A concert of Swing-era classics and the music of The Andrews Sisters will be presented at 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 12, at Vashon High School Theatre.
The concert will feature local vocalists Lisa Peretti, Maggie Laird and Alexandra Drissell, channeling The Andrews Sisters — a wildly successful vocal group who lit up the 1940s with close-harmony hits including “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree” and “Begin the Beguine.”
Last spring, Peretti, Laird and Drissell, backed by the Federal Way Symphony Big Band under the direction of Todd Zimberg and Lonnie Mardis, performed this same concert to a sold-out crowd at the Federal Way Performing Arts Center. The three singers had met each other while working on various Drama Dock productions.
Vashon’s version of the concert will again boast Zimberg and Mardis’ direction, and will also feature the same players and arrangements as the Federal Way concert. Islanders may recognize a few familiar faces from the Portage Fill Big Band, including Van Crozier and Linnea Cookson in the sax section, and Richard Person on trumpet.
The band will kick off the afternoon concert with a selection of 1940’s swing classics. After intermission, The Andrews Sisters tribute will commence.
The concert is a fundraiser for Drama Dock’s upcoming summer production of “Winghaven Park.” With a book, music and lyrics by Peretti, the show is an original play set during World War II. The story revolves around the consequences of war and forgotten love in a rural island setting. The songs in the show draw on the musical palette of the 1940s – swing, blues, ballads and musical comedy. “Winghaven Park,” directed by Charlotte Tiencken, will open June 28 at Vashon Center for the Arts.
For more information on The Andrews Sisters Big Band Swing Concert,” visit dramadock.org. Advance tickets to the concert, $35, can be purchased at brownpapertickets.org.