Both Sides Now: The Music and Lives of Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen

“Two singer-songwriters sit on the edge of a cliff…”

With these words, we are drawn into the world of Both Sides Now - a theatrical concert that explores the music and lives of long-time friends and one-time lovers, Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen. Created by, and starring Robbie Schaefer and Danielle Wertz, the cabaret-style performance traverses decades alongside songs such as A Case of You, Hallelujah, Big Yellow Taxi, Suzanne, and many more. Both Sides Now is at once a piece of the 60’s and 70’s, and of right now -- offering us a story about the messiness of being human, of lives persistently lived at the edge of growth, and of finding the courage to turn toward one another, again and again.

Artist Bios:

Robbie Schaefer

Robbie is a rabbi, singer-songwriter and theatre/film artist. The guitarist and songwriter for the indie folk band Eddie From Ohio has several solo releases as well, including the 2023 single Under the Sun.

He is the founder of Lamplighters, an online community that cultivates small-batch, relationship-driven, inclusive Judaism.

He is also the founder of OneVoice, an international non-profit that unites and empowers youth through music and the creative arts. The organization was active from 2011-2023 and completed projects in Tanzania, Nicaragua, India, Greece, and Israel.

Robbie has shared the stage with Jason Mraz, Sara Bareilles, Josh Groban, Keb ‘ Mo, and Emmylou Harris, among others. His first work for musical theater, Light Years, which explores his relationship with his father, a Holocaust survivor, saw its world premiere at the Tony Award-winning Signature Theatre in 2018. The musical is now a feature film entitled Burst The Silence (Rolling Pictures), which is due for release on streaming platforms in 2025.

He is currently at work on a new musical, The Blue Poppy, an Irish-Jewish ghost story written in collaboration with Scottish playwright Grace Barnes, and Songs From The Wilderness, a new album of Jewish musical midrash (interpretation), due for release in early 2026.

Also, he likes olives. A lot.

Danielle Wertz

Danielle is a storyteller, collaborator, jazz musician, composer and arranger. Described as, "untarnished by the politics of music" (Jazz Music Archives) and "a masterful ballad interpreter" (New York City Jazz Record) she has rapidly gained national acclaim.

After being named a 2015 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition semi-finalist, Danielle independently released her debut album, Intertwined, which ranked #4 on Capital Bop's list of "Best DC Jazz Albums of 2017." That same year she placed 2nd in the Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition and 3rd in the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Vocal Competition.

In 2023 Danielle released her sophomore album, Other Side. With this project she made a quantum leap as a composer and conceptualist. Reimagined and rewritten during the pandemic, the album pairs her original compositions with carefully crafted arrangements of standards from the Great American Songbook. Jazziz called the album “expressive and polished” and Jazz Weekly noticed a “Joni Mitchell’d tenderness to her material.” Danielle continues to be an avid collaborator internationally and as a member of the NYC jazz scene, and is looking forward to headlining her first European tour in 2025.

Also, she loves chocolate. A lot.

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