The Roosevelt New Orleans Hotel, part of the Waldorf Astoria Collection, will pay tribute to the late Italian-American singer, songwriter, trumpeter and New Orleans native Louis Prima with a performance by daughter Lena Prima, Friday, April 16.
The four-course dinner show will be set in the legendary Blue Room from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
The year 2010 is the 100th anniversary of the elder Prima’s birth.
“This tribute to Louis Prima is especially important to The Roosevelt because we’re celebrating the old with the new, something we took into consideration while renovating this historic property,” said Tod Chambers, general manager. “Lena Prima is a star herself, and we’re delighted to have her return to this legendary supper club.”
Born in Las Vegas, Lena and younger brother Louis, Jr., were raised in and around New Orleans, where her father grew up. Her mother is Gia Maione, her father’s fifth and last wife, who performed with him throughout the 1960s and 1970s until his death in 1978.
The family had homes with golf courses in both cities and moved back and forth during Lena’s formative years. Lena grew up singing and dancing on stage with her parents and touring with them every summer when school was out.
She began high school at Covington High. Later in life, she worked a regular job during the day and sang in rock ‘n’ roll clubs at night while writing and recording original music.
In 1991, Lena made singing a full-time career and began touring the casino and resort circuit. Since her debut performance in 2000 in Las Vegas, she has headlined to sold-out audiences around the country at festivals, theaters, performing arts centers, casinos and corporate events, including a two-year run at the Sahara Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip where her famous father performed in the early 1950s.
Tickets cost $225 per person, inclusive of tax and gratuity, and include a four-course dinner, complimentary valet parking, champagne upon arrival and a commemorative photo. They can be purchased by calling The Roosevelt at (504) 648-5380.
