Executive & Artistic Director
Thor Steingraber
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Lakecia Benjamin & Phoenix
Jazz Club
Wed Feb 5 | 8pm
Thu Feb 6 | 8pm
Run Time: about 1 hour and 50 minutes including a 20-minute intermission
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An Interview With Lakecia Benjamin
DownBeat Magazine: The Rapid Rise of The Soraya
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Program Note
It was not long into my tenure at The Soraya when I committed to creating an intimate setting for jazz. While a 1,700-seat auditorium works for some performances, the jazz club tradition is an important one that was missing at The Soraya.
Not only is an intimate setting ideal for smaller ensembles, it’s also the best way to experience the relationship between the musicians, especially improvising and passing around solos, sometimes executed with a subtle nod or raise of an eyebrow. All artists, newcomers and veterans alike, relish this experience, and audiences become part of the action at close proximity.
With the advent of The Soraya’s Jazz Club, we significantly expanded our jazz offerings, beginning in 2018, which eventually led to the inauguration of our festival, Jazz at Naz, now in its fourth year.
Each year we improve upon the club experience, adding a chef, a full bar, a custom-designed sound system, and more. Welcome.
Gratefully,
Thor Steingraber
Executive and Artistic Director,
Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts
Jazz at Naz
The annual Jazz at Naz festival has been recognized as one of the best winter jazz festivals on the West Coast as well as the jazz epicenter in Los Angeles. Jazz at Naz has showcased major debuts for emerging artists, such as five-time Grammy Award-winner Samara Joy, and created a home for the world’s jazz legends, such as John Pizzarelli, Branford Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, and Charles Lloyd. The festival has also turned the spotlight on influential crossover artists, such as Bobby and Taylor McFerrin, Diana Krall, Jon Batiste, Gregory Porter, Herb Alpert, and Lani Hall.
Returning after their sold-out debut last season, Pacific Jazz Orchestra opens the Jazz at Naz festival’s fourth season headlined by Eva Noblezada, a Grammy Award-winning and two-time Tony-nominated Broadway and West End star.
This season, The Soraya also welcomes saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin, as well as the return of Christian McBride to the onstage, intimate Jazz Club for two nights each.
Fresh from a monthlong celebration of the music of the great Duke Ellington, Kennedy Center Artistic Director for Jazz Jason Moran returns to The Soraya for the fourth time to continue the festivities honoring the Duke’s enduring legacy and his 125th birthday. In addition to entertaining from the piano, Moran will lead CSUN’s award-winning Jazz “A” big band to join him in furthering The Soraya’s ongoing commitment to music and arts education.
Also presented in the Great Hall during the Jazz at Naz festival will be Kurt Elling Celebrates Weather Report with Yellowjackets, and Chucho Valdés who brings Irakere back to life honoring its 50th anniversary with special guest Arturo Sandoval in a return engagement.
Lakecia Benjamin
To witness a live performance by alto saxophonist, MC, and bandleader Lakecia Benjamin is to never forget it.
The success of 2023’s Phoenix and 2020’s Pursuance: The Coltranes positioned Benjamin among jazz’s most celebrated recording artists. In addition to raves in The New York Times, The Guardian and DownBeat, she received three Grammy nominations for Phoenix, as well as an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Jazz Album. In 2024, she was named Alto Saxophonist of the Year by the prestigious Jazz Journalists Association.
Yet, the ever-rising star from Washington Heights in New York City remains, at her core, an improviser best experienced in her soul-stirring concerts. Every time Benjamin hits the bandstand, she takes her repertoire, and her wide-ranging audience, to sublime new planes. And her message — of spiritual uplift, of social and political liberation — soars higher still.
Given Benjamin’s personal story over the last few years, her live dates are nothing short of life-affirming. In 2021, she was involved in a car accident that resulted in more than one potentially career-ending injury: Benjamin broke her jaw, a shoulder blade and ribs; and she ruptured an eardrum, among other wounds. Today, she’s regained her confidence and physical strength and embraces whatever limitations her accident may have engendered. She also realizes she has decades more music and travel to go. “I don’t think about the accident anymore. Some people might see my shows now as a victory lap, because inspiration comes in multiple forms,” says Benjamin, “but I really feel I’m still learning. I’m trying to get uncomfortable. I’m trying to grow. I’m trying to play better.”
