ARTS&LIFE
THEATER
A
mother whose profession
took her behind the scenes
for local record makers and
radio show presenters set some moti-
vation for the special interests of Jillian
Felch Frederick, daughter of the late
Millie Felch Coffey.
What Frederick learned about
shared feelings inspired by music
helped motivate her experiences in
community theater. This season,
Frederick is working behind the scenes
as a producer of Memphis the Musical,
a musical being performed Sept. 6-22
by the Village Players of Birmingham.
The Tony Award-winning show’s
music was composed by David Bryan
with lyrics by Bryan and Joe DiPietro,
who also wrote the script. The writers
delve into the life of a white Memphis
disc jockey and explore relationships
he encounters by
promoting music by
Black artists.
Frederick can
relate incidents in
the musical to expe-
riences currently
being described
and tied to her own
Jewish heritage.
“I think this show
is important in times
of antisemitism,
”
Frederick said about
the production that
has a nine-piece
band on stage as the
action unfolds with
songs that express
the emotions being
felt by the charac-
ters. “I think there are messages we
need to be sending more and more.
“Maybe music, love of music or love
in general can alter what has divided
people. The resounding message of
the play is that we are all one people
on this planet and can come together
Jillian Felch
Frederick produces
musical staged by
the Village Players
of Birmingham.
SUZANNE CHESSLER
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
38 | SEPTEMBER 5 • 2024
J
N
Detroit’s Stacey
Barrett sings a
heart-breaking
song about love
in Memphis the
Musical.
Jillian Felch Frederick
PAUL MANOIAN PHOTOGRAPHY