The Crossing Performs World Premiere Of Thomas Lloyd's IN THE LIGHT

On Saturday, March 30, 2019 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 31, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. at The Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, The Crossing and conductor Donald Nally present the world premiere of Thomas Lloyd's In the Light, a choral-theater work for 20 voices, clarinet, cello, and piano.

In the Light explores the strange and oppressive culture of a Cape Cod religious community with an internationally recognized choir, examining the desire to belong and the fear of exclusion. This is the second choral-theater work Lloyd has composed for The Crossing; his previous work Bonhoeffer, written for The Crossing, was nominated for a 2017 Grammy Award.

The production features projections, digital audio transitions by Jeremy Lloyd of the band Marian Hill, and an ensemble featuring clarinetist Doris Hall-Gulati, who performed on The Crossing's 2019 Grammy-winning album Zealot Canticles; cellist Thomas Mesa, who performed on The Crossing's 2017 Grammy-nominated CD, Thomas Lloyd's Bonhoeffer; and pianist John Grecia, who has performed with The Crossing for eleven years.

Of the world premiere, Lloyd says, "I've always been fascinated by how people let themselves come under the influence of the centrifugal energy of a community under the sway of a charismatic leader. Finding such a situation in a religious community with a choir and its director at the center presented a compelling opportunity to probe this question by bringing such a choir to life theatrically.

I was already familiar with the recordings of the Gloriae Dei Cantores choir and choral music published by Paraclete Press, but when I looked into the religious community in which these were based, the Community of Jesus in Orleans, MA, I came across journalistic and legal accounts of coercive practices and abuse. With choral music and Christian liturgy being at the center of my own life's work, it confirmed for me that such social pathology is not just something that can easily be dismissed, but gets to the heart of what it means to lead and what it means to follow within groups in our society, both locally and nationally. When do we cross the line from productive to dysfunctional, from life-affirming to malevolent? Can individuals survive such an experience and come out the other side with some sense of self remaining?"

Program Information
Saturday, March 30, 2019 at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 31, 2019 at 5:00 p.m.
Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral | 23 South 38th Street | Philadelphia, PA 19104
Tickets: $35 General Admission, $25 Seniors, $20 Students
Link: www.crossingchoir.org

Program:
Thomas Lloyd: In the Light (World Premiere)

*Photo of The Crossing above by Christian Stewart