In the years when radio carried the sounds of jazz around the world, big bands conquered concert stages and dance floors with their powerful, exhilarating, life-filled sound. The Harlem Renaissance transformed New York’s legendary nightclubs — most notably the Cotton Club — into centres of creativity, freedom, rhythm and style, where music, song and dance came together in a thrilling theatrical experience.

In this festive, high-energy performance, Eli and the Chocolate Factory return to the 1930s, this time with an expanded big-band line-up. The orchestra will bring back to life the infectious swing of Count Basie, the dramatic “jungle” sounds of Duke Ellington and the rich, polished arrangements of Jimmie Lunceford — giants of the era who shaped the language of jazz and transformed it into a worldwide phenomenon.

At the heart of the performance is international jazz vocalist Eden Holan, whose rich voice, impressive range and captivating stage presence have won her acclaim. With freedom, elegance and vocal virtuosity, she will revive the spirit of the great jazz divas and lend the classics of the era her own warm, distinctive and compelling sound. Her voice will merge with the orchestra’s full-bodied sonority and, at times, move through it like an additional instrument — between melody and improvisation, tenderness and power, blues and swing.

The orchestra, comprising approximately 14 musicians, will be joined by swing dancers who will bring the spirit of the period to the stage through Lindy Hop and Charleston. Together with Eden Holan’s singing, they will create a complete theatrical celebration in which the music is not only heard — it is also seen, danced and felt throughout the body.

This performance transports the audience back to the glittering nights of Harlem: to clubs filled with smoke and style, to irresistible rhythms, and to an era when jazz was the soundtrack of freedom, movement and joie de vivre.