Voice Afire to Host Evening of Italian Wine & Music at Tenri Cultural Institute of NY, 3/22

Voice Afire Pocket Opera & Cabaret will present an evening of Italian wine and live music on Saturday, March 22 at 7pm at the Tenri Cultural Institute of New York in the West Village.

The evening will begin with a wine reception showcasing Italian wines from Roca della Masie, Stella & Mosca, St Michael Eppan, and Zenato and Prosecco from Enrico, Toffoli, and Zardetto, followed by a thrilling concert of The Art of Love (Into the Labyrinth), Ray Luedeke's original, virtuosic score for two pianos and a text adapted from an ancient manual banned for two thousand years, Ovid's The Art of Love.

Featuring two pianos and one actor, the concert begins with Darius Milhaud's scintillating Scaramouche for 2 pianos and is followed by Ray Luedeke's The Art of Love (Into the Labyrinth) for two pianists and actor. This show goes from wildly funny to dead serious, but is always riveting and entertaining with music that ranges from Rumba to Tango to Avante-Garde - all in the name of Love. Or is it Lust?

The evening will feature Jennifer Chu on piano (Prize winner at the 2009 Wideman Piano Competition), Beth Nam on piano (member of the acclaimed Allant Piano Trio), and actor/singer Harry Burney (who has performed at The Kennedy Center and the Dance Theater of Harlem). The show will be directed by Dan Swern, co-founder and producing director of coLAB Arts.

The wine reception will begin at 7pm on Saturday, March 22, with The Art of Love (Into the Labyrinth) concert at 8pm, all taking place at the Tenri Cultural Institute of New York (43A West 13th Street). Tickets are $30 and can be purchased in advance online at www.AlfamaArts.com.