Boston Court's Winter Music Season Begins with THE OPERATIC AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHT, 1/27

Boston Court Performing Arts Center will bring a provocative and stimulating season of music events to Southern California for their 2018 Winter season. Artistic Director of Boston Court's music programming, Mark Saltzman has curated an eclectic blend of genre-crossing concerts featuring outstanding local musicians and brilliant musical ensembles from around the globe.

Boston Court Performing Arts Center's music offerings launch with The Operatic American Playwright -- a concert (January 27) drawn from the literary output of Tennessee Williams and some of his contemporaries, featuring pianist Mark Robson, soprano Amanda Squitieri and staged by Mark Saltzman. The program is conceived with scenes and poetry drawn from operas inspired by seminal works of 20th century American Playwrights such as Tennessee Williams and novelists such as Carson McCullers. This concert complements Boston Court's first theatre offering of the season, Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire and will feature a pre-performance discussion panel with Streetcar director Michael Michetti and Mark Saltzman.

Mark Saltzman says, "Over the years, Boston Court has served as an intimate hub for presenting interesting music and outstanding musicians that all intersect through the many diverse genres and cultures they represent. Every week we showcase a variety of musical performances featuring artists who welcome the opportunity to engage our audiences in exploring and expanding the beauty and creative potential of music in the 21st century... The exceptional quality of music making, coupled with the precise and vibrant acoustics of our hall have made the Branson the perfect environment to experience truly transformative performances."

Keeping with its mission to present the newest and most interesting music of Los Angeles area composers, the nonprofit performing arts center is proud to present an evening featuring the latest compositions of Joanna Wallfisch (February 10). Wallfisch premieres a new multimedia song cycle along with her new CD release. Other local musician offerings include The USC Collaborative Alumni Concert (February 23) featuring USC graduates of vocal performance and music composition and a collaboration with Pasadena's own Red Hen Press (February 24) featuring the poetry of Florencia Ramirez and Tess Taylor with the music of the influential and self-taught Japanese composer Taru Takemitsu.

Reaching beyond the borders of Los Angeles, Unicamp Brazilian Cello Ensemble (February 2-3), the conductor-less cello orchestra comes from Sao Paolo, the Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble (March 3) from Russia, and the locally-based Armenian Public Radio (February 17) brings a modern twist to the musical traditions of ancient Armenia.

New and returning subscribers can purchase tickets to the 2018 season now with flex passes, traditional music or theatre subscriptions or the new $25/month Full Court Pass, which allows unlimited access to tickets to any Boston Court Performing Arts Center season performances. Subscriptions range from $54-$130.

Single tickets, starting at $30, and subscriptions can be purchased by visiting BostonCourt.com or calling 626.683.6801. Student and senior discounts are available.

BOSTON COURT PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

WINTER 2018

MUSIC - CLASSICAL, OPERA, CONTEMPORARY and NEW

OPERA
The Operatic American Playwright
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
January 27, 2018 at 8:00pm
Pre-show discussion at 7:30pm with Mark Saltzman and Michael Michetti
Accomplished pianist and Boston Court favorite, Mark Robson (LA Opera, Piano Spheres) and acclaimed soprano Amanda Squitieri explore an archetypal American woman drawn from the complex female characters of plays by Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Lanford Wilson, and Elmer Rice. A Streetcar Named Desire, Summer and Smoke, A View from the Bridge, and Street Scene are the core dramatic and literary inspirations that have been set to music by André Previn, Paul Bowles, Lee Hoiby, and Kurt Weill as well as popular music of the era ("Paper Moon," "If I Didn't Care," "If Love Were All"). Woven together by Artistic Director, Mark Saltzman, this evening is a musical and character-based reflection on some of today's most pressing matters of gender, power, race, class and their interplay.

Join A Streetcar Named Desire Director Michael Michetti, Mark Saltzman and others for a pre-performance discussion panel followed by this curated lyrical evening of song and character.

CLASSICAL
Unicamp Brazilian Cello Ensemble
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 2 & 3, 2018 at 8:00pm
Formed in 2013, this conductor-less orchestra features multiple celli from Sao Paulo, Brazil and specializes in the music of Villa-Lobos as well as other South American composers with guest local cellists Gloria Lum and Stephen Erdody.

CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL
Descent into Madness: Miss Donnithorne's Maggot and Other Cautionary Music
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 9, 2018 at 8:00pm
Pre-show discussion at 7:15pm by composer Jack Van Zandt
An edgy staging of Peter Maxwell Davies devilishly difficult ensemble "Miss Donnithorne's Maggot" featuring Brightwork newmusic and soprano Stacey Fraser along with new compositions by Veronika Krausas, Jason Barabba, and Somei Satoh

CLASSICAL
Steven Vanhauwaert: Romancing the Piano
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 16, 2018 at 8:00pm
Acclaimed concert pianist, Steven Vanhauwaert presents an unabashedly romantic program of Schumann, Busoni, Respighi and Liszt.

