Westport Country Playhouse Presents The Klezmatics 12/17

The Klezmatics, globally renowned world music superstars, will offer holiday and non-holiday music steeped in Jewish tradition at Westport Country Playhouse, on Thursday, December 17, 8 p.m. Their album, "Wonder Wheel," won the 2006 Grammy Award as the Best Contemporary World Music Album. In a career spanning over 20 years and nine albums, The Klezmatics' music is wild, mystical, provocative, reflective and ecstatically danceable. Tickets are $35.

The only klezmer band to win a Grammy Award, The Klezmatics emerged out of the vibrant cultural scene of New York City's East Village in 1986. Klezmer incorporates Eastern European Jewish spirituality as well as contemporary themes such as human rights and anti-fundamentalism and eclectic musical influences including Arab, African, Latin and Balkan rhythms, jazz and punk.

The Klezmatics have reached millions through performances and features on television. Additionally, their "NY Psycho Freylekhs" was chosen as a theme song for Air America Radio's "Al Franken Show." They have performed in over 20 countries at some of the most storied venues and festivals worldwide, including Central Park Summerstage, Carnegie Hall, Pirineos Sur (Spain), Colours of Ostrava (Czech Republic), Pohoda Festival (Slovokia), Jazzsomer Graz (Austria), Heimatklänge Festival (Germany) and London's Queen Elizabeth Hall.

Topping the Billboard world music charts on numerous occasions, The Klezmatics have garnered numerous awards and accolades throughout their career, including a GLAMA (Gay and Lesbian American Music Award) and the German Critics Prize (twice), in addition to their 2006 Grammy Award.

Mark Lamos, Westport Country Playhouse artistic director, worked with The Klezmatics when they wrote the score for Tony Kushner's adaptation of S. Ansky's Yiddish drama "The Dybbuk," a premiere directed by Lamos at Hartford Stage.

Other holiday events at Westport Country Playhouse are Rondi Charleston, jazz vocalist and Westport resident, in a holiday concert on Saturday, December 19, 8 p.m.; and the Broadway Boys, a collection of the best male voices currently working on the New York stage, with a concert of Broadway and holiday favorites, on Sunday, December 20, 3 p.m.

Holiday events' board of trustees partner is Darlene Krenz; production partners are Bank of America and Sun Products Corporation.

For more information or ticket purchases, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets may be purchased online at www.westportplayhouse.org.

About the Playhouse

Westport Country Playhouse, a not-for-profit theater, serves as a treasured home for the performing arts and is a cultural landmark for Connecticut. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management direction of Michael Ross, the Playhouse creates quality productions of new and classic plays that enlighten, enrich and engage a diverse community of theater lovers, artists and students. The Playhouse's rich history dates back to 1931, when New York theatre producer Lawrence Langner created a Broadway-quality stage within an 1830s tannery. The Playhouse quickly became an established stop on the New England "straw hat circuit" of summer stock theatres. Now entering its 80th season, Westport Country Playhouse has produced more than 700 plays, 36 of which later transferred to Broadway, most recently the world premiere of "Thurgood" and a revival of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" with Paul Newman, and in earlier years "Come Back, Little Sheba" with Shirley Booth, "The Trip to Bountiful" with Lillian Gish, and "Butterflies Are Free" with Keir Dullea and Blythe Danner. For its artistic excellence, the Playhouse received a 2005 Governor's Arts Award and a 2000 "Connecticut Treasure" recognition. It was also designated as an Official Project of Save America's Treasures by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is entered on the Connecticut State Register of Historic Places. Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, the Playhouse transformed into a year-round, state-of-the-art producing theater, which has preserved its original charm and character. In addition to a full season of theatrical productions, the Playhouse serves as a community resource, presenting educational programming and workshops; a children's theater series; symposiums; music; films; and readings.

 

To post a comment, you must register and login.