Paris comes to the Galapagos

By Meredith Deliso

For the past year, Célia Faussart has been bringing a taste of the City of Lights to the Big Apple with her cabaret, “Paris@Night.”

A native of Paris, the singer, a member of the Grammy-nominated French R&B duo Les Nubians, had the idea for a “Paris Noir” cabaret when she was living in France.

“I grew up listening to the old-time French cabaret artists such as Edith Piaf, Mistinguett, Yves Montand, Josephine Baker. Great story tellers and entertainers, they were participating in the glamour of the ‘City of Lights,’” says Faussart, a native of Paris who now lives in Brooklyn. “I love those classics and I wanted to revisit them along with some of my own materials.”

When she came to New York, she was able to bring the glamour to Brooklyn, with an inaugural show at Solomon’s Porch in her neighborhood, Bedford-Stuyvesant, last fall, that blends jazz, samba, dub, soul, house and hip-hop. Since, she’s also brought the show to (Le) Poisson Rouge, and every first Thursday, it can be found at Zinc Bar in Manhattan. On October 23, the taste of Paris returns to Brooklyn with a show at Galapagos Art Space in DUMBO.

“I didn’t know about the venue before they contacted us, but as soon as [I saw it], I fell in love,” says Faussart, who goes by the stage name BlueNefertiti. “It’s perfect for ‘Paris@Night.’”

Indeed, with its club atmosphere – tabled booths that give you a view from every seat and red lighting – the Brooklyn venue is the ideal space for Faussart’s show, as she shares stories and performs originals and renditions of songs by Edith Piaf, Nina Simone, Josephine Baker, Miriam Makeba and Dave Brubeck with her band, comprised of Marie Martin (vocals), Adeline Petricien (vocals), Adam Mason (bass), Ezra Brown (saxophone, keys), John Roggie (keys), and Butter (drums). She’ll also be joined by special guests from the New York City music and poetry scene, as well as friends from Paris, that night.

Moving forward, Faussart has more Paris nights in her future, with her monthly gig at Zinc. She’s also working on a third album with Les Nubians, slated for release early next year, which, like her show, transports the audience.

“For this show, as for Les Nubians, I’m inspired by the past, the present and the future, how to link them to make it timeless,” says Faussart, “and bring the audience somewhere else.”

BlueNefertiti’s “Paris@Night” is October 23 at Galapagos Art Space (16 Main St.). Tickets are $20. For more information, or call 718-222-8500.