VOWEL MOVEMENTS to Premiere at Hudson Hall For Pride Weekend

Hudson Hall at the historic Hudson Opera House in Hudson, New York, will present Vowel Movements, a subversive evening of song with drag artist Pretty Lamé (professional tenor Joshua Sanders) and pianist David Sytkowski on Saturday, June 3rd at 7pm. Coinciding with the Hudson Pride weekend festivities, Vowel Movements explores the boundaries of musical genre (and good taste), offering audiences the chance to experience the power and beauty of the operatic voice with the interactive fun and spectacle of cabaret and drag. Cabaret table seats $45; general admission $25 at hudsonhall.org or by phone at (518) 822-1438.

Commissioned by Hudson Hall and developed with support from the New York State Council on the Arts, Vowel Movements began as a desire to discover innovative approaches to classical vocal performance through a cabaret lens. "The conventions of classical recitals are traditionally quite rigid," says pianist David Sytkowski. "In contrast, the world of cabaret opens the door to a more flexible and dynamic interaction between performers and audiences." The result is an evening of song showcasing music ranging from grand arias to Ariana Grande, performed by two highly trained musicians equally at home on the stage at Carnegie Hall or Joe's Pub. Longtime collaborators, David Sytkowski and Joshua Sanders share a deep passion for classical music and strive to recontextualize its place and function in contemporary society.

"Vowel Movements is sure to clear out any preconceived notions you have about classical music, drag, or cabaret," says Hudson Hall Executive Director, Tambra Dillon. "David and Pretty Lamé are two consummate artists who ready to pop our cultural bubbles and offer a whole new way of experiencing not just the operatic voice, but drag and cabaret - and all with a big dose of style and sparkle!"

Pianist and vocal coach David Sytkowski is a Visiting Artist in Residence at Bard College and the Bard College Conservatory of Music, where he is Director of Music for Opera Workshop, leads the Musical Theatre Performance Workshop, coaches singers, and teaches private piano. In September 2019, he made his Joe's Pub debut in Under The Influence with legendary cabaret artist Justin Vivian Bond. This led to Auntie Glam's Happy Hour, a weekly livestream during the initial COVID-19 shut down that New York Times critic Zachary Woolf proclaimed one of "The Best of the Year's At-Home Divas" in December 2020.

Sytkowski frequently appears as a symphony pianist and collaborator at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Joe's Pub, Feinstein's at The Nikko San Francisco, and the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. As principal music coach for the Bard Summerscape festival for eight years, he has prepared Korngold's Die tote Stadt and Das Wunder Der Heliane, Rubenstein's Demon, Rimsky-Korsakov's The Tsar's Bride, Dvorak's Dimitrij, Mascagni's Iris, Smyth's The Wreckers, and Weber's Euryanthe.

Tenor Joshua Sanders made his international debut at Teatro Regio di Torino where he was an artist in residence during the 2017-18 season. While at Teatro Regio he sang roles in Tristan und Isolde, Turandot, Salome, Montiverdi's L'Orfeo, Verdi's I Lombardi alla prima crociata, and Le nozze di Figaro. In the same season he made his house debut at Deutsche Oper Berlin in Un ballo in Maschera. As a concert artist, Sanders made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2019 with the Manhattan School of Music Philharmonic in a gala concert to commemorate the school's centennial anniversary. Other concert highlights include debuts with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra as the titular character in Berlioz's Lélio, The Westchester Oratorio Society as the tenor soloist in Bach's Magnificat, and performances at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as part of Lee Mingwei's Sonic Blossom exhibit. In competition, Sanders was most recently selected as a 2020 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions National Semi-Finalist.

In addition to his career as a classical tenor, Sanders performs in cabaret and drag as Pretty Lamé. As Pretty Lamé, he has performed at many renowned venues in NYC and is a member of Company XIV where he is a featured performer at their theater in Bushwick, NY.

Tickets at https://hudsonhall.org/event/david-sytkowski-and-pretty-lame/

Hudson Hall at the historic Hudson Opera House
327 Warren Street, Hudson NY
hudsonhall.org/ (518) 822-1438
@HudsonHallNY

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