Without William R. (Bill) Hough it is safe to say there would not be a Palladium Theater. Without Bill Hough so much that we love about St. Petersburg would not be here.   Bill was a visionary and at times a risk taker. He bet heavily on his adopted home[…]

I know a place like the Palladium is more than a building or a business. A music venue like ours is a gathering place. It’s like a family home, where our patrons, staff, performers and volunteers come together for special occasions.   Sometimes in the hustle of a busy season,[…]

Saturday morning I tell my wife, as horrific international disasters go, this one at least fits my personality. I’ve always wanted an excuse to stay home and putter around. To linger over the morning paper (on-line), play a few songs on the piano, whisk some leaves out of the pool,[…]

A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR   Like other venues around our community and around the country, the Palladium has suspended shows and events for the time being in an effort to keep our patrons and our staff safe and healthy. Some shows are canceled, others are being rescheduled for[…]

Gotta love this story from St. Pete Catalyst by the veteran music writer Bill DeYoung. Bill previewed our two upcoming Palladium Cabaret Series shows – March 21 with Queenie and March 26 with Nellie McKay, both in the Side Door Cabaret.   Queenie, Sydney Australia’s star of cabaret and theater,[…]

Palladium audiences love their jazz and we’re delivering the goods all this month and beyond.   The Side Door and Hough Hall are the scenes of shows tonight through Sunday as the St. Petersburg Jazz Festival continues a five-show run. Tonight, it’s steel pan virtuoso Leon Foster Thomas and pianist[…]

Straight outta NYC, Svetlana and the Delancey Five are the hottest swing jazz ensemble in the Big Apple. And on March 7, they’ll be lighting up the Side Door, along with some of the bay area’s best lindy hoppers and swing dancers.   We’re bringing in a wooden dance floor[…]

The 2020 version of the Boogie Woogie Blues Piano Stomp is on stage this Saturday night and the show promises to be our biggest ever. More than 600 folks have already got their tickets to see an all-star lineup of pianists playing our two grand pianos on the Hough Hall[…]

One of our favorite jazz singers, Whitney James, has been out of circulation for the past year, as she completes an advance degree in music in Texas.   But she didn’t want to miss her annual Jazz Valentine concert, so she’s hopping a plane later this week headed for the[…]

Chris MacDonald’s introduction to the King of Rock and Roll, came from watching old Elvis movies on TV with his Mom, who was a fan.   “Elvis was cool in those movies – he beat up the bad guys and had cute girls in bikinis chasing him – it looked[…]

For me and a lot of my pals, the best band to come out of our area in the ‘80s was The Silver King Band. A trio of talented folks – St. Petey Twig on barrelhouse piano, Flo Mingo on washboard, and Rock Bottom on harmonica. They were an R&B[…]

When I visited New York as a journalist in the ’80s and ’90s I always stayed at the historic Algonquin Hotel, home of the Algonquin Round Table. I stayed because the hotel was close to where I was working , but mainly I stayed at the Algonquin because I loved[…]

We’ve got two nights of great jazz coming up this weekend in the Side Door and more on the way.   On Friday, Jeremy Carter,  everybody’s favorite sax player, is back with another jazzy tribute to great soul standards. He’s calling this one: Daydreaming: Soul Jazz with Jeremy Carter.  […]

The Calidore String Quartet played some of their first concerts on the Palladium stage. That’s when they were all students at the prestigious Colburn School in Los Angeles. The concerts were a homecoming for Ryan Meehan, the violinist who grew up in St. Petersburg, where his family still lives.  […]

The talented folks at St. Petersburg Opera are back in 2020 with a new production of Verdi’s Rigoletto and tickets are going very fast for this ever-popular work.   The show takes the stage in Hough Hall for three performances on Friday, Sunday and Tuesday, January 24, 26 and 28.[…]

  After wowing our audiences last spring, Svetlana and the Delancey 5  are returning on March 7 for another night of the danceable, swinging jazz.   Svetlana is a wonderful performer and character. Her new album debuted at the top of the jazz charts and is gaining traction across the[…]

We’ve had a great run of legendary music makers this season and that continues Saturday night when Randall Bramblett brings his band to the intimate Side Door Cabaret.   Bramblett is a band leader, sideman and an in-demand songwriter. Bramblett has worked with Steve Winwood, Gregg Allman, Elvin Bishop, Bonnie[…]

