Performing Thursday
Grenoldo Frazier, actor and composer, is a native Wilmingtonian who moved to NYC in 1972 as a pianist for two touring shows “Journey Into Blackness” & “Harlem Heyday” an anthology of African-American music of the late 19th & early 20th centuries. He was featured as Barnaby Tucker on Broadway and the national tour of Pearl Bailey/Billy Daniels hit Hello, Dolly! In the 80”s Grenoldo won the off-Broadway Audelco Award as composer of Deadwood Dick and musically directing the national tour of Your Arms too Short to Box With God. Later he toured arenas including Madison Square Garden as Phineas T. Barnswallow, a W.C. Fields character in Sesame Live. He ended the decade as composer & musical director of Mamma I Want to Sing, the longest running gospel musical, and Moms Mabley at the Astor Place Theatre. Lionel Hampton praised Mr. Frazier for “his touch”. Frazier’s other credits include the revue Billy, Lena and The Duke: A Night of Ellington Music! (as Duke Ellington). The 90’s found him winning dual Audelco Awards as musical director for James Weldon Johnson’s God’s Trombones and as an actor in Robert Johnson – Trick the Devil off Broadway at the Shomberg Center on 135th St. He toured Europe as a singer/dancer in Andre Heller’s Body and Soul. He was also pianist/singer at Windows-on-the World for 2 years. The past 16 years he has been an artist-in-residence at NC State, Harvard Divinity School with Dr. Gavin Moses, Penn State / Harrisburg and has performed all over the country in clubs and theaters. This will be Grenoldo’s second appearance at the North Carolina Jazz Festival. Visit artist website HERE.
