Chuck Berry at The Howard Theatre, 4/28/2012

April in D.C.  It's not Paris, I guess, but how about a week that starts with brunch with The Harlem Gospel Choir, continues that evening with Taj Mahal, includes a midweek show by Meshell Ndegeochello, and ends with consecutive performances by McCoy Tyner and Chuck Berry.  Pretty good week.

That's part of what's happening the week of April 22 at The Howard Theatre in Washington, D.C.  You can check the full calendar and get tickets to Chuck's show HERE.

The Howard Theatre holds special memories for Chuck Berry.  Daryl Davis told about taking Berry back to The Howard in 2010 before the restoration.

 we stopped to get something to eat and as we drove through Washington, DC that evening, Chuck reminisced about playing there in the 1950s. He mentioned the Howard Theatre. Having graduated from Howard University, I knew exactly where it was. I also knew he would be stunned and disappointed to know how run down it had become. I made a detour and under the cover of darkness drove Chuck his old stomping ground. 

This guy had not been there in over 50 years but still knew the area and was telling me about what was on which corner and little tidbits of information. Sure enough, when we turned down the street, everything he had said was accurate. He pointed out the rooming house where he would stay because in those days, Blacks couldn’t stay in the White hotels. He had named a bar next door to the Howard where the entertainers would hang out. Sure enough, there it was. It had since changed names but it was still the same bar in the same building. 

As I suspected, when he saw the now decrepit Howard Theatre, his excitement turned somber and he shook his head. I explained there has been a lot of talk about refurbishing the Howard and that while there is hope, so far it’s been nothing but talk. The neighborhood is now very crime- and drug-ridden. As we drove around the building and through the backstage alley, he pointed out the backstage door he used to use. I could tell these were bittersweet memories; the good times he had there, countered by the racism he would have to face off stage at hotels and restaurants to coming back 50 years later and reliving the fun times in his mind of this once thriving area, only to face the reality of the run down neighborhood and it’s decrepit landmark. While the neighborhood has new faces, there are still people who reside there from back in the day and would remember seeing Chuck Berry at the theatre across the street from their homes. I couldn’t help but wonder what they would have thought had they been able to see through my tinted windows on my car and seen their idol from their youth, fifty years later sitting in front of the Howard.  

Read more of Daryl's stories HERE.

The theater is no longer looking grim.  Learn more about its restoration and see a film about its history HERE.