In case you haven’t seen the lineup for our Palladium Jazz Awards concert this Sunday at 4, I thought I’d share it with you here. You’re in for two plus hours of great music by a battalion of the best jazz artists working in our area.   That lineup includes[…]

I’m very proud that the Palladium is partnering with The Chopin Project to bring an ongoing series of concerts, focused on the great repertoire for the piano.  We started with a single concert two years ago, and now we have a four-concert series.   The Chopin Project, a performance and[…]

Our Palladium Chamber Players return to Hough Hall on Wednesday, Jan. 8, this time with original members Jeewon Park and Ed Arron, appearing alongside artistic director Jeffrey Multer, in a concert featuring the works for Beethoven, Ravel and Dvorak.   For tickets and information about the 7:30 p.m. concert on[…]

We’re celebrating our vibrant jazz community on Sunday, Jan. 12 with our first Palladium Jazz Awards concert. In the tradition of the John Lamb Birthday Party and our Bob Seymore retirement concert, this show will feature a multitude of great players in various settings in Hough Hall, followed by a[…]

As a baby – okay maybe I was older than that –  I caught the Grateful Dead live at Curtis Hixon Hall in Tampa. It was a great concert but I didn’t realize the show I was seeing that December night what would become a part of Grateful Dead lore.[…]

Our beloved Palladium Chamber Players are returning in 2019-20 with a five-concert series that kicks off this Wednesday, Dec. 11, at 7:30. Wednesday’s concert features Jeffrey Multer, Julian Schwartz and Marika Bournaki performing as The Mile-End Trio. The program will include Beethoven’s famous Archduke Trio as well Czech composer Bedrich Smetana’s[…]

Part of the fun of my job is finding talented young performers and making them part of the Palladium family. A few years ago, one of those youngsters was a guy right out of the University of Tampa named Selwyn Birchwood.   We loved him from the start – even[…]

When I decided to launch the Palladium Cabaret Series I knew I wanted a big name to kick it off in style. In the cabaret world, it doesn’t get much bigger than Ann Hampton Callaway.   A leading champion of the great American Songbook, she’s made her mark as a[…]

This year’s edition of Nate Najar’s Jazz Holiday features a line-up of local and international jazz stars and promises to be one of the best shows of the year at the Palladium. The show is Thursday, Dec. 12, at 7:30 p.m.   Nate starts with some of our favorite local[…]

I’m grateful to be included along with other St. Pete arts folks who shared wishes and hopes for our town in 2020 in the St. Pete Catalyst.   You can connect with Catalyst and read my article and others by following this link.   Thanks to Joe Hamilton and Bill[…]

WE’VE GONE CRAZY! That’s right, for one day only, YOU CAN SAVE BIG! We’re selling out to the walls! Everything must go!!  The boss is away so we’re having a sale!!! We’re overstocked so you can save big!!!   Pick any sales cliche you like but don’t miss out on[…]

For the last few years our pal Damon Fowler has been kicking off our Thanksgiving weekend with an all-star blues show on Wednesday.   It’s on Wednesday because Wednesday is actually a Friday since Thursday is a holiday. Right?   Anyway, it’s a great night to celebrate the start of[…]

Pianist Matthew Graybil appears in concert tonight (11-25 at 7:30 p.m.) at the Palladium. This is his return concert as part of The Chopin Project.   In a review published this week by the Bradenton Herald, the reviewer praised Graybil as a “fine pianist” with  ‘flashy finger work and operatic[…]

I’m so excited to again partner with The Chopin Project for a series of piano concerts by some of the finest artists in the world.   The 2019-20 series kicks off next Monday, Nov. 25, with the return of a young artist who is already a favorite with Palladium audiences. […]

In case you haven’t heard, two rock icons are visiting the Palladium’s intimate Side Door Cabaret Wednesday night for an evening of acoustic songs and stories.   Peter Asher, who rocketed to fame in the ’60s as half of Peter & Gordon, went on to be a Grammy-winning producer of[…]

After a sold-out visit last December, Jason Marsalis is returning to the Palladium Side Door on Thursday, Nov. 21st at 7:30 p.m.   The drummer and vibes master will have his Vibes Quartet with him for this show and you can expect this outfit to be absolutely swinging.   Veteran[…]

Our buddy Bill DeYoung, the music writer and author of books like Skyway and I Need To Know: The Lost Music Interviews, has penned a story about the long-strange history of the Mad Beach Band.   These stars of the 1980s Beach and Buffett scene, are returning to the Side[…]

