Iconic singer-songwriters Melissa Etheridge and the Indigo Girls will join forces for a night of songs together at 7:30 p.m. tonight in the Amphitheater, in a sold-out, double-bill performance.
Between the two trendsetting headliners are 20 Grammy nominations and millions of records sold. Tonight’s performance is one stop on a summer-long tour, and will welcome well-known, career-spanning hits, from Etheridge’s “I’m the Only One” and “Come To My Window,” and the Indigo Girls’ “Galileo” and “Closer to Fine” — the already-classic feminist anthem enjoying a resurgence in popularity thanks to Greta Gerwig’s 2023 film “Barbie.”
“I could not be more thrilled to have these singer-songwriters, their creativity, their energy in our 150th season,” said Deborah Sunya Moore, senior vice president and chief program officer at Chautauqua. “It’s definitely a dream come true for our Popular Entertainment Series.”
Etheridge, a two-time Grammy Award winner known for her contribution to American rock music, just performed at the Institution during the 2023 season. She released her self-titled debut album in 1988, followed by popular releases including Yes I Am in 1993, Your Little Secret in 1995, Skin in 2001 and This Is M.E. in 2014. More recently, Etheridge released Melissa Etheridge X Jewel in June of this year, and took center stage on Broadway with Melissa Etheridge: My Window in 2023.
Esteemed folk rock singer-songwriter duo the Indigo Girls, comprising Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, are known for their self-titled album released in 1989, Rites of Passage in 1992 and Swamp Ophelia in 1994. In 2020, they released their latest album, Look Long.
The Indigo Girls took two months off before launching into the summer tour with Etheridge. In advance of the tour stop in St. Louis, Missouri, earlier week, Saliers told St. Louis Magazine that she and Ray work hard to balance their lives, spending time at home — but still touring “in chunks of time, because we love what we do.”
And “playing with Melissa Etheridge? It’s going to be a summer vibe,” Saliers told St. Louis Magazine. “Summer will still be with us.”
Moore said she anticipates a fabulous evening in store for Chautauquans, experiencing Etheridge and the Indigo Girls performing songs the audience knows and loves. She highlighted the special memories that are made during experiences like tonight’s performance.
“We’re going to gather as a community for songs that are uplifting, songs that have been meaningful in many peoples’ lives,” she said.
She said Etheridge and the Indigo Girls are so established as artists that they have songs that will resonate with people with all backgrounds and life experiences.
“To be able to come into the Amphitheater, to experience that together, to have both memories and new experiences joined together, that’s what I think is so special when you have artists like the Indigo Girls and Melissa Etheridge that are not only legacy artists — because they have already created their own legacies — but who continue to create and continue to write,” she said.