Benjamin’s new album, Phoenix Reimagined, which received two Grammy nominations, focuses on the music from her acclaimed Phoenix project and adds three new songs. It was captured live in studio at Brooklyn’s the Bunker — a great-sounding space whose alumni include everyone from Brad Mehldau to Bang on a Can to The Black Keys. Combining the spontaneous magic of a live LP with the crisp, crystalline audio that only a world-class studio can deliver, Phoenix Reimagined illustrates that vibrant togetherness between Benjamin and her live listeners. In the case of the Bunker show, that meant pretty much anyone who adores music as much as she does. “I was like, you know what? Let’s celebrate life. Let’s celebrate everything. I’m going to invite everybody to this studio,” Benjamin recalls with a chuckle. “The studio personnel were lucky I didn’t just open the door!” The atmosphere took the saxophonist back to her earliest years hitting the NYC jam-session scene: the heat, the camaraderie, the competition, the hard-earned lessons. “It just reminded me why I love music,” she says.
Twyla Tharp — 60th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee
One of America’s most enduring and lauded living dance-makers, Twyla Tharp celebrates her 60th anniversary with a coast-to-coast tour featuring her award-winning ballet set to Beethoven’s “Diabelli Variations.” She also brings us a new piece with music by Philip Glass. Tharp’s use of music to create works of startling originality and beauty defines this important milestone performance.
You Belong Here
This is your opportunity to belong to something special. Our 2024-25 Members enjoy exclusive experiences, such as the Member Appreciation Night for all Members, special events and artist meet-and-greets (Silver Members and above), private pre-performance artist salons (Silver Members and above), our festive holiday party, the annual Director’s Dinner in 2025 (Platinum Members), and more — as well as priority access to your preferred seats, your very own Members Only Seating Section, and exclusive savings when you select five or more performances. Most importantly, Member benefits are valid all season.
Beyond the benefits, Members drive our mission to present the highest caliber artists who captivate, inspire, and transport our audiences. Here, Members are part of a growing community of arts lovers connected by the joy of shared human experience. Here, Members belong.
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An Interview With Lakecia Benjamin
About Us
The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts is an award-winning, 1,700-seat theater that opened in 2011 and was designed by HGA Architects and Engineers. In 2017, a transformative gift by Younes and Soraya Nazarian dubbed the venue The Soraya (formerly the Valley Performing Arts Center). A vibrant performance program has served to establish The Soraya as the intellectual and cultural heart of the San Fernando Valley and its 1.8 million residents, and further establish The Soraya as one of the top arts companies in Southern California.
The Soraya’s 2024-25 Season boldly advances the immersive sound of big orchestras; the free flow of jazz; an array of dance; and a cultural bounty drawn from the well of world traditions. The Soraya continues its vigorous commitment to innovating, excelling, and amplifying access by offering a wide variety of performances that reflect LA’s many distinctive communities and featuring new and original work from the Los Angeles region as well as artists from around the world.
Located on the vibrant campus of the California State University, Northridge, The Soraya and the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication share an integral link that enhances student opportunities in the arts and performing arts. This partnership fosters academic opportunity and artistic excellence, elevating the talents of CSUN’s students.
A $5 million contribution from record producer and former California Lieutenant Governor Mike Curb was pivotal in ensuring The Soraya was completed and opened in 2011. For his founding support and in acknowledgment of the integral relationship between the Mike Curb College and The Soraya, Curb is recognized as one of The Soraya’s Cornerstone Benefactors. The relationship between The Soraya and the Mike Curb College continues to grow, with robust offerings for students through master classes, student tickets, concerts of student ensembles, and students appearing alongside renowned artists, such as Wynton Marsalis, Aida Cuevas, and Martha Graham Dance Company.