Cleveland Pops Orchestra Announces New Year's Eve Celebration

The Cleveland POPS Orchestra with Carl Topilow will welcome 2018 with their 22th annual celebration at Severance Hall. The two-hour concert starts at 9:00 p.m. and consists of an exciting and wildly popular evening of Rock-and-Roll classics performed by singing sensation Connor Bogart O'Brien. The vocal artist, has performed all over the world on cruise ships and with numerous symphony orchestras. His popularity and reputation is growing among Northeast Ohio concert goers. O'Brien has been featured with Cleveland POPS in numerous shows from Severance Hall and PlayhouseSquare to Lakeside Chautauqua and venues throughout the Northeast Ohio region..

The two-hour concert, titled "Legends of Rock-and-Roll," consists of a selection of classic songs from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, made famous by that era's hottest performers: Elvis, Neil Diamond, Billy Joel, The Beatles, Frankie Valli, to name a few.

The concert is followed by dancing to two different bands in two locations in Severance Hall. Carl Topilow and an ensemble of Cleveland POPS Orchestra Members will provide the dance music in the Grand Foyer, while Rock & Roll music will be provided by the No-Name Band (Lawyers Playing Music for Dancing from the 60's and 70's, and beyond!) in the Smith Lobby. Further amenities include cash bars, a midnight balloon drop, and desserts and coffee. The festivities continue until 1:00 A.M.

Tickets: $33, $50, $63, $78, $90, $117. Tickets for Cleveland Pops New Year's Eve Concert & Dance are available for purchase at the Severance Hall box-office, by calling 216-231-1111 or toll-free 800-686-1141 or online at www.clevelandpops.com. Group discounts are available by calling (216) 765-7677.

Cleveland POPS Orchestra New Year's Eve concert ticket holders may arrange for overnight accommodations at their choice of three hotels, including InterContinental Hotel and Conference Center, InterContinental Suites Hotel and the new Holiday Inn - Cleveland Clinic. Prices range from $109 to $149. The Cleveland Pops package includes free breakfast for two and free transportation to and from Severance Hall. Concert tickets must be purchased separately to qualify for the hotel discount.

About the Cleveland POPS Orchestra

Now in its 22nd Anniversary Season, the Cleveland POPS with Carl Topilow has been entertaining audiences throughout greater Cleveland and Northeast Ohio for two decades. They are renowned for their exciting and innovative blend of popular music, standards, Broadway, show tunes, movie scores, swing and jazz performances. Each year they perform a five concert subscription series, a holiday concert and a special New Year's Eve show. The Cleveland POPS is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, supported in part by grants from Ohio Arts Council and the residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture. The Cleveland Pops office is located at 24000 Mercantile Blvd., Unit 8, Cleveland, Ohio 44122. They can be reached by phone at 216-765-7677 or on the web at www.clevelandpops.com.

CONNOR BOGART O'BRIEN, vocalist

A classical violinist since the age of five, Connor Bogart (Connor Bogart O'Brien) studied opera at the Eastman School of Music in New York, and has since toured the globe as a professional performer.

Notable theater performances have included leading roles in Miss Saigon (Chris) Sweeney Todd (Anthony) The Last Five Years (Jamie) Company (Bobby) Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Joseph) Forever Plaid (Sparky), as well as Altar Boyz (Abraham).

A native of Northeast Ohio, Connor decided to leave the violin behind to study vocal performance/opera at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in New York (U. S. News and World Report ranked #1 Music Conservatory in America 2010-2012) under the direction of Dr. Robert McIver. During his time at Eastman, he also auditioned for, and was subsequently accepted into the nationally ranked male a cappella group The University of Rochester Yellowjackets, (as seen on NBC's "The Sing Off") as a featured soloist. After recording several award winning albums with the group, a love of singing without instruments took hold and in subsequent years led to executive producing future Yellowjacket albums and being a national finalist for the world famous vocal band Rockapella in their search for a new second tenor.

Connor has been a featured soloist with the National Repertory Orchestra, The Cleveland Pops Orchestra, The Symphony of Southeast Texas, The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, The Rochester Philharmonic, The Toledo Symphony, The Mansfield Symphony, The New Haven Symphony, The Akron Symphony, The Firelands Symphony, and the Cleveland Orchestra. He has served as executive music supervisor and composer to The Discovery Channel for their series, The Kustomizer, and as a songwriter, had had several of his original songs featured on national television.

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