Effervescent. Dramatic. Sultry. Seductive. All these words and more describe Gibsons vocalist/actress Wanda Nowicki, who returns to light up the stage at Pat’s House of Jazz in Crofton on Sunday, Nov. 4.
She flirts. She postures. She emotes while confidently delivering lesser-known jazz covers as well as originals from some of her favourite Gibsons and Vancouver musicians and composers.
Nowicki says her dramatic performances are born of a desire to entertain people.
“Everyone deserves to be highly entertained if they have taken the time to come and be with you in a club,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be a big flashy show, but I need to connect with the people and bring them to where I am and how I feel about certain things.
“We all share the same human emotions. If I can touch someone with a mutual understanding of an emotion — loss, loneliness, joy, courage — then I feel I have done my job. Well, that and singing well!”
She does that in spades.
Her theatrical performances stem from the 20 years she spent in Los Angeles. She studied at the Lee Strasberg Institute of acting and, in addition to singing, did some live theatre and lots of voice-over work for animation and foreign film dubbing.
Nowicki will be backed by her Salt Spring Island band — one of three she uses. It includes trumpeter Derrick Milton, bassist Ian Van Wyck, guitarist David Lippincott and drummer Laurent Boucher.
Nowicki’s resume includes performances with blues tenor saxophonist Big Jay McNeely and singer Richard Berry, best known as the composer and original performer of the rock standard Louie Louie.
She plays regularly at the Sylvia Hotel in Vancouver with multi-CARAS award winner Harris Van Berkel (of Skywalk fame) and played the Gibsons Jazz Festival this year with Budge Schachte (of Van Django fame).
The show is part of a regular Sunday afternoon jazz series, presented by the Chemainus Valley Cultural Arts Society.
It runs Sundays from 2 p.m. in the Osborne Bay Pub, 1534 Joan Ave. in Crofton. Admission is $15.