Mike Cornette, the big daddy of WUSF’s All Night Jazz at 89.7, is airing his interview with Jason Marsalis tonight (Thursday, 11-14) between 9 and 10.   Tune in to hear Jason talk about the vibe quartet he’s bringing to the Palladium Side Door next Thursday (11-21) and more. Jason[…]

Consider yourself warned. if you are a fan of the Mad Beach Band, be sure and get your tickets for the band’s Saturday night reunion concert in the Side Door.   Mad Beach sells out the Side Door every time they visit and this show will be no exception. Less[…]

After a sold-out visit last December, Jason Marsalis is returning to the Palladium Side Door on Thursday, Nov. 21st at 7:30 p.m.   The drummer and vibe master will have his Vibe Quartet with him for this show and you can expect this outfit to be absolutely swinging.   Veteran[…]

This summer my family and I visited the Franklin Roosevelt house in Hyde Park, N.Y. and one of the highlights was seeing video of Marian Anderson’s performance on the national mall. Eleanor Roosevelt was instrumental in organizing that concert after Anderson, a black soprano, was denied permission to perform in[…]

  We are partnering with the Warehouse Arts District for a celebration of the work of Toni Morrison next Tuesday evening at 7.   The free event is on  Nov. 12 in Hough Hall and will feature readings from Morrison’s work and a documentary about the groundbreaking author who died[…]

I was thrilled that Tampa City Ballet chose the Palladium for its first foray across the bridge to St. Pete earlier this year.  That show focused on historic Ybor City in the days when the cigar industry flourished.   This Friday at 8 p.m., Paula Nunez is bringing her young[…]

The Funniest Man Alive is coming back to the Side Door this Saturday night (11-02) at 8 p.m. and this time, I’ll be in the audience to laugh along with everyone else.   The last time G. David Howard played the Side Door I was on vacation and missed the[…]

The highlight of our Side Door Summer series was the debut performance by Gloria West and the Gents in July. Gloria leads a swinging, old-school jazz ensemble that makes people get out of their seat and dance.   I’m excited to bring them back this Friday night at 8 p.m.[…]

You always knew when Dale Mackenzie Gross was in the building.   He’d usually start in the Palladium box office to find out why we hadn’t sold all the tickets two weeks in advance for the trio of Scottish singers or Newfoundland step dancers or bluegrass pickers he was bringing[…]

While a lot of stand-up comedy today seems aimed at twenty-somethings, I know lots of people 40 and older who like to laugh – especially at themselves.   We’ve got two stand-up comedy shows coming up aimed squarely at the demographic that didn’t leave the crib with a smart phone[…]

This week’s issue of Creative Pinellas’ Arts Coast Journal, the online arts magazine,  has a story from veteran music writer Eric Snider about Little Jake Mitchell and Charles Steadham. They are appearing together this Saturday in the Side Door with Little Jake and the Soul Searchers.   The Soul Searchers[…]

You can now ignore  my earlier blog about how few tickets we had left for Thursday’s Miles Davis tribute by James Suggs. THE SHOW IS SOLD OUT!!   I’m hoping you didn’t ignore my blog earlier and you got your tickets to this show. If so, I’ll see you there![…]

Little Jake Mitchell is returning to the Side Door after two sold-out shows that had our audiences singing, swaying and clapping along. He’s bringing back the Soul Searchers, a big band that now includes guitar, bass, two drummers, grand piano, Hammond B3, a full horn section and some surprise guests.[…]

St. Petersburg Opera, which has its performance home at the Palladium, kicks off its 2019-20 season with one of the most popular operettas in history – The Merry Widow.   Kurt Loft, the music writer who provides notes for our Palladium Chamber Series and the Florida Orchestra, has done a[…]

To me, the best blues voice coming out of Tampa Bay belongs to Betty Fox. I’ve been a fan since I first caught a set at the Ringside Cafe maybe six or seven years ago. She’s sold-out the Side Door, she’s opened for major artists like Mavis Staples at the[…]

Friday night’s tag team piano show, featuring two blues and comic heavyweights – Barry Cuda and the Right Rev. Billy C. Wirtz, promises to shake the Palladium’s Side Door to its foundations. If there was any sanctity left in this old Christian Science Church if will flee in tears at[…]