A Song Flung Up to Heaven: Honoring 65 Years of TWC at DAR Constitution Hall

The Washington Chorus presents a concert juxtaposing Nkeiru Okoye's When the Caged Bird Sings and Poulenc's Gloria, two major works that treat sacred themes with a blend of reverence and theatricality. The centerpiece is the East Coast premiere of Okoye's dramatic work, a musical ceremony fusing opera, musical theater, spoken word, choral singing, gospel, spirituals, and jazz, partly in tribute to poet and activist Maya Angelou. The concert opens with Poulenc's Gloria, which first premiered in 1961, the same year as The Washington Chorus's founding.