Thomasville Entertainment Foundation unveils 85th performance season
Season tickets are now available for Thomasville Entertainment Foundation’s milestone 85th performance season, featuring six diverse artists and ensembles.
The 2022-23 series features nationally and internationally acclaimed performing artists representing opera, chamber music, cabaret, Broadway and gospel music.
Theater: Theater comes full circle for 'Beauty and the Beast' director Robert Stuart
Young Actors: Young Actors student gets star turn at Arts for Autism benefit in New York
In announcing the series, TEF President Linda Tarver said, “Since 1937, TEF has presented an incredible array of world-class artists and ensembles, and the upcoming season continues that tradition of excellence.”
Oct. 20: An Evening in Paris
The 2022-23 season opens Oct. 20 with An Evening in Paris, chamber music performed by two powerhouse soloists and the Juilliard School’s resident string quartet. Canadian violinist Lara St. John and American pianist-composer Matt Herskowitz join the dynamic Ulysses Quartet for a program of 19th and 20th century Romantic and Impressionist works by French composers Chausson, Debussy and Ravel.
Nov. 10: Ain't Misbehavin'
Nov. 10 brings a cabaret concert version of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, Ain’t Misbehavin’, to Thomasville. With live music and five singing actors, the show is a tribute to the musicians of the Harlem Renaissance, bringing to life the Golden Age of America’s jazz palaces in a swinging musical revue featuring hits from legendary composer “Fats” Waller.
Jan. 10: Kelli O'Hara
On Jan. 10, one of Broadway’s busiest leading ladies brings her intimate cabaret to the Thomasville Center for the Arts, when seven-time Tony Award nominee Kelli O’Hara takes the stage. Winner of the 2015 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, O’Hara will showcase the talents that have catapulted her to starring roles on Broadway and at the Metropolitan Opera.
Feb. 2: J'Nai Bridges
A Feb. 2 recital features the rich voice of mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, winner of the 2012 Marian Anderson Award. Acclaimed for her plush vocals and commanding stage presence, the award-winning Bridges has been heralded as an established yet still rising star, gracing the world’s top opera and concert stages from the Kennedy Center to the Metropolitan Opera in lead and title roles in Carmen, Sampson and Delilah and Akhnaten.
Feb. 28: A Far Cry
On February 28, the Boston-based string orchestra, A Far Cry, performs in Thomasville in a highly anticipated concert first scheduled for 2020 but delayed by COVID-19 cancellations. The Grammy-nominated orchestