BRINGING BACK BYRNE
Talking Heads superstar David Byrne re-opened his acclaimed rock spectacle American Utopia last September 17 at Broadway’s St. James Theatre after the pandemic shutdown. I caught this joyous and resilient concert last December and loved it (this show never closed during COVID’s Omicron surge). This is truly a community event, and the packed house was positively roaring for more. Now, the jubilant show has extended its Broadway run for the final time and will conclude performances on Sunday, April 3, 2022 (tickets at American Utopia.)
Byrne performs songs from his new album, American Utopia, as well as classics from his solo career and his days with Talking Heads. He called his Annie-B Parson choreographed concert “the most ambitious show I’ve done since the shows that were filmed for Stop Making Sense.” Byrne is joined by 11 diverse musicians from around the globe: Jacquelene Acevedo, Gustavo Di Dalva, Daniel Freedman, Chris Giarmo, Tim Keiper, Tendayi Kuumba, Karl Mansfield, Mauro Refosco, Stéphane San Juan, Angie Swan and Bobby Wooten III. Karl Mansfield and Mauro Refosco are the Musical Directors.
Chris Giarmo, David Byrne, and Tendayi Kuumba.
Angie Swan, Stéphane San Juan, and Karl Mansfield.
Tendayi Kuumba and Chris Giarmo; Karl Mansfield (back).
David Byrne (center); Bobby Wooten III and Tendayi Kuumba (left);
Angie Swan and Chris Giarmo (right).
The cast of AMERICAN UTOPIA.
Bobby Wooten III.
Gustavo Di Dalva.
Angie Swan.
Daniel Freedman, Mauro Refosco, Jacquelene Acevedo, Gustavo Di Dalva, Angie Swan, Stéphane San
Juan, David Byrne, Tendayi Kuumba, Karl Mansfield, Tim Keiper, Chris Giarmo, and Bobby Wooten III.
David Byrne.
Jacquelene Acevedo, Bobby Wooten III, and Gustavo Di Dalva.
David Byrne and the company.
Tendayi Kuumba, Bobby Wooten III, Angie Swan, and Chris Giarmo.
Gustavo Di Dalva, Mauro Refosco, Jacquelene Acevedo, and Stéphane San Juan.
The company.
Gustavo Di Dalva, Jacquelene Acevedo, Daniel Freedman, Mauro Refosco,
Stéphane San Juan, and Tim Keiper.
David Byrne and the company.
David Byrne’s American Utopia.
Daniel Freedman and Bobby Wooten III.
David Byrne and the company.
David Byrne and the company.
The American Utopia band.
David Byrne, Bobby Wooten III, Chris Giarmo, Daniel Freedman,
Jacquelene Acevedo, Tim Keiper, Mauro Refosco, Gustavo Di Dalva, Stéphane San Juan,
Angie Swan, Tendayi Kuumba, and Karl Mansfield.
David Byrne and the company.
photos by Matthew Murphy
