Marilyn And Ella explores how Ella Fitzgerald, one of the greatest music artists of the 20th century came to worship Marilyn Monroe, the most beautiful woman in the world, not for her external looks but for the individual inside of whom few in the wider world ever caught a glimpse.
Interspersed with numerous hit songs from the era, including I Got Rhythm, My Funny Valentine, Every Time We Say Goodbye, Mack The Knife and Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend, Marilyn And Ella is a true story brought vividly to life, featuring two of the most iconic females that ever lived.
In 1955 at the very height of her fame, Marilyn Monroe quit Hollywood for New York in search of something more real. During this time she immersed herself in the underground jazz bars of New York and for the very first time got to hear Ella Fitzgerald perform live.
Monroe was blown away and promptly called the owner of her favourite LA club Mocambo and told him that she would sit in the front row of his club every night for a week if he lifted the colour ban and allowed Fitzgerald to sing in his nightclub. He agreed, the ban was lifted, and the rest is history. Fitzgerald was later quoted as saying, “I owe Marilyn a debt.”
Marilyn And Ella was first seen in London at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, where it was staged in 2008.
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