Posted March 18, 2022
DAYTON, OH (March 18, 2022) – On Friday, April 1, 2022 and Saturday, April 2, 2022 at 8:00 pm in the Mead Theatre of the Schuster Center, Artistic Director and Conductor Neal Gittleman and the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra (DPO) continue the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance’s 2021‒2022 Season with a Masterworks concert entitled April Fools and Geniuses.
The Benjamin and Marian Schuster Endowed Young Classical Artist is pianist Aleksandra Kasman.
Fitting for this April Fools weekend, the Dayton Philharmonic opens this Masterworks Concert with Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks by Richard Strauss. Till Eulenspiegel lives on as one of the most colorful tricksters of German folklore, and Strauss’s work is a tone poem filled with twists and turns meant to mirror the misadventures of this mischievous merry-maker.
Then, making her Dayton Philharmonic debut, guest pianist Aleksandra Kasman, a 2019‒20 Young Artist in Residence of NPR’s Performance Today, solos in Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto, whose titanic technical demands have tested the mettle of performers and thrilled audiences for more than a century. Its quiet start leads into an amazing unleashing of notes (some 30,000 in all!) and hurtles to a jaw-dropping conclusion.
Praised for the “power and vividness” of her playing and commitment to rarely-heard repertoire, pianist Aleksandra Kasman is in demand as a soloist and educator with orchestras and music institutions across the U.S. and around the world. The DPO is excited to welcome her to center stage to perform this astounding masterwork.
After intermission, the DPO delivers Shostakovich’s Ninth Symphony. Shostakovich’s work was expected to be one of triumphant grandeur, a “Victory Symphony” following his Symphonies Seven and Eight. However, Shostakovich went a bit of a different direction, teasing the public and leaving some pleased and some puzzled, with a lighter work, sometimes complex in emotion but nothing short of delightful in the end.
Safety Protocols
The DPAA is excited to welcome audiences back to the 2021–2022 Season. The health and safety of patrons, performers, staff, and volunteers is our top priority. Beginning March 5, 2022, in partnership with DPAA’s venue partner Dayton Live and in accordance with the CDC’s new guidelines, the following new health and safety protocols will be in place at all performances and events:
- Vaccination and Testing – Proof of vaccination or COVID-19 testing will no longer be required to attend performances at Dayton Live venues, including the Schuster Center and the Victoria Theatre.
- Masks – Masks will no longer be required while attending a DPAA performance or event. The DPAA welcomes patrons to wear masks at any performance if they so choose.
Tickets for April Fools and Geniuses start at $5 and are available at the box office by calling (937) 228-3630 or online at www.daytonperformingarts.org. The $5 Tickets are sponsored by AES Ohio as part of DPAA’s “The Arts Are for Everyone” program. Senior, teacher and student discounts are available at the box office. For more information or to order subscriptions, including flexible subscription types that include performances by Dayton Philharmonic, Dayton Opera and Dayton Ballet, visit www.daytonperformingarts.org.
###
About the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance
The Dayton Performing Arts Alliance (DPAA) was formed in July 2012 as the result of a groundbreaking and innovative merger between the Dayton Ballet, the Dayton Opera, and the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra. Together, they are the largest performing arts organization in the greater Dayton community, with a mission to be the community’s indispensable source for traditional, diverse and innovative experiences in ballet, opera, and orchestral music. The vision of the DPAA is to transform lives through the power of music and dance. The DPAA offers a wide variety of performance and education programs, setting a new standard for artistic excellence. DPAA performances reach an audience of more than 90,000 people annually, and their rich arts education programming serves over 60,000 schoolchildren in 150 schools in the Miami Valley. These performances and education initiatives are made possible in part through major support provided by the Ohio Arts Council, Culture Works, the City of Dayton, Montgomery County and the National Endowment for the Arts.