On Campus News

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Baltimore School for the Arts Present The Nutcracker

By StudentFilmmakers.com
posted Jun 11, 2013, 14:58

Following the success of the first presentation in 2012, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Baltimore School for the Arts (BSA) will once again collaborate this December to present Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s full-length holiday classic The Nutcracker at the Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric. Please see below for complete program details.

Featuring four performances, the production will run from Friday, December 20 through Sunday, December 22. Tickets range from $33 to $63 and are now available through Ticketmaster at 410-547-SEAT or online at http://www.ticketmaster.com, or in person at the Modell Lyric box office from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Showcasing the BSO conducted by Maestro Andrew Grams, a Baltimore School for the Arts graduate (class of 1995), 120 students from BSA’s high school and TWIGS after-school and weekend program, as well as backdrops created last summer by Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) students, the unique holiday spectacle at the Modell Lyric will delight and enchant audiences.

Composed in 1891 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker is a two‐act ballet that has enchanted audiences of all ages for generations. The story follows a young girl named Clara through her vivid dreams on Christmas Eve. After falling asleep under the Christmas tree with her broken nutcracker doll, a prince greets Clara in her dreams and embarks with her on an adventure filled with life‐size mice, dolls, fairies and sweets. Their journey to the Kingdom of Sweets includes the famous divertissements: Chocolat, Café, Thé, Trepak, Mirlitons, Waltz of the Flowers and Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

ABOUT THE BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is internationally recognized as having achieved a preeminent place among the world's most important orchestras. Acclaimed for its pursuit of artistic excellence, the BSO has attracted a devoted national and international following while maintaining deep bonds throughout Maryland with innovative education and community outreach initiatives.

The BSO made musical history in September 2007, when Maestra Marin Alsop led her inaugural concerts as the Orchestra’s 12th music director, making her the first woman to head a major American orchestra.

For more than 80 years, the BSO has maintained a vibrant educational presence throughout Maryland. The 2012-2013 season marks the fifth year of OrchKids™, a year-round program that provides music education to Baltimore’s neediest youngsters at no cost.

In addition to the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where the orchestra has performed for 30 years, the BSO is a founding partner and the resident orchestra at the Music Center at Strathmore, just outside Washington, D.C. With its opening in February 2005, the BSO became the nation’s only major orchestra with year-round venues in two metropolitan areas.

ABOUT BALTIMORE SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS
Founded in 1980, Baltimore School for the Arts is a nationally recognized public high school that provides its students with intensive pre-professional training in the arts in conjunction with a rigorous academic curriculum. BSA graduates go on to the most selective arts and university programs nationwide and achieve prominence in theater, film, music, dance and visual arts. Additionally, BSA's TWIGS program offers free after-school arts instruction to more than 700 city elementary and middle school children. BSA is a vibrant part of Baltimore's cultural community, reaching thousands of families and children each year with free and low-cost performances, exciting collaborative projects, exhibitions, and educational programming.

ABOUT MARYLAND INSTITUTE COLLEGE OF ART
Founded in 1826, Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is the oldest continuously degree-granting college of art and design in the nation. The College enrolls nearly 3,500 undergraduate, graduate and continuing studies students from 48 states and 54 countries in fine arts, design, electronic media, art education, liberal arts, and professional studies degree and non-credit programs. Redefining art and design education, MICA is pioneering interdisciplinary approaches to innovation, research, and community and social engagement. Alumni and programming reach around the globe, even as MICA remains a cultural cornerstone in the Baltimore/Washington region, hosting hundreds of exhibitions and events annually by students, faculty and other established artists.

ABOUT THE MODELL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER AT THE LYRIC
The Patricia and Arthur Modell Performing Arts Center at The Lyric is one of Baltimore’s oldest and most venerable institutions. Founded in 1894 (originally called The Music Hall), the Lyric Opera House has been the home of Grand Opera, the world’s greatest performers, and full-scale productions. The acoustics of The Modell/Lyric are world-renowned and conductors and performers alike have attested to this fact from the beginning. With a mission and commitment built on public access, education and preservation of this historic theater, The Modell/Lyric plays a leadership role in the cultural vitality of the greater Baltimore area. Following the completion of a $13 million stage renovation and the re-naming of the theater through a generous gift from Patricia and Arthur Modell, the Modell/Lyric reopened its doors in September 2011 as a state-of-the art world-class theater and looks forward to ushering in this exciting new chapter in its long and illustrious history.

COMPLETE PROGRAM DETAILS
The Nutcracker
Friday, December 20, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. – Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric
Saturday, December 21, 2013 at 2 p.m. – Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric
Saturday, December 21, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. – Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric
Sunday, December 22, 2013 at 3 p.m. – Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric

Andrew Grams, conductor
Barry Hughson, choreographer
Baltimore School for the Arts dancers

Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker

Tickets range from $33 to $63 and are available through Ticketmaster at 410-547-SEAT or online at http://www.ticketmaster.com, or in person at the Modell Lyric box office from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Resources:

www.bsomusic.org

www.bsfa.org

www.mica.edu

www.lyricoperahouse.com