Again\u201d to a blistering rendition of Jimi Hendrix\u2019s \u201cCrosstown Traffic.\u201d Also featured is a soulful blues-rocker, \u201cGet Free\u201d and uplifting Southern-rock tune \u201cThe River.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The EP was released on June 20, 2022. Musicians on the recording were:\u00a0Debra\u00a0Devi\u00a0– vocal, guitar; Kevin Jones – bass, background vocal; John Roccesano – drums, background vocal; and Martin Schmid – keys, background vocal.<\/div>\n
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All songs recorded live by Roccesano at Silver Horse Sound in Hoboken, New Jersey except \u201cThe River,\u201d which was recorded live by Corey Zack at The Cocoon in Jersey City. It was produced by\u00a0Devi\u00a0and Roccesano, mixed by Roccesano and mastered by Fred Kevorkian.<\/div>\n
\u201cWe did 27 Livestream concerts during the pandemic,\u201d said\u00a0Devi. \u201cRight now, we\u2019re mixing \u2018Jamification Station Vol. 2\u2019.<\/div>\n
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Devi\u00a0is the author of the popular book,\u00a0\u201cThe Language of the Blues\u201d\u00a0(foreword by Dr. John) which won the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award.\u00a0The book is blurbed by Bonnie Raitt, Joe Bonamassa, Hal Willner, Ministry singer Al Jourgensen, Ed Sanders, Bob Margolin and Jimmy Vivino.<\/div>\n
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Devi\u00a0composes and performs songs for film and television, including \u201cTenderness\u201d (Laura Dern, Russell Crowe), \u201cGetting Off\u201d (Christine Harnos, Brooke Smith), \u201cDriven-Tim McGraw\u201d (VH-1), \u201cFight Like a Girl\u201d (Maureen Shea, Kimberly Tomes).<\/div>\n
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Her screenplay \u201cThe South Bronx Entrepreneurship Club\u201d is a Big Apple Film Festival semi-finalist, adapted from the book \u201cGoodbye Homeboy: How My Students Drove Me Crazy\u201d and \u201cInspired a Movement,\u201d which she co-authored with former special education teacher and Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship founder Steve Mariotti.<\/div>\n
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Devi\u00a0is truly a modern-day Renaissance woman.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Video link for\u00a0Debra\u00a0Devi\u00a0\u2013\u00a0https:\/\/youtu.be\/WSWFDitPX2Q<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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Every Sunday, Jamey\u2019s presents \u201cSUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH & JAM\u201d featuring the Philly Blues Kings. On the second Sunday of each month, the featured act is the Girke-Davis Project which features club owner Jamey Reilly, Roger Girke, Glenn Bickel, Fred Berman and Colgan-Davis.<\/div>\n
It\u2019s tribute band time again at Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org<\/a>).<\/div>\n
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The venue will present \u201cA Brother\u2019s Revival\u201d on September 5, \u201c80\u2019s Revolution\u201d on September 6 and \u201cItalian Bred\u201d theatrical comedy on September 7.<\/div>\n
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Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, http:\/\/www.kennettflash.org<\/a>) is hosting The Germ Side with special guest Chris Reuger on September 6 and \u201cThe Legendary Kennett Flash Open Mic\u00a0Night\u201d on September 8.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times\u00a0 The Claudettes are a Chicago-based band whose music spans a wide array of genres — jazz, punk, Chicago blues, pop standards and rock. The\u00a0Claudettes, who are driven by the music of founding member Johnny Iguana, combine the Chicago blues-piano tradition with the energy of rockabilly and punk and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":54555,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8457],"tags":[7426,15779,10602],"class_list":["post-54557","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-featured","tag-swing-that-cat","tag-the-claudettes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54557","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54557"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54557\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54558,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54557\/revisions\/54558"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/54555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54557"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54557"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54557"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}