FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 29, 2014 CONTACT: Paul Bilyeu, 813.222.1050 ─ [email protected] Straz Center for the Performing Arts presents Rene Marie: I Wanna Be Evil (with Love to Eartha Kitt) Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, at 7:30 p.m. Jaeb Theater at the Straz Center Regularly priced tickets are $35 *** TAMPA, Fla. — The Straz Center for the Performing Arts presents the return engagement of Rene Marie in her new show I Wanna Be Evil (with Love to Eartha Kitt) on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, at 7:30 p.m., in the Jaeb Theater. Fierce, sensual, independent and unwilling to follow orders – there’s a reason Eartha Kitt played Catwoman. Now, her soul sister and kindred spirit Rene Marie, a legendary jazz diva who began her career at 42, pays homage to Kitt’s iconic role in music and history with I Wanna Be Evil (with Love to Eartha Kitt). Marie’s scintillating interpretations of Kitt’s songbook has critics and audiences raving, and this show is a double doozy for music lovers and fans of Kitt. Marie’s bold presence in the jazz scene is the perfect interpreter of Kitt’s bold presence that formed a new and singular voice. Marie’s most recent album, I Wanna Be Evil, recently received a Grammy® nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. This entertaining album burnishes Marie’s reputation as the most provocative risk-taker among today’s jazz divas. Featuring star turns by trombonist Wycliffe Gordon, trumpeter Etienne Charles and Australia’s Adrian Cunningham on saxophone, clarinet and flute, I Wanna Be Evil features such tunes as “I’d Rather Be Burned As A Witch,” “C’est Si Bon,” “Peel Me A Grape” and “My Heart Belongs to Daddy.” The album also features Marie’s slow burn version of probably Kitt’s best-known song, “Santa Baby.” Regularly priced tickets for the Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, 7:30 p.m., performance by Rene Marie are $35 and may be purchased by calling 813.229.STAR (7827) or 800.955.1045 outside Tampa Bay, in person at the Straz Center Ticket Sales Office or online at www.strazcenter.org. Handling fees will apply. For more information about the Straz Center for the Performing Arts and its upcoming events, please visit the Straz Center’s website at www.strazcenter.org. Events, days, dates, times, performers and prices are subject to change without notice. PAC2015-081 Funded in part by the National Performance Network Performance Residency Program, and SouthArts, supported by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts The David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts and its programs are funded in part by the City of Tampa; the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners; the Tourist Development Council/Hillsborough County; the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts