Centennial Season Celebration & Gala
The Mark Morris Dance Group
The Music of John Adams
performed by Alarm Will Sound
Special guest artist Michael Tilson Thomas
with Lisa Vroman
Members of San Francisco Opera Orchestra
Robert Cole, conductor
University Chorus
Marika Kuzma, director
UC Alumni Chorus
Mark Sumner, director
Ensemble of the Piedmont Children's Choirs
Robert Geary, director

Fri, May 12, '06, 7:30 pm

Venue: Zellerbach Hall B

Price: $48/$68/$90
(Note: Prices are for performance tickets only. Premium seating available only with purchase of Gala tickets. See below for more information.)

Join us for a very special gala event commemorating both Cal Performances' 100th Anniversary of connecting the world's greatest artists with the world's greatest audience and Director Robert Cole's 20th year with the organization! This evening of unforgettable performances turns the spotlight on several of our most notable contributions to the world of dance, music, and theater and highlights a few of the many important artistic partnerships we've formed over the decades, including the Mark Morris Dance Group, San Francisco Symphony and Opera, and UC Berkeley's own outstanding musical ensembles.

The program opens with Mark Morris's now-celebrated V, which had its very first public viewing for our audiences in 2001. The highly acclaimed contemporary musical ensemble Alarm Will Sound performs excerpts from John Adams, Peter Sellars, and June Jordan's theater piece I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, commissioned and premiered by Cal Performances in 1995. The San Francisco Opera Orchestra and the combined vocal forces of the UC Alumni Chorus, University Chorus, and the Piedmont Children's Choirs perform choral selections from Wagner's Die Meistersinger and Boito's Prologue to Mefistofele, all conducted by Robert Cole. And as a rare and special treat, we'll have a chance to see another side of San Francisco Symphony's music director and conductor, Michael Tilson Thomas, as he displays his considerable talent on the piano, appearing with San Francisco and Broadway Phantom of the Opera star Lisa Vroman.

The celebration starts early and continues into the night with an extraordinary gala designed and produced by Alice Waters and Stanlee Gatti, in collaboration with Paula LeDuc Fine Catering. You won't want to miss the excitement! Premium seating and a host of fabulous benefits await you. Celebration Honorary Chair Ann Getty and Chair Ambassador Kathryn Hall invite you to reserve your seats today. For information on the Gala or to be sure your name is on the invitation list, please call 510.643.8783.

Program: Mark Morris/V, set to Schumann's Quintet in E-flat major; John Adams/I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, excerpts performed by Alarm Will Sound; Wagner/Die Meistersinger (final act excerpts), Boito/Prologue to Mefistofele, performed by members of San Francisco Opera Orchestra, UC Alumni Chorus, University Chorus, and Piedmont Children's Choirs, Robert Cole, conductor; Michael Tilson Thomas, piano with Lisa Vroman, soprano

PATRON INFORMATION

Program Notes: Program notes are available one week prior to the performance.

Artists links:
Official Mark Morris Dance Group site
Official San Francisco Opera site
Official Alarm Will Sound site
Official San Francisco Symphony's Michael Tilson Thomas site

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