HARLEM, NY – October 2026 The Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH), led by Producing Artistic Director Ty Jones, will present its Winter Holiday Concert featuring the Grammy Award-winning saxophonist Branford Marsalis Quartet on Monday, December 21, 2026, at Ginny’s Supper Club at Red Rooster Harlem. The one-night-only event will celebrate The New Harlem Renaissance, bringing together jazz and theatre in an intimate Harlem setting.
Tickets go on sale November 1st at cthnyc.org/branford-marsalis-quartet/. A limited number of tickets will be available, with pricing and package details at the link. Doors open at 7:30 PM, with the concert beginning at 8 PM.
The evening will pair a performance by Marsalis with a look ahead at CTH’s artistic ambitions. Under the theme The New Harlem Renaissance Reborn, the gathering celebrates Harlem as a place where artists create, collaborate and shape the cultural conversation, connecting the neighborhood’s creative legacy to the work being made today.
During the event, CTH will officially unveil the full vision for The Æthiopes, an ambitious theatrical triptych spanning Memnon, Andromeda and Blood of Odysseus, planned for 2028. The three-show epic represents a major artistic undertaking for the company, whose work presents classical stories through the lens of the African diaspora. Further details about the triptych will be shared at the concert.
Led by New Orleans-born saxophonist, bandleader, composer, and NEA Jazz Master Branford Marsalis, the Branford Marsalis Quartet has remained his primary artistic vehicle for four decades. The ensemble is celebrated for its uncommon stylistic range and enduring influence on contemporary jazz. Marsalis is a three-time Grammy Award winner whose work also spans classical performance, film, and Broadway.
For tickets and event updates, visit cthnyc.org/branford-marsalis-quartet/. For more information about The Classical Theatre of Harlem, visit cthnyc.org.
About The Branford Marsalis Quartet
New Orleans-born Branford Marsalis is an award-winning saxophonist, band leader, featured classical soloist, and a film and Broadway composer. In the process, he has become a multi award-winning artist with three Grammys, a citation by the National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master and an avatar of contemporary artistic excellence.
The Branford Marsalis Quartet, formed in 1986, remains his primary means of expression. In its virtually uninterrupted three-plus decades of existence, the Quartet has established a rare breadth of stylistic range and has long been recognized as the standard to which other ensembles of its kind must be measured. This spring the Quartet makes its Blue Note Records debut with the March 28 release of Belonging, a full album interpretation of Keith Jarrett’s 1974 ECM album of the same name. But Branford has not confined his music to the jazz quartet context. He recently composed a classical suite commissioned by the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra. A frequent soloist with classical ensembles, Branford has become increasingly sought after as a featured soloist with acclaimed orchestras around the world, performing works by composers such as Copeland, Debussy, Glazunov, Ibert, John Williams, Mahler, Milhaud, Rorem, Vaughan Williams and Villa-Lobos. And his legendary guest performances with the Grateful Dead and collaborations with Sting have made him a fan favorite in the pop arena.
Branford’s screen credits as a composer include original music for: Rustin starring Colman Domingo, the History Channel’s documentary Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom starring Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks starring Oprah Winfrey, and Spike Lee’s Mo’ Better Blues. He received a 2021 EMMY nomination for the original music he composed and produced for Tulsa Burning in the Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special (Original Dramatic Score) category. His work on Broadway has garnered a Drama Desk Award and a Tony nomination for the acclaimed revival of Fences. He recently arranged and orchestrated the music for a new Broadway production on Louis Armstrong, A Wonderful World. His previous Broadway efforts include music for the revivals of Children of a Lesser God and A Raisin in the Sun, as well as The Mountaintop, which starred Angela Basset and Samuel L. Jackson.
About The Classical Theatre Of Harlem
The Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH) is an American theatre company that tells stories through the lens of the African diaspora. CTH combines original adaptations, music, and dance to present great classics of world literature and contemporary works that will stand the test of time. Since its founding in 1999, CTH has presented works ranging from traditional classical playwrights (Sophocles, Euripides and William Shakespeare) to established 20th-century playwrights (August Wilson, Langston Hughes and Jean Genet) to new plays by emerging playwrights. CTH also proudly provides theater-based training and live theater experiences to Harlem youth and their families through its arts education program, Project Classics. The organization incorporates other theater-related programming including Future Classics, Playwrights’ Playground, and Revisited Classics to engage new audiences, invest in artistic development and give exposure to emerging creators.
The company serves over 35,000 live audience members per year. Its online offerings have drawn over 500,000 viewers. To learn more, visit https://www.cthnyc.org/.