Last year, North Carolina-based singer and actress Yolanda Rabun wowed Virginia Theatre Festival audiences with her solo performance in No Fear and Blues Long Gone: Nina Simone, which told the life story of  the legendary blues singer through song and storytelling. This summer, Rabun is back at the festival, this time as herself in An Evening with Yolanda Rabun.

“This is different because the first show was about a woman, a well-known figure, Nina Simone. And this show is about Yolanda, another woman who more people need to know,” Rabun told Charlottesville Right Now. “I’ve done the show around the country to basically share my belief that everybody is connected to each other and everyone has a gift and the ability really to become the better version of themselves if they believe.”

Rabun, who is also a corporate attorney, says this show will also feature songs and spoken word, inspired by her day-to-day life experience.  

“I can tell you that my musical influences include Natalie Cole, Aretha Franklin, and even Tony Bennett. Male folks actually influenced me. And that’s the beauty I think, of music, that I actually don’t corner myself into one type of style,” she said.

The show will include a musical medley drawn from jazz, country, folk, soul and rhythm and blues.

“The good news is that I’m not pinned into one way to deliver a message. Like Nina Simone, I am a storyteller, and that gift allows me to touch people wherever the sound or the song takes you,” she said.

Rabun said she enjoys planning her shows. 

“It’s always a pleasure in how I pick a show in really looking at where I’m going as far as the region of the country, and even the demographics of the area, to figure out how and what needs to be heard,” she explained.

That method has been mostly successful, and she doesn’t worry if a song initially doesn’t seem to be working for the crowd.

“I only have to reach one person,” she said. “I only have to touch one soul to hear it and run.”

During the show, Rabun interacts directly with members of the audience.

“I’ve always said that I want people to shift with me,” she said. “I feel like if you change the way you look at things, the things that you look at might change… And I believe that if you hear the right music, if you hear the right message, you just might do better and be better in your life.” 

Virginia Theatre Festival is in its fifth decade offering summer theater. Previous shows this summer have included the musical classic Cabaret and Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise, a love story told through letters and set during WWII.

An Evening with Yolanda Rabun opens Aug. 3. For ticket information, visit virginiatheatrefestival.org.

To hear the full interview with Yolanda Rabun, click here.