Sarah Hicks News

The San Francisco Symphony's 2016 holiday season at Davies Symphony Hall offers a festive array of concerts for all ages, from its traditional Christmas classical concerts to classic pop vocalists Gladys Knight and Patti Austin performing with the Orchestra; favorite films like Singin' in the Rain, The Snowman, and a Rodgers and Hammerstein music and film night; family-friendly events like A Charlie Brown Christmas-Live!, the circus feats of Cirque de la Symphonie, and the Orchestra's annual Deck the Hall concerts for children.

Broadway Training Center of Westchester, one of the region's premier performing arts schools, will present the musical 'Thoroughly Modern Millie' November 18-20 at the Irvington Town Hall Theater in Irvington, N.Y. BroadwayWorld has a sneak peek at the cast in costume below!

SAN FRANCISCO (May 25) – The San Francisco Symphony announces new updates to its annual Summer with the Symphony series, which runs July 4–29at Davies Symphony Hall and at other outdoor locations throughout the Bay Area. Led by Director of Summer Concerts Edwin Outwater, Summer with the Symphony features a festive lineup of concerts and events for all ages.

SAN FRANCISCO, April 18 – The San Francisco Symphony announces its annual Summer with the Symphony series, which runs July 4-29 at Davies Symphony Hall and at other outdoor locations throughout the Bay Area. Led by Director of Summer Concerts Edwin Outwater, Summer with the Symphony features a festive lineup of concerts and events for all ages, beginning with the SFS's annual Fourth of July concert and fireworks spectacular at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View. On July 7, Outwater leads the SFS in The Music of John Williams—From Star Wars to Harry Potter!, which will include Williams's iconic music from such films as Star Wars, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Jaws, and others. 

Broadway Training Center of Westchester, one of the region's premier performing arts schools, will present the magical musical 'Peter Pan' April 15-17th at the Irvington Town Hall Theater in Irvington, N.Y. The show will feature BTC's Ensemble program consisting of participants by Entrance Interview and Audition only.

The Minnesota Orchestra today announced plans for the 2016-17 seasons of three widely varied series: Live at Orchestra Hall, Holiday Concerts, and Jazz in the Target Atrium. Live at Orchestra Hall, a series of popular music, jazz, Broadway classics, movie scores, world music and other genres, is led by Sarah Hicks, principal conductor of Live at Orchestra Hall. She conducts many of the series' concerts, including the Minnesota Orchestra debut of Twin Cities rapper-vocalist Dessa, R&B group Boyz II Men, and screenings of the films Ratatouille and Star Trek (2009), with scores performed live. Assistant Conductor Roderick Cox conducts several programs during the 2016-17 season, including two specially-designed matinee family concerts for audience members of all ages.

The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and Conductor John Morris Russell are pleased to announce the Pops' 2016-2017 season, to be performed at Downtown Cincinnati's historic Taft Theatre, the Orchestra's 'home away from home' while Cincinnati Music Hall undergoes a major renovation during the 2016-17 season. (The Pops will return to the renovated Music Hall for the 2017-18 season.) The star-studded season is a testament to the Orchestra's steadfast commitment to innovation and extraordinary artistry. Entering his sixth season as Conductor of the world-famous Cincinnati Pops, Mr. Russell introduces guest artists and concert programs that continue to develop the wide variety of orchestral programming. The Orchestra also announces its summer 2016 concerts, to take place both at the Taft Theatre and Riverbend Music Center.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts today announced details for LOUNGE REGIME: 100 YEARS OF AMBIENT MUSIC on Monday, November 9, 2015 at 8 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Nations Gallery and Atrium.

The California Symphony presents the beloved classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, and performs the complete, live orchestral accompaniment as the movie is shown on a giant screen at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, tonight, August 21 at 8:30 pm. Conductor Sarah Hicks leads the orchestra in some of the best-loved movie songs and music of all time, including Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg's “Over the Rainbow,” “We're Off to See the Wizard,” “If I Only Had a Brain,” “Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead,” “The Merry Old Land of Oz,” and many more, as well as the underscore by composer Herbert Stothart. Judy Garland and the other actors' original vocal performances are preserved and enhanced, so they can be fully heard and enjoyed as the orchestra plays. The film's restored images are accompanied by the orchestra playing entirely new transcriptions of Harold Arlen's brilliant lost scores. The production is by Emmy Award-winning producer John Goberman (Live from Lincoln Center). Tickets for The Wizard of Oz are $25 to $75 for adults and $10 for students 18 years old and younger, and are on sale now at www.californiasymphony.org/oz.

