Music as the Message: It Takes a Village! Returns Next Month

Music as the Message: It Takes a Village!, a hybrid concert experience featuring virtual and in-person performances of new and familiar songs, returns for its third season on Sunday, November 20th at 4 PM Eastern. The program is created and hosted by Emmy Award-winning soprano Adrienne Danrich (Broadway's Intimate Apparel) and highlights the work of local and national charities and the importance of community action. The in-person performance will be held in New York City at Broadway Presbyterian Church (114th & Broadway in Manhattan) and the virtual performance will be held simultaneously via Zoom. Tickets for both the live and virtual concert are free with suggested donation by registering at www.aopopera.org/music-message. It is presented by NYC contemporary opera producers The American Opera Project and Opera on Tap, in partnership with Broadway Presbyterian Church.

Danrich will be joined by special guest artists who lead attendees through an immersive program as they commune through music together. Joining Danrich will be Amy Burton, John Musto, Tesia Kwarteng, Patrick Dailey, Anu French, Ovya Diwakaran, Melissa Riker's Kinesis Dancers, Adam Richardson, Kwamina Walker-Williams, Kagera Buckner, Violetta Zabbi, Gary Mitchell Jr., Alexis Gerlach, and BPC pastor Chris Shelton. The episode will also feature the premiere of the newly-commissioned song Mama Bear by 16 year old singer/songwriter, Ovya Diwakaran.

For this episode of Music as the Message, It Takes a Village! will be dedicated to all caregivers, celebrating the tireless efforts of everyone in a caregiver position. 50% of all donations raised on November 20th will be given to Broadway Community, a non-profit agency located at Broadway Presbyterian Church that provides food, shelter, health-care, and many other services for neighbors in need.

When asked how she chose the theme of her upcoming concert, Danrich explained, "Taking care of others can be rewarding yet sometimes stressful. We knew there was a need for a restorative, meditative time of reflection. But it doesn't have to be a quiet time for reflection! Attendees are encouraged to sing and speak along, whether in the Zoom room or in the Sanctuary, with strong and joyous voices."

Pastor Chris Shelton says, "Broadway Presbyterian Church is delighted to be in partnership with Adrienne Danrich and Music as the Message. We share a common vision -- that music is a fundamental facet of self-expression as human beings, and therefore a fundamental part of building community. Music has the capacity to bring people together across our many lines of difference. Music helps us hear what harmony sounds and feels like, and if we can hear it, maybe we can learn to live it."

Music as the Message (MaM) celebrates the power of music to unify and to inspire healing, joy, laughter, love and most importantly, community. Several times a year, host Adrienne Danrich, along with guest artists and commissioned composers, leads a program of uplifting songs and spoken word. Attendees are encouraged to join in and lift their voices, as well. Following this musical catharsis, the audience is welcome to speak with the artists, and reflect or listen in support of their fellow participants.

Recognizing the need for community spaces and spiritual healing at the height of the COVID-19 lockdown, Music as the Message (MaM) was created in 2020 by Emmy Award-winning soprano Adrienne Danrich and presented via Zoom by contemporary opera producers The American Opera Project and Opera on Tap, both based in Brooklyn. In 2021. MaM was presented for the first time as a hybrid event streamed live on Zoom from Manhattan's Broadway Presbyterian Church in front of a live audience. The show often travels the nation with Danrich's performance schedule and was most recently seen at Opera Theatre Saint Louis in June 2022.

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