The Firelands Symphony Orchestra Presents Helen Welch in SUPERSTAR - THE SONGS

As it continues its jam-packed 2021 Summer Season, the Firelands Symphony Orchestra (FSO) returns to Veteran's Memorial Lake Park at Norwalk Reservoir on Saturday, August 7 at 7:00pm with "SUPERSTAR - The Songs. The Stories. The Carpenters.", starring international vocalist Helen Welch. The special stage show is free and open to the public with support from the FSO's Principal Benefactor, the Randolph J. and Estelle M. Dorn Foundation, the 2021 Summer Season Sponsor, the Mylander Foundation, and exclusive concert sponsor Patricia & Giovanni Bignoli with Bignoli Enterprises. Freewill donations will also be accepted at each concert from the audience.

While the string of new megahits by The Carpenters ended with the 1983 death of Karen Carpenter, the catalog of songs by the Grammy-winning brother-sister duo have become classics. "Superstar" is not a tribute concert, but an original, fresh perspective of songs peppered with vignettes that finally captures the true quality and essence of The Carpenters in an uplifting and respectful manner. This one-of-a-kind show features Helen Welch and her world-class musicians reliving the Carpenter's timeless hits.

Helen's distinctive, alto voice settles in perfectly amidst precise, lush new arrangements of songs such as: Close To You (The Carpenters' most popular song), We've Only Just Begun, On Top of The World, Rainy Days and Mondays and more, as well as the title song Superstar. The hits are intertwined with Helen's cheeky British humor, stage presence and fascinating, unheard backstage stories.

Helen notes that when she was young and learning to sing, she felt very inadequate because she wasn't a soprano. "Karen Carpenter sort of gave me permission to feel good about being an alto," she confesses.

That confidence led Helen on a career path beginning in her native England, first on TV's Romper Room and on to performing in the UK's most prestigious venues from The Ritz to The Savoy and headlining with world-class organizations like the BBC Big Band, Glenn Miller Europe and then London's West End, starring in such musicals as Hello, Dolly!, Barnum, Carousel, 42nd Street, Calamity Jane and Oliver Twist. Helen relocated to the U.S. and went on to guest star in the Broadway musical Smokey Joe's Café. She was soon a sought-after fronting vocalist performing for The Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago's Grant Park Symphony, The Florida Symphony and the Columbus Jazz Orchestra, just to name a few.

Audience members are encouraged to bring their own blanket or chair to enjoy the Veteran's Memorial Lake Park as a beautiful backdrop to the FSO's live concert. Please use the entrance at Old State Road S. & Executive Drive.

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