WKSU: Bringing Opera Back To Northeast Ohio
March 24, 2011
WKSU features Akron Symphony’s Porgy and Bess as part of their coverage of the state of grand opera in northeast Ohio. Listen here.
This week the Cleveland Orchestra presents Mozart’s Don Giovanni at Severance Hall, but grand opera, with all the sets, costumes, and spectacle it entails, has been missing in the region since Opera Cleveland went silent for the season. A task force is working to bring it back. Meanwhile opera fans have HD opera in movie theaters and the offerings of music conservatories, orchestras, and smaller opera companies.
Test Porgy
March 23, 2011
News Release: Porgy and Bess
March 17, 2011
Akron Symphony Mounts Production Of Gershwins’ “Porgy and Bess” April 15-16 at E.J. Thomas Hall
Friday performance added as Saturday nears sell-out!
Akron—The Akron Symphony Orchestra (ASO) will present a semi-staged production of the Gershwins’ classic opera Porgy and Bess on Friday, April 15 and Saturday, April 16 at The University of Akron’s E.J. Thomas Hall at 8 PM. Originally scheduled for one performance on Saturday, the ASO recently added a second performance on Friday as a “preview” to meet the overwhelming demand for tickets, establishing a new milestone in the 60-year history of the Symphony’s Classics Series. Read more
Podcast: Getting To Know Porgy and Bess
March 11, 2011
In this special edition of the Akron Symphony podcast, WAKR’s Chuck Collins and ASO Music Director Christopher Wilkins present an introduction to the Gershwins’ masterpiece Porgy and Bess. Listen as the two discuss the opera’s historical and cultural significance along with key plot points and trivia–complete with audio highlights. See the Akron Symphony’s production of Porgy and Bess live at E.J. Thomas Hall, April 15-16 at 8:00 PM.
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Porgy and Bess This Weekend!
March 9, 2011
Second performance added! Tickets selling fast. Don’t miss your chance to see this incredible event!
Bess, You Is My Woman Now
March 9, 2011
Alvy Powell stars as “Porgy” in this clip from The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess Read more
Second Performance Added!
March 9, 2011
Due to overwhelming ticket sales, the Akron Symphony has added a second performance of its semi-staged production of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess on Friday, April 15, 2011. The ASO previously announced a Saturday, April 16 performance as part of its Classics Series last June upon receiving a $150,000 grant from The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to fund the production. After months of steady ticket sales and an outpouring of community support, the result is a nearly sold-out E.J. Thomas Hall on April 16—a new milestone in the 60-year history of the organization’s Classics Series— and a “preview” performance on Friday, April 15.
“I am thrilled that the demand for tickets has been so extraordinary, and that this has occurred long in advance of the performances. But I am even more gratified that so many of the top talent in the African-American community have embraced this production with deep passion and commitment. Our cast is so powerful and talented; they will rock your world and break your hearts,” says Akron Symphony Music Director Christopher Wilkins.
The ASO’s production of Porgy and Bess will star Alvy Powell and Marquita Lister in the respective title roles. Both have become internationally recognized as two of the very best performers for the demanding leads. Mr. Powell has performed the role of Porgy more than 1,200 times, including a 2009 performance at Carnegie Hall and Public Television’s Emmy-nominated Live at Lincoln Center broadcast of the New York City Opera production. Marquita Lister is equally synonymous with the role of Bess and performed opposite Powell in the Lincoln Center broadcast. Both are also featured on the Nashville Symphony’s recording of Porgy and Bess released on the Decca label.
The balance of the cast is a blend of professionals and amateurs, with most cast locally by auditions held in Akron last year. Principal cast includes: Lester Lynch as “Crown,” Angela Renee Simpson as “Serena,” Emmanuel LeGrair as “Sportin’ Life,” Brian Keith Johnson as “Jake,” Candice Hoyes as “Clara,” Carla J. Davis as “Maria,” and Jaron LeGrair as “Mingo.” The 40-member on-stage chorus will combine with the Akron Symphony’s Gospel Choir and Leslie Parker Barnes’s YEPAW 365 (seated in the balcony of E.J. Thomas Hall) to create a combined chorus of over 200 voices, a power unlike anything heard in recent years in the opera house or in any of the touring productions. In all, the total complement of the production will feature approximately 350 performers, musicians, and stage crew.
“Porgy and Bess is a whole universe, a place to live in and marvel at over and over again. Having worked for many months to prepare a production as wonderful and complex as this, I am so happy that our 350 performers, and the scores of support staff, and our board members and patrons, and all those who adore this music, will now have a chance—with this second performance—to experience it one more time,” says Wilkins.
Tickets for both performances are on sale now from $15-$40. To order or for more information, call the Akron Symphony ticket office at 330.535.8131 or buy now online.
Listen to an audio introduction to “Porgy and Bess,” hosted by WAKR’s Chuck Collins and Maestro Christopher Wilkins:
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News Release: Akron Symphony Chorus Concert 2011
March 3, 2011
Akron Symphony Chorus To Present Ohio Premiere of Galbraith’s “Missa Mysteriorum,” March 27 At St. Sebastian
Chorus Director Sellner to make Akron conducting debut
Akron—New Chorus Director Maria Sensi Sellner will make her Akron conducting debut with the Ohio premiere of Missa Mysteriorum (Mass of the Mysteries) by Nancy Galbraith on Sunday, March 27, 2011 at St. Sebastian Church (476 Mull Avenue) in Akron at 2 PM. Sellner will lead the Akron Symphony Chorus (ASC) and members of the Akron Symphony Orchestra (ASO) in a kaleidoscope of sacred choral favorites from Scarlatti, Bach, Schubert, and Galbraith.
Podcast: March 2011
March 1, 2011
Chorus Director Maria Sensi Sellner talks with teacher, mentor, friend, and composer Nancy Galbraith in anticipation of the Akron Symphony Chorus concert on Sunday, March 27, 2011.
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