Doors 6pm
Show 7pm
Award-winning UK jazz singer Nishla Smith visits the Ellington for a show celebrating the art of song. Joined by some of Australia’s foremost musicians, Nishla will present a selection of beloved jazz standards, threaded through with Nishla’s “darkly gorgeous” original songs (Downbeat USA).
Nishla is an artist driven by a desire to tell stories. Her unique musical sensibility drives a prolific array of musical projects. She’s recently made work for Opera North, London Jazz Festival and Manchester Collective. Her debut album, ‘Friends With Monsters’, was released on Whirlwind Recordings to critical acclaim. Nishla is a Peter Whittingham Jazz Award Winner, International Songwriting Competition Award Winner and an alumni of London Jazz Festival’s flagship Take Five programme. She played the titular bird in Atri Banerjee’s acclaimed production of ‘Kes’, for which she won a UK Theatre Award for ‘Best Supporting Performer’, and has recently finished a run as ‘The Jazz Singer’, a role she originated in Emma Baggott’s Spring 2024 adaptation of ‘A Taste of Honey’ at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester.
“Her voice is exquisite, a symbol of unreachable beauty.” THE GUARDIAN
“While Nishla’s singing is an entrancing beauty all its own, the true trump cards are her lyrics and melodies.” – DOWNBEAT, USA
