SOAR TO GREAT MUSICAL HEIGHTS WITH PACIFIC SYMPHONY’S ASTONISHING “CIRQUE DE LA SYMPHONIE”—A MESMERIZING NIGHT OF CIRQUE PERFORMANCES AND CLASSICAL FAVORITES
Orange County, Calif.—June 18, 2010—It’s a feast for the eyes and ears! Pacific Symphony’s second concert of Summer Festival 2010, sponsored by Hoag Hospital—“Cirque de la Symphonie”—provides a jaw-dropping fusion of two art forms, when cirque artists perform amazing feats on the ground and in the air against the backdrop of classical masterpieces and much-loved pops music. The artists of “Cirque de la Symphonie”—aerial fliers, acrobats, contortionists, dancers, jugglers and strongmen—include world-record holders and gold-medal winners of international competitions who rank among the most exceptional cirque artists in the world. Conducted by the Symphony’s Assistant Conductor Maxim Eshkenazy, who returns to the Summer Festival after leading “Tchaikovsky Spectacular” in 2009, “Cirque de la Symphonie” takes place on Saturday July 17, at 8 p.m., in Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Irvine.
The evening’s music is a kaleidoscope of classical and pops favorites ranging from Dvorak’s “Carnival Overture,” selections from Bizet’s “Carmen” Suite, Saint-Saens’ “Danse Macabre” and “Bacchanale” from “Samson and Delilah,” to selections from John Williams’ “Harry Potter” and “Star Wars” movie scores. Also, on the program are Khachaturian’s Suite from “Masquerade,” Chabrier’s “Espana,” selections from Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker” Ballet, Kabalesvsky’s Overture to “Colas Breugnon,” Respighi’s “La boutique fantastique,” Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Danse des Bouffons, and Ravel’s “Bolero.”
Individual tickets are $25 (lawn) to $105 (orchestra); kids under 14 are half price in most sections with the purchase of an adult ticket. Guests are welcome to picnic on the grounds of the amphitheater starting at 6 p.m. For more information on the series or purchasing tickets, call the Symphony ticket office at (714) 755-5799, or visit the website at www.pacificsymphony.org.
“I am excited we get to create something that will be extremely pleasing visually, as well as fantastic for our ears!” says Maestro Eshkenazy. “While this may be new to our audience, the combination of acrobats and musicians has actually been around for centuries. This combination of the arts used to be common all over Northern Europe—with circus troupes traveling with musicians—but it disappeared when the orchestra became more modern and transitioned into the concert hall. So we are going back in time and ahead to the future at the same time, to recreate that thrilling synergy that has existed between circus and music for so long.”
“Cirque de la Symphonie” is made up of eight extraordinary performers: Alexander Streltsov, Jaroslaw Marciniak, Dariusz Wronski, Aloysia Gavre, Vladimir Tsarkov, Christine Van Loo, Elena Tsarkova and Larissa Sherman.
“People were sitting on the edge of their chairs watching the exciting action,” raved Mark Kanny of the Pittsburg Tribune-Review about a recent performance of “Cirque de la Symphonie.” “The orchestra was pushed back toward the rear of the stage to create a 15-foot wide strip of stage—and that’s a very narrow space with no safety netting. The most exquisite and artistic moments were in Streltsov’s solo to ‘Across the Stars,’ from ‘Star Wars: Episode II—Attack of the Clones.’ He commanded the stage and the space over it, sometimes reaching 30 feet above the stage floor as he maneuvered on a pair of long white cloths held up by rigging.”
Streltsov has performed for three Russian presidents and the Bolshoi Ballet, as well as the star-studded ABC-TV special “Christopher Reeve—A Celebration of Hope”
and the PBS nationwide broadcast of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s Fourth of July Celebration.
The “Duo Design” act of Marciniak and Wronski, former Polish national hand-balancing champions has been seen throughout Europe and the U.S., winning championships in Evian, France, and Sarasota, Fla. Over the past few years, these prolific performers have thrilled audiences at several NBA halftimes, Cirque du Soleil, Circus Circus, Busch Gardens, and the national tour of Cirque Ingenieux.
Gavre’s acrobatics and graceful maneuvers on the aerial hoop have won her the Special Prize at the International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo. She is best known as a veteran of Cirque du Soleil’s “Quidam” and “O,” establishing her as one of the best aerial artists in the world. She is also a choreographer for Cirque Mechanics and Troupe Vertigo and director of Cirque School in Los Angeles.
Tsarkov’s Red Harlequin act features rings, balls and batons, and is a veteran of Circus Circus and Cirque Ingenieux. He graduated from Russia’s prestigious State College of Circus and Theater Arts and won the gold medal at the Cirque de Demain International Festival in France.
Van Loo is a seven-time consecutive National Champion, Female Olympic Athlete of the Year, and Athlete of the Decade in acrobatic gymnastics. As a professional aerialist and acrobat she has performed in the 2002 Winter Olympics, at two Grammy Awards, at the American Music Awards, the Miss Universe pageant, and Paul McCartney’s European tour.
Tsarkova is a graduate of the famed Moscow Circus School and first-place winner of the prestigious National Russian Circus Festival. She has performed with the Big Apple Circus, Switzerland’s Circus Knie, and Germany’s Circus Roncalli, and her combination of contortion, balance, and graceful dance moves has made her a major star with Cirque de la Mur in Florida and Circus Circus in Las Vegas.
Sherman graduated from the Circus School of Ukraine, specializing in the art of
acrobatics with hoops. Voted “Best New Performer,” she won first place in the Russian Circus Festival, and then traveled the world with the Moscow State Circus, Circo Americano, Cirque du Soleil’s “Balagan” and with other productions such as Circus America, Dreamcast Productions, “Fire and Ice” Show, and Cirque Le Masque. Sherman has been in great demand for specialty performances, such as the opening of Broadway’s “Lion King,” the Latin Music Award Show, Victoria Secrets fashion show, Good Morning Berlin in Germany, and other events around the world.
Coming up—the Symphony’s third concert of the series, “Tchaikovsky Spectacular” takes place on Saturday, Aug. 7, at 8 p.m., conducted by Music Director Carl St.Clair and featuring pianist Benjamin Pasternack playing Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. The program also includes Glinka’s Overture to “Russlan and Ludmilla, Tchaikovsky’s Suite from “Swan Lake,” as well as his “1812” Overture, complete with fireworks and cannon fire.
Summer Festival 2010 is presented by Hoag Hospital, with additional support from the Orange County Register; the Symphony’s official airline, American Airlines; official hotel, The Westin South Coast Plaza, official classical music station, KUSC; official television station, KOCE-TV; official pops radio station, K-EARTH; and official media partner, KPCC.
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Jayce Keane
Director of Public Relations
Pacific Symphony
3631 S. Harbor Blvd., Suite 100
Santa Ana, CA 92704
www.pacificsymphony.org
