BSO Performs CASABLANCA's Full Score This Weekend

Conductor Emil de Cou leads the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) in performances of the full score of the 1942 romantic drama, Casablanca. This wartime film chronicles one man's (Humphrey Bogart) decision between being with the woman (Ingrid Bergman) he loves, or aiding her escape with her husband from the Moroccan city of Casablanca to lead a resistance against the Nazis. Its enduring musical score by the Academy Award-winning Max Steiner, whose credits include the music for Gone with the Wind, features well-known ballads like "As Time Goes By," "Perfidia" and "It Had to Be You." Performances are tonight, June 12 at 8 p.m. and Friday, June 13 at 8 p.m. at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. The performance can be seen again on Saturday, June 14 at 8 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore. Please see below for complete details.

A celebrated American film deserves a classic American cocktail, so the BSO has partnered with Baltimore-based bartender Ginny Lawhorn of the Landmark Theatre Harbor East on crafting a Casablanca-themed drink, The Gin Joint Rickey, to be served at the following "gin joints:" Sticky Rice Baltimore, Tapas Teatro, Landmark Theatre Harbor East and at Seasons 52, in North Bethesda, Md. They will be served beginning May 21 at participating partners.

Patrons attending performances at the Meyerhoff and Strathmore will also have access to a full menu of gin-based drinks evoking the classic charm of Casablanca: We'll Always Have Paris, a variation on the French 57; The Usual Suspects, a "punched up" gin punch; and The Gin Joint Rickey, a twist on the Gin Rickey, the official drink of our nation's capital.

Patrons attending the concert at Strathmore on Saturday, June 14, 2014 will have the opportunity to attend "One Night in Casablanca," a Moroccan-inspired Party on the Patio. Patrons may also purchase a special VIP package which includes box seats, valet parking, unlimited classic cocktails crafted by Baltimore-based bartender Ginny Lawhorn, access to an exclusive VIP Lounge, and a post-show champagne toast with conductor, Emil de Cou. More info at BSOmusic.org.