NEW MUSIC
The USC Collaborative Alumni Concert
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 23, 2018 at 8:00pm
Post-show discussion with composers and USC performers
USC graduates in the disciplines of vocal performance and music composition reunite to perform works they first premiered over the past eight years at Boston Court, along with the composers more recent compositions. Composers featured include Julia Adolphe, Sarah Gibson and Thomas Kotcheff amongst others.

POETRY & CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL
Water and the Future: Red Hen Press and the Music of Toru Takemitsu
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 24, 2018 at 8:00pm
Red Hen Press Poets Florencia Ramirez and Tess Taylor share the stage with veteran Boston Court Performing Arts Center musicians guitarist, Alexander Miller and flutist, Sara Andon in an evening of readings, music, and discussion on environmentalism centering on the importance of water in this age of heavy consumption.

NEW MUSIC
Microfest: Bach and Bartok Retuned for the 21st Century
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 2, 2018 at 8:00pm
Adventurous violinist Sara Cubarsi and violist Madeline Falcone pair up for a program of Bach and Bartok re-imagined for micro-tonal tuning, along with duo works by Ben Johnston, Catherine Lamb, and Wolfgang von Schweinitz.

NEW MUSIC & CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL
Synchromy: Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 3, 2018 at 8:00pm
Pre-show Russian music symposium at 6:00pm
Russia's leading contemporary music ensemble champions modern music and composers from all over the world. With an ear towards détente, this illustrious group offers a program combining California composers like Nick Norton, Vera Ivanova and Jason Barabba with composers from the Russian Avant-Garde including Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Roslavets, and Polovinkin.

NEW MUSIC
Panic Duo: Women's Voices
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 9, 2018 at 8:00pm
Celebrating International Women's Day, the pianist, Nic Gerpe, and violinist, Pasha Tseitlin present a program of music by women composers focusing on the important poetical, spiritual and musical voice of women in our society. This concert features recent works by Sara Graef, Kaija Saariaho, Thea Musgrave, Juhi Bansal, Vera Ivanova and Gilda Lyons.

CLASSICAL
The New Philharmonic Quartet
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 10, 2018 at 8:00pm
Los Angeles Philharmonic violinists, Akiko Tarumoto and Johnny Lee, violist, Ingrid Hutman, and cellist, Gloria Lum join together for a program featuring favorite chamber music for strings including works by Haydn, Mozart, and Mendelssohn.

NEW MUSIC
Mana Saxophone Trio
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 16, 2018 at 8:00pm
Pre-show discussion at 7:30pm with the performers
This multidisciplinary concert explores the vast universe of sounds and musical range that can be found within a saxophone, and features the world premieres of three new works for multiple saxophones. Composers Gabriel José Bolaños Chamoro, Andrew Cote, and Olivia Kieffer explore the subject of immigration and xenophobia.

CLASSICAL
Con Gioia Early Music Ensemble: Couperin 350
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
March 17, 2018 at 7:00pm
Southern California's premier baroque ensemble celebrates the 350th anniversary of the birth of one of France's most venerable composers, Francois Couperin, with a sumptuous survey of his popular and lesser-known repertoire.

MUSIC - MIXED GENRES, JAZZ, FOLK, WORLD and POETRY

JAZZ & MIXED GENRE
Joanna Wallfisch: A Musical Portrait
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 10, 2018 at 8:00pm
Two extraordinary musical journeys with this highly-gifted, genre-blending singer and composer. Her multimedia musical memoir about one woman's solo concert tour via bicycle from Portland to Los Angeles "The Great Song Cycle Song Cycle" is paired with the new album release of her latest and greatest opus "Blood and Bone."

FOLK & WORLD MUSIC
Armenian Public Radio: New Music from an Ancient Tradition
Concert in the Marjorie Branson Performance Space
February 17, 2018 at 7:00pm and 9:00pm (two shows)
Sharing a love for their heritage, this exciting, young musical trio returns to Boston Court with their inventive and fresh perspective to the traditional music of their homeland.

About Boston Court Performing Arts Center
Located in Pasadena, California, Boston Court is a nonprofit arts center primarily dedicated to new and original work by living artists. Founded in 2003 by philanthropist Z. Clark Branson, Boston Court features a state-of-the-art, intimate facility designed to bring audiences and artists closer together. The 80-seat Marjorie Branson Performance Space and the 99-seat Main Stage serve as homes for Boston Court's season of bold, risky theatre and its eclectic, diverse music series. Boston Court is also the home of an annual new play festival, an Emerging Artists Series, as well as Art Upfront, a rotating visual arts program. Boston Court is led by a 13-member Board of Directors, Executive Director Kyle Clausen, and Artistic Directors Jessica Kubzansky and Michael Michetti (Theatre), and Mark Saltzman (Music).

Key funding is provided by Los Angeles County Arts Commission, The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, The Shubert Foundation, Lazy L Foundation, The Colburn Foundation, Pasadena Arts & Cultural Commission and the City of Pasadena Cultural Affairs Division, Pasadena Art Alliance, and the Z. Clark Branson Foundation.

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