THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, April 7, 1995 TAG: 9504050256
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
Entertainment booked by the Portsmouth Community Concert Association for the 1995-96 season features something for everybody.
The season will open with a performance Nov. 11 by the Richmond Ballet, known as the State Ballet of Virginia. The season will continue with a concert by Brenda Boozer, mezzo soprano, on Dec. 9, and a return appearance by the Vienna Boys' Choir on Jan. 13. The season will conclude on April 8 with a performance by the New Xavier Cugat Orchestra under the direction of Ada Cavallo.
Season memberships are now on sale for $35 for adults and $17.50 for students. Family memberships and reserved seating also are available. Memberships admit the holder to all of the Portsmouth concerts plus more than 15 Community Concert programs in Franklin, Gloucester, Murfreesboro, N.C., and Elizabeth City, N.C. They are available by calling 483-2283.
The Richmond Ballet, Virginia's only full-time professional ballet company, is directed by Stoner Winslett. The company also operates Center for Dance, a nationally recognized training program that attracts about 500 students annually.
Founded in the late 1950s, the company served Richmond as a civic ballet for more than 25 years before becoming a professional company in 1984. It was proclaimed the State Ballet of Virginia in 1990 by Gov. Douglas Wilder.
A repertory program will be presented here.
Brenda Boozer made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 1979 as Hansel in ``Hansel and Gretel'' and has performed many roles there since that time. She has sung in some of the world's most pretigious opera houses, including Covent Garden, Paris, Florence, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, San Francisco, Amsterdam and Santa Fe.
As a concert soloist, she has sung with the symphony orchestras of Philadelphia, Los Angeles, St. Louis and Seattle. She has participated in festivals such as Edinburgh, Mostly Mozart, Spoleto USA, Wolf Trap, Carmel Bach and at the Hollywood Bowl.
Born in Atlanta, Boozer received degrees from Florida State University and the Juilliard School. She also studied with the legendary dancer, Martha Graham. A regular guest on television, she has appeared on the Tonight Show, the Mike Douglas Show and ABC's Wide World of Entertainment.
The Vienna Boys' Choir is making a return appearance on the series. The group, founded in 1498 by Emperor Maximilian I, has toured this country 50 times since 1932. Each season, they carry on the traditions of Vienna's musical life that traces its roots to such figures as Mozart, Haydn and Schubert.
The touring choir that visits Portsmouth will feature 24 singers with a choirmaster.
Xavier Cugat's Latin beat was popular with dancers and listeners in the 1930s and '40s. His repertoire of styles, such as the rumba, conga, tango and cha-cha, became a staple of most Big Band libraries.
The New Cugat Orchestra is directed by Ada Cavallo, a Chilean who was trained as a concert pianist and classical vocalist. She came to the United States to attend Peabody Institute of Music in Baltimore and switched to pop music when she was offered a job as a club singer in Washington. ILLUSTRATION: Brenda Boozer, mezzo soprano, will perform a concert on Dec. 9.
Ada Cavallo will direct the New Xavier Cugat Orchestra.
The Portsmouth Community Concert Association will feature the Vienna
Boys' Choir on Jan. 13.
by CNB