Mezzo-Soprano Denyce Graves Launches 2019 Hamlen-Palm Series

Acclaimed mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves will launch the 2019 Hamlen-Palm Series with an exclusive house concert on Thursday, January 31, 2019. The concerts are produced by and benefit Classical Action, a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

Reserved seats to Graves' concert are on sale now at classicalaction.org.

Graves, recognized as one of today's most exciting vocal stars, continues to garner unparalleled acclaim in performances around the world. She has become most beloved to operatic audiences for her portrayals of the title roles in Carmen and Samson et Dalila. The New York Times hailed her return to the Metropolitan Opera stage this fall in Marnie as "riveting."

In addition to The Met, Graves has performed at Vienna Staatsoper, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, San Francisco Opera, Opéra National de Paris, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Bayerische Staatsoper, Opernhaus Zürich, Teatro Real in Madrid and many more.

Also performing in the Hamlen-Palm Series are the Emerson String Quartet on Tuesday, April 9, 2019, and pianist André Watts on Thursday, May 9, 2019. The intimate house concerts will take place in the stunning TriBeCa loft home of longtime Classical Action supporters Kevin Roon and Simon Yates. The series is curated by David Lai, co-president and founder of Park Avenue Artists.

Supporter tickets for the series, which include prime reserved seats to all three house concerts, are also available at classicalaction.org.

The series was recently renamed from the Michael Palm Series to the Hamlen-Palm Series in honor of Charles Hamlen. Hamlen was the founding director of Classical Action, a visionary in the world of classical music management as the co-founder of what would become IMG Artists, and artistic adviser to the Orchestra of St. Luke's. Hamlen passed away from leukemia on August 1, 2018.

Michael Palm, the original namesake for the Hamlen-Palm Series, was a financial expert and philanthropist who dedicated his life to the arts, gay rights and the fight against HIV/AIDS. He first met Hamlen backstage at Carnegie Hall following a recital by pianist Earl Wild, where Palm learned about Classical Action. Palm was inspired by the classical musicians coming together to make a difference and launched a series of benefit house concerts that ultimately bore his name. Palm died in 1998.

Founded in 1993, Classical Action draws upon the talents, resources and generosity of the classical, opera and jazz communities to raise money for those battling HIV/AIDS and other critical illnesses.

As a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Classical Action helps fund the social service programs at The Actors Fund, including the HIV/AIDS Initiative, the Phyllis Newman Women's Health Initiative and The Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts. Broadway Cares also awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

Since its founding in 1988, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has raised more than $300 million to help provide access to lifesaving medications, health care, counseling, nutritious meals and emergency financial assistance to hundreds of thousands of men, women and children across the country.

For more information, please visit Classical Action at classicalaction.org, facebook.com/classicalaction and twitter.com/classicalaction.

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