WALNUT CREEK, CA (July 7, 2015) – The California Symphony presents the beloved classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, and performs the complete, live orchestral accompaniment as the movie is shown on a giant screen at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Friday, August 21 at 8:30 pm. Conductor Sarah Hicks leads the orchestra in some of the best-loved movie songs and music of all time, including Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg's “Over the Rainbow,” “We're Off to See the Wizard,” “If I Only Had a Brain,” “Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead,” “The Merry Old Land of Oz,” and many more, as well as the underscore by composer Herbert Stothart. Judy Garland and the other actors' original vocal performances are preserved and enhanced, so they can be fully heard and enjoyed as the orchestra plays. The film's restored images are accompanied by the orchestra playing entirely new transcriptions of Harold Arlen's brilliant lost scores. The production is by Emmy Award-winning producer John Goberman (Live from Lincoln Center). Tickets for The Wizard of Oz are $25 to $75 for adults and $10 for students 18 years old and younger, and are on sale now at www.californiasymphony.org/oz.

WALNUT CREEK, CA (April 21, 2015) – The California Symphony, entering its third season with Music Director Donato Cabrera, is expanding its regional profile in Northern California, performing concerts in three new venues beginning in June. The orchestra, based in Walnut Creek, will perform three concerts in summer 2015 and eight concerts during its 2015-16 season, including at its home at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek as well as at Oakland's Kaiser Center Rooftop Garden, the Napa Valley Performing Arts Center's Lincoln Theater in Yountville, and at the Concord Pavilion in Concord. The orchestra is focused on American repertoire, nurturing new American composers as part of its Young American Composer in Residence program, and bringing music to people in new and unconventional settings as well as performing the most revered core classical repertoire. In May 2016, the orchestra and guitarist Jason Vieaux perform the world premiere of the new concerto commission by Dan Visconti, current Young American Composer in Residence, in concert in Walnut Creek and Yountville. Other season highlights include an American Roots program with pianist Charlie Albright performing Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, a showcase of two California Symphony principal musicians in a little-heard R. Strauss double concerto, a rooftop outdoor performance with Postmodern Jukebox, performances of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 and Brahms' Symphony No. 2, the orchestra's first performance accompanying the live classic film The Wizard of Oz, and holiday music with Pacific Boychoir. Season subscription ticket packages go on sale today, Tuesday, April 21, at 10 am.

BWW Reviews: BIG FISH presented by Broadway Training Center of Westchester (BTC) is Wonderful!

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (August 27, 2014) – The San Francisco Symphony (SFS) continues its popular Film Series in the 2014-15 season, offering a wide range of critically-acclaimed films projected above the Davies Symphony Hall stage with their powerful musical scores performed as live orchestral accompaniment. The series opens September 27 with The Wizard of Oz and its Academy Award-winning film score, in celebration of the film's 75th Anniversary year. December 12 & 13 the SFS is joined by over 150 children's voices for the holiday favorite Home Alone with score by John Williams. The U.S. premiere of Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather with live orchestral accompaniment of the film's haunting score by Nino Rota follows, January 9-10. A celebration of iconic choreography on March 28, Gotta Dance! Great Moments of Dance in Film highlights choreographed scenes from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Brigadoon, Madame Bovary, and An American in Paris, among others. The series closes on April 25 with a program saluting Chinese composer Tan Dun's film scores, including his Oscar- and Grammy-winning score to Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Zhang Yimou'sHero, and Feng Xiaogang's The Banquet. On Halloween, a restoration of the 1920 black & white film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde will be accompanied by the improvisations of Todd Wilson on Davies Symphony Hall's mighty Ruffatti organ. The series follows the sold out inaugural series in 2013-14 which presented a week of Hitchcock films, A Night at the Oscars, Charlie Chaplin's silent film City Lights, and selections from Disney's classicFantasia films.

Music Director Osmo Vänskä guides Orchestra's flagship classical series, September 2014 to June 2015, featuring a lineup of classical masterworks, star soloists and conductors

Classical music and drawn animation might be considered things of the past, but they had glorious relevance at the Davies Symphony Hall this past weekend. The Disney cartoons of 1940's revolutionary Fantasia played in brilliant, restored, high-definition color alongside clips from Fantasia 2000 with musical accompaniment by the San Francisco Symphony.

In a phone conversation, Maestro Keith Lockhart talks about Billy Porter, Leonard Nimoy and the upcoming Pops season

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra presents The Wizard of Oz led by guest conductor Sarah Hicks this weekend, April 12-13, 2014, at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. The film will be screened with original vocals intact accompanied by a live performance of the musical score.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra presents The Wizard of Oz led by guest conductor Sarah Hicks on April 12-13, 2014, at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. The film will be screened with original vocals intact accompanied by a live performance of the musical score.

The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra (NJSO) today announced its programs for the 2014-15 concert season, conductor Jacques Lacombe's fifth year as the Orchestra's Music Director. Fulfilling its mission as a statewide orchestra, the NJSO brings subscription programs to venues in Newark, New Brunswick, Princeton, Morristown, Red Bank and Englewood, with 14 weeks of subscription classical programs, four pops programs and three family concerts, as well as several special concerts.

The holidays are upon us with plenty to celebrate at the Kimmel Center's campus of events and performances.