When Aretha Franklin recorded her Grammy award-winning female-perspective version of Otis Redding’s hit song “Respect” on Valentine’s Day 1967, she had no idea it would become a protest anthem for both the civil rights and women’s rights movements of the era and beyond.
Delora Skelton wasn’t listening back then, but she has listened since. Her respect for Franklin and several other Black female singers, spanning multiple genres, has manifested itself in a biographical stage show that showcases a century of songs recorded by the likes of Franklin, Billie Holiday, Etta James, Gladys Knight, and Whitney Houston to name but a few.
On Saturday, September 5 at Lindsay’s FLATO Academy Theatre, “Reign: The Queens of Blues, Soul and Rock ‘n’ Roll” will pay tribute to the Black female solo artists and groups that generations have grown up listening to.
That said, the production created and written by Skelton and produced by Royal Tribute Productions isn’t just another tribute show. Rather, education is also in the mix.
It was in the fall of 2022 that Skelton, a high school English teacher, hit on the idea for the show as she sat in a meeting in her capacity as the human rights executive officer for District 21 of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation.
“We were brainstorming ways that we could participate in fundraising initiatives and also host events that would get members — teachers — engaged in human rights issues,” Skelton recalls. “I thought ‘What are some events we could get members involved in that focus on equity and inclusivity and diversity that give voice to marginalized voices without being too didactic or instructional?'”
“I started thinking about a show. What would be something I would get excited about wanting to go and see? Something where I would call up my girlfriends and say ‘Hey, this show is coming to town. We need to get tickets to go see it.'”
VIDEO: “Reign: The Queens of Blues, Soul & Rock ‘n Roll”
That led Skelton to think about the kind of music she grew up listening to.
“I thought what would be a really great show is taking a look at the instrumental ways which Black women throughout the 20th century have impacted and shaped contemporary music to this day — whether it was in jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, rock ‘n’ roll and, eventually funk and pop — and turn that into not only a celebration of Black women in music, but also a celebration of the various ways and degrees they impacted and shaped music and society.”
Describing “Reign” as “narrated music history meets performance,” Skelton notes the production “differs from the traditional Motown show, which is very specific label in a very specific period of time with very specific artists.”
Instead, she says, “It starts with the first Black woman to become, in a public way, involved in a traditionally male-dominated industry, and then we look at the double marginalization of Black women and see how they impacted and shaped music genres throughout the 20th century.”
The show’s title grew from Skelton’s desire to focus on music royalty.
“These are artists who, in very impactful ways, shaped the genre that they were most associated with, but their names are getting lost with the passage of time,” Skelton says.
“The narrative in the show talks about the little ways which, even by degrees, these performers changed people’s narrow but very popular perceptions of who and what Black women were. Powerhouses like Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Big Mama Thornton … powerful women who were no-nonsense. These women were the forerunners for rock ‘n’ roll but they are not household names like a Tina Turner or a Janis Joplin.”
Having done her homework and written the show but with no production experience, Skelton leaned heavily on Royal Tribute Productions producer Roy LeBlanc to bring the show to life. That led, in late November 2025, to “Reign” having its premiere performance at the Sanderson Centre in Brantford, and being staged again in mid-December at the Roselawn Theatre in Port Colborne. The Lindsay show marks just its third staging.
While “Reign” has a strong educational component, Skelton assures it entertains from start to finish.
“By the second song of the second act, everybody was on their feet,” she says of the audience reaction to the initial performances.
“They were dancing and singing — just having the time of their lives. At one point, one of the performers on the stage kicked off her high heel shoes and cut loose. We’re talking about a Juno-nominated gospel singer. The wheels came off the trolley and it was a party until the very last song.”
“At the end of the show, the person who was the filming it got a few testimonials. A group of women interviewed loved the voices of the singers and the song selection, but one of the women interviewed said ‘We loved the stories.’ We’re talking little vignettes of who they are. How did they shape music? What cultural and social changes happened because they were here and their voices were heard?”
For Skelton, the subject matter of “Reign” makes it ideal way to introduce young people to the generational impact of these female Black artists.
“This is a show a music teacher could take their students to, that an English teacher or a history teacher could take their students to, that a social science teacher could take their students to. It has a cross-curricular element that’s impossible not to see. It’s informative without being too instructive and didactic. You could create lesson plans around it.”
“My hope is that, ultimately, there will be daytime matinee performances during the week. There’s information here about the ways in which the world changed because these giants existed.”
Its educational component aside, the production’s entertainment value is rightly front of mind.
To that end, the cast of lead performers includes Juno award-nominated gospel singer Patricia Shirley, Memphis International Blues Challenge finalist Garnetta Cromwell, and acclaimed Whitney Houston tribute artist Geri Dafoe, supported by a multi-piece band with music promoter and Canadian Idol judge Farley Flex serving as the show’s narrator.
Skelton says those being portrayed “include entertainers who weren’t given accolades like Gladys Knight, the Empress of Soul, or the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin. I don’t want people to think that the title of the show is so limited that we only look at soul and rock ‘n’ roll. There’s gospel, there jazz, there’s funk, there’s pop, there’s even some hip-hop.”
Even the intermission, which bisects two 55-minute sets, offers glimpses into the contributions of the featured artists via screened slides with images and tidbits of how music history changed because they were part of it. It also allows Skelton to showcase musical artists who, while influential in their own right, aren’t featured as part of the show due to constraints.
Four years after she first conceived of “Reign,” Skelton is delighted with the result.
“For the first show (in Brantford), I was sick (with nerves) but I cried after it,” recalls Skelton, adding “I hugged the three women that sang and the background vocalist, and said ‘Thank you for making this come true and for loving the music the way I do.'”
Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. show are $59 for the orchestra section and the front row of the balcony and $51 for the remaining balcony, and can be purchased online at www.flatoacademytheatre.com, in person at the box office at 2 Lindsay Street South from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays, or by calling 705-324-9111 (877-888-0038 toll free).
The Lindsay show marks the beginning of a seven-show Ontario tour that also includes a stop at Peterborough’s Market Hall on November 21.
