NYC
Actor | Director
Producer | Jazz Vocalist
Rome Neal's Banana Puddin' Jazz
Produced by Director, Actor and Vocalist
Rome Neal
Celebrating 23 years!
Rome Neal's Banana Puddin' Jazz is an award winning, long-standing, celebrated Jazz series in New York City that blends live music, community spirit, and audience interaction with the rich legacy of Black theatre and Jazz. Each show ends with an open mic, BPJ poem, and comes with a serving of Rome's famous, complimentary banana pudding.
Launched at the historic Nuyorican Poets Cafe in 2003, the series delivers top-tier entertainment every month, featuring world-renowned musicians, vocalists, poets, and more. The prestigious Rome Neal Shekere Award has honored many industry greats, including some now remembered as beloved ancestors.
Scroll below for this month's Monday night schedule.
THANK YOU FOR 23 YEARS OF MARVTASTIC SUPPORT.
Our productions are fueled by the community, by way of donations, ticket sales and monthly sponsors. Your contributions make all the difference.
PayPal
Cashapp: $RNBJ18
Zelle: romeneal25@gmail.com
BECOME A MONTHLY or YEARLY
SPONSOR TODAY
call Rome Neal: at 718-288-8048 for more details on how you can support.
Go to YouTube and like and subscribe
to the BPJ YouTube Page
An honor to be acknowledged by Woodie King Jr.
(July 27, 1937 – January 29, 2026)
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current happenings!
Rome Neal w/ Patience Higgins and the Sugar Hill Quartet
Leonieke
& The Midnight Special Quartet
Live at Theater for the New City
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Production
New York, NY — March 30, 2026 — Executive Director Crystal Field presents a special evening of world-class jazz as part of Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz series at Theater for the New City. On Monday, March 30 at 7:00 PM, acclaimed Hammond organist Leonieke leads The Midnight Special Quartet in an electrifying performance celebrating the tradition and future of organ jazz.
On November 1, 2024, the Nuyorican closed its iconic doors for a $24 million 3-year renovation project called the "Nuyoricanstruction" phase ushering us into the next 50 years.
Rome Neal, Artistic Theatre Director / Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Nuyorican Poets Cafe
Rome Neal's Article Features | Click to enlarge
CONGRATULATIONS
to ROME NEAL
who in 2022, received the
Lifetime Achievement Award at the
AUDELCO Awards Spectacular 50th Celebration of Black Theatre Excellence!
Theater produced and created by African-Americans helped mold generations influenced by their performance art and helped shape cultures.
Now, a new documentary hopes to show these Black creators, past and present, seeking stages to share their voices, entertain and inform on issues in front of a live audience and other performance platforms.
Since 2003, Rome Neal and his Banana Puddin' Jazz, have showcased over 500 singers, poets, dancers & musicians at NYC's World Famous Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Join him for an evening of glamour, celebration, incredible music & food* and yes, delicious banana puddin'!
Press
The Virtual
Experience
Banana Puddin' Jazz Jam
& the Nuyorican Poets Cafe
The Banana Puddin' Jazz Jam and Open Mic was conceived by Rome Neal on April 7, 2003 at the world famous Nuyorican Poets Cafe. After going out to many jazz clubs doing research on jazz musicians in order to develop the Thelonious Monk character in Laurence Holder's one-man play (Monk), Neal found himself at quite a few jazz jam sessions. He became ecstatic over the musicianship and environment which instilled in him a desire to bring (that same energy of the jazz jams of 40s and 50s, which still exist in some clubs in harlem today) downtown to his artistic home (the Nuyorican Poets Cafe).
In personalizing his particular jazz jam, Neal added his favorite banana puddin dish which he makes for everyone to eat, and the banana puddin jazz jam poem, a group poem written by the audience in attendance on the night of the event and recited by a member of the audience with jazz music as it's underscore and finally e-mailed to everyone on his e-mail list. The Banana Puddin' Jazz Jam evenings begins with a featured band, and is preceded by an open mic with musicians, singer, poets and dancers welcomed to perform. All hosted by Rome Neal, who sings and dances his way into the hearts of those in attendance as well as serves up his legendary banana pudding for dessert.
Over the past years the featured bands have been:
The Onaje Allan Gumbs Trio
The John Di Martino Trio
Cynthia Scott and her Trio
Bill Lee and His Mo' Better Quintet
The Danny Mixon Trio
Lafayette Harris Trio
Lou Myers and His Band
Chester Gregory and His Band
The Bob Cunningham Trio
Eric Frazier and his Quintet
Patience Higgins and The Sugar Hill Quartet
The Bill Saxton Trio
The Donald Smith Trio
George V. Johnson Jr.
The William Ash Trio
The Japanese Jazz Connection
Blueswing Jazz
Lakecia Benjamin Trio
The Sayuri Goto Trio
The Mamiko Watanabe Trio
Nick Porcaro Trio
The Atiba Wilson Trio
The Goussy Celestin Trio
The Efacho Okeke Jazz Trio
Seth Sharp and the Shinya Yonezawa Trio
IC EXPRESS
Flash Drive
Courtney Bryan and the Marvtastic Ladies in Jazz
Mfergu Trio
Richard Clements Trio
Keith "The Captain" Gamble
And More!
