Press release here:
Porgy & Bess, George and Ira Gershwin’s powerful story set in a community of Gullah people outside Charleston, SC, is considered by many to be America’s greatest achievement in musical theatre, and this year the show is celebrating its 75th Anniversary with an extraordinarily acclaimed touring production that will visit Asheville on Saturday, March 20.
The show, adapted from a novel by Dubose Heyward, melds classical music, popular song, jazz, blues and spirituals into a quintessentially American masterpiece that tells the poignant story of a crippled beggar, the headstrong woman he loves, and the community that both sustains and comes between them. Set in South Carolina in 1912 the show originated such classic arias as “I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin’”, “It Ain’t Necessarily So” and “Summertime.”
Now, the Dicapo Opera Theatre, a one of the most storied opera companies in New York, has mounted one of the most acclaimed touring productions of the show in decades. This brilliant, updated production features a cast of over 30 and a live orchestra whose stunning renditions of Gershwin’s classic are sure to enthrall and amaze. The production will be the final show of the season for Asheville Bravo Concerts, a well-known local presenter of touring arts shows. “We’re very pleased to finish the season with such a fantastic show,” Tracey Johnston-Crum, Bravo’s Executive Director, said of the event, “we’ve been producing shows in this community since the 1930’s and this season finale is a fine example of the cultural performances that Asheville deserves.”
Tickets are $20-55 (all students half off) and can be purchased by calling the Asheville Bravo Concerts office at (828) 225-5887, visiting www.ticketmaster.com, or in person at the Civic Center Box Office. For more information please visit www.ashevillebravoconcerts.org.