High above the sparkling hills of Hollywood exists a bohemian private rooftop club exclusive to members of the creative and well-traveled set. It’s not Soho House or even Chateau Marmont, rather a quiet alternative with a European setting that is home to Petit Ermitage, a small boutique hotel which prides itself as the anti-scene haven. Aside from the killer views and chic canopied outdoor dining, the intimate Butterfly Bar plays host to The Toledo Show every Friday night. Blending jazz with a touch of burlesque, poet- singer -dancer Toledo Christopher Diamon, aka Toledo Diamond, holds court and mesmerizes.
I was invited to catch his show recently and although I’ve been to Petit Ermitage, I wasn’t familiar with Toledo or his show which has been running for about a year. However, he is quite the legend around Los Angeles where he’s been performing for years, and his decade at Harvelle’s Blues Club in Santa Monica is a Sunday night staple. There, his funked-up jazz show features a full band and a dozen scantily-clad girl dancers who rotate in and out of his act. But it is inside the Butterfly Bar where he comes alive, virtually solo with the exception of two musicians and oh yeah…a scantily-clad dancer. Every week is slightly different as his lyrics are literally improvised with each performance, and it is his storied past that lends to his deeply intense and captivating numbers.
Extremely talented and truly original, the LA native – who at times channels Isaac Hayes, Barry White, Aaron Neville and Tom Waits all at once– started out as a street dancer and underground performing artist and then segued into choreography, working on some of the hottest videos of the 1980’s with then video director and now mega film director David Fincher, among others. Although Toledo had his sights on directing he is convinced his singing career began as a fluke after laying down his poems on some record tracks, which eventually led to a long recording career. Stefan Ashkenazy- co-owner of Petit Ermitage and son of the notable hotelier from L’Ermitage in Beverly Hills- brought Toledo to his gem to give LA’s coolest and most stylish crowd the real definition of a cool cat … www.thetoledoshow.com
