Susan Graham Performs with Mercury in Houston Tonight

Acclaimed mezzo-soprano Susan Graham returns to Texas, joining Mercury, under the baton of Artistic Director Antoine Plante, for an evening of opera arias and more tonight, September 19 at 8 PM at the Wortham Center's Cullen Theater. Plante says, "For this special concert we are performing some of Susan's favorite arias from Purcell, Handel and Mozart. I'm really looking forward to working with such a gracious and unique artist and sharing this performance with our audience."

The evening, celebrating Mercury's 15th Anniversary Season, is made possible by Lynn and Oscar Wyatt. This concert features performances of Haydn's Symphony No. 85 "The Queen", in honor of the guest, and Mozart's Symphony No. 33, K. 319. Arias will include "When I'm laid in earth" from Purcell's Dido & Aeneas and "Ombra ai fu" from Handel's Serse. To purchase tickets or for more information visit www.mercuryhouston.org or call 713.533.0080.

Susan Graham-dubbed "America's favorite mezzo" by Gramophone magazine-rose to the highest echelon of international artists within just a few years of her professional debut, mastering an astonishing range of repertoire and genres along the way. Her operatic roles span four centuries, from Monteverdi's Poppea to Sister Helen Prejean in Jake Heggie's Dead Man Walking, which was written especially for her. Graham won a Grammy Award for her collection of Ives songs, and her recital repertoire is so broad that 14 composers from Purcell to Sondheim are represented on her most recent album, Virgins, Vixens & Viragos. Throughout her career, however, this distinctly American artist has been recognized as one of the foremost exponents of French vocal music; a Texas native, she was awarded the French government's prestigious "Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur," both for her popularity as a performer in France and in honor of her commitment to French music.