Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles to Present A SALUTE TO SONDHEIM Featuring New Work by Andrew Lippa & More

Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles announced today that its season will conclude with A Salute to Sondheim, featuring special guest artist John Holiday (NBC's The Voice and Matthew Aucoin's Eurydice at The Metropolitan Opera). This spectacular concert will be presented at UCLA's Royce Hall on Saturday, August 13 at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, August 14 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are NOW ON SALE at GMCLA.org.

GMCLA Music Director & Conductor Ernest H. Harrison will conduct the Chorus in a spectacular concert of Stephen Sondheim's masterworks, from Sweeney Todd, Company, A Little Night Music, West Side Story, Follies, Sunday in the Park with George and Gypsy. On the program is the Los Angeles premiere of Songs of the Phoenix, a major new work led by Grammy- and Tony-nominated composer Andrew Lippa (I Am Harvey Milk), with nine songs from 13 diverse, important artists, including Lippa, Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Ty Defoe, Alexandra Elle, Siedah Garrett, Joriah Kwamé, Patrick and Daniel Lazour, Melissa Li, Ingrid Michaelson, Diana Syrse and Kit Yan.

"Creating a tribute to Stephen Sondheim was essential and totally organic. He is part of Songs of the Phoenix. So taking a fuller account of his body of work in this concert was the most natural and fitting way to focus this concert and conclude this season," said GMCLA Executive Director & Producer Lou Spisto. "Sondheim gave us the most beloved musical theatre songs of all time, and Songs of the Phoenix is a beautiful and important new project from an incredible team. We get to salute the master with the music our audience knows and loves and introduce them to some amazing talent they may not know. John Holiday, a truly exciting and unique singer, and a few Sondheim 'surprises' only this Chorus can create, will make this quite the concert event!"

Countertenor John Holiday has performed at world-renowned venues such as Carnegie Hall and London's Barbican Centre. Known for his star turn on The Voice, Holiday has curated The John Holiday Experience to showcase his affinity and talent for many different genres, from pop to jazz and R&B. Holiday has released three pop singles: "Alive in Me," Waste Mine" and "Love Finds a Way." In the 2021-2022 Hollywood Bowl season, Holiday made his debut at the premier venue, under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel, in an all-Gershwin program with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, followed by his Metropolitan Opera debut in Matthew Aucoin's Eurydice.

GMCLA's final concert of Season 43, A Salute to Sondheim, which was previously titled Taking Flight, will be presented for two concerts only: Saturday, August 13 at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, August 14 at 2:00 p.m. The concerts will be held at UCLA's premier venue Royce Hall, 340 Royce Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90095. Ticket prices start at $30 and are available at GMCLA.org. Intermission refreshments will be on sale at Royce Hall's beautiful West Terrace. For detailed venue information go to roycehall.org/visit.

GMCLA's annual Gala celebration will be held on Saturday, August 13 with a lively pre-concert reception and post-concert alfresco dinner at Royce Hall's West Terrace. The evening benefits GMCLA's Alive Music Project in schools, which has served 75,000 students to date and presented free community events throughout the region. The Gala also recognizes leaders with GMCLA's annual Voice Awards. This year's honorees are Rev. Dr. Steve Pieters(Humanitarian Voice Award), Los Angeles Controller Ron Galperin (Civic Voice Award) and the LA Arts Recovery Fund (Community Voice Award). Gala tables and tickets are available for purchase online at GMCLA.org or through Brian Tillis at brian@gmcla.org.

UCLA's Royce Hall strongly recommends that all guests be fully vaccinated or receive a negative COVID-19 test prior to attending any event. All patrons attending a performance at Royce Hall will be required to wear a mask. For more information regarding COVID-19 Health and Safety Policies call 310.267.4465 or email info@roycehall.org.

GMCLA Season 43 is supported by a major grant from the LA Arts Recovery Fund.

Additional support for GMCLA is provided by Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture; Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles; and WeHo Arts, City of West Hollywood.

Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA)

GMCLA, under the leadership of Executive Director & Producer Lou Spisto and Music Director & Conductor Ernest H. Harrison, has continued to garner acclaim for artistic excellence while remaining deeply rooted in service to the Los Angeles community and beyond by promoting civil rights, tolerance and acceptance through music. Founded in 1979 during the emergence of the gay rights movement, GMCLA has spread its message of love and acceptance with concerts across the globe and has raised its collective voice in the struggle for equality, social justice, the fight against the AIDS crisis, the fight for marriage equality and all those seeking to find their own voice. GMCLA's free ticket program has provided access to concerts for thousands of low-income families over the decades, and research-based education programs have served over 70,000 young people throughout the Los Angeles region. In 2019 GMCLA performed at Carnegie Hall and The Hollywood Bowl (with Hugh Jackman), and in February 2020 GMCLA's performance at the Film Independent Spirit Awards was viewed more than 7 million times online. During the pandemic GMCLA presented a full virtual season of concerts, special events and school programs reaching thousands of longtime and new fans. From Los Angeles to Ireland, Brazil and New Zealand, GMCLA's streaming concerts were incredibly well received.

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