Broadway Divas Christina Bianco, Christina DeCicco, N'Kenge, and Kristen Plumley Open Utah Symphony's 2017-18 Season

What happens when four show-stopping divas share one stage? On October 27 and 28 at 7:30 PM, the Utah Symphony and guest conductor Jack Everly are joined by four larger-than-life Broadway leading ladies! Get ready for some thrilling, show--stopping performances - and maybe just a bit of competition - as they pull out all the stops in selections from blockbuster musicals including "Les Misérables," "Dreamgirls," "My Fair Lady," "West Side Story," and "Chicago." Tickets are priced from $15-$83 and can be purchased at utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 533-6683.

Christina Bianco, an actress known for her talent as a singer and impressionist, is a New York theatre actor and two time Drama Desk Award nominee. Her first nomination, for the long running musical review, "Forbidden Broadway," and her second, for her one-woman multi-character comedy, "Application Pending." Ms. Bianco became a YouTube sensation with her "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and "Let it Go" impression videos, gaining over 21 million views worldwide, leading to a performance on the Ellen Degeneres Show. As a cabaret artist, Christina has performed her critically acclaimed solo shows to sold out crowds across the U.S. and U.K.

Christina DeCicco is an American actress and singer with a lengthy resume of Broadway and National Tours under her belt. Ms. DeCicco is credited as Glinda in the first national tour of Wicked, Arachne in the Broadway production of "Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark," the Broadway production of "Evita" as the Eva Peron alternate, and the understudy of Sister Mary Roberts in the Broadway production of "Sister Act." Some of her regional credits include "West Side Story," "Beauty and the Beast," "Les Miserable," and "Sunset Boulevard." Ms. DeCicco holds a BA from Wagner College.

Hailed as a "Sensational Powerhouse of a Singer packed in a little body," N'Kenge, a musical theater, opera, and pop singing sensation has been described as "Kathleen Battle and Teresa Stratus when singing opera, Whitney Houston and Celine Dion when singing pop, and Christine Chenoweth and Heather Headley in Musical Theater." She has accumulated a broad range of credits and accolades in a very short time- the White House for President Bill Clinton, London's West End at the Theatre Royal in a tribute to Ray Charles, solo engagements at Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center, and even a worldwide broadcast by NPR from the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. N'Kenge is a graduate of both the Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music.

Connecticut native Kristen Plumley is a soprano with a dazzling voice to match her personality. Lauded as met-worthy, and sensationally note-perfect, Ms. Plumley's range of expertise reaches from Opera to Musical Theatre, performing as Juliette in "Roméo et Juliette," Maria in "West Side Story," Carrie in "Carousel," and Laurey in "Oklahoma!-!" Kristen is very enthusiastic about contemporary works, participating in many new operas at the prestigious Banff Centre for the Arts in Alberta, Canada, and in companies throughout New York City. Ms. Plumley holds a BA in psychology and music from Holy Cross College, as well as an Artist Diploma in opera from Hartt School of Music.

Jack Everly serves as the Principal Pops Conductor with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. He has conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, and appears regularly with The Cleveland Orchestra. Maestro Everly, a graduate of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, was the conductor of the American Ballet Theatre for 14 years. In addition to his ABT tenure, he is credited with conducting the soundtrack to Disney's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," and "Everything's Coming Up Roses: The Complete Overtures of Jule Styne."

PROGRAM:

The Utah Symphony presents

"Broadway Divas"

October 27 and 28, 2017 | 7:30 PM | Maurice Abravanel Hall

Jack Everly, Conductor

Christina Bianco, Vocalist

Christina DeCicco, Vocalist

N'Kenge, Vocalist

Kristen Plumley, Vocalist

Utah Symphony

Tickets are priced from $15-$83 and can be purchased at utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 533-6683

About the Utah Symphony

Founded in 1940, the Utah Symphony performs more than 175 concerts each season and offers all Utahns easy access to world-class live musical performances of the world's greatest music in the state's top venues. Since being named the orchestra's seventh music director in 2009, Thierry Fischer has attracted leading musicians and top soloists, refreshed programming, drawn increased audiences, and galvanized community support. In addition to numerous regional and domestic tours, including the Mighty 5 Tour of Utah's national parks, the Utah Symphony has embarked on seven international tours and performed at Carnegie Hall in Spring 2016 coinciding with the orchestra's 75th anniversary celebrations. The Utah Symphony has released more than 100 recordings, including the new release of Mahler Symphony No. 1 last fall. Utah Symphony | Utah Opera, the orchestra's parent organization, reaches 450,000 residents in Utah and the Intermountain region, with educational outreach programs serving around140,000 students annually. In addition to performances in its home in Salt Lake City, Abravanel Hall, and concerts throughout the state of Utah, the Utah Symphony participates in Utah Opera's four annual productions at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre and presents the six-week Deer Valley Music Festival each summer in Park City, Utah. With its many subscription, education, and outreach concerts and tours, the Utah Symphony is one of the most engaged orchestras in the nation. For more information visit www.utahsymphony.org.

Photo credit: Kevin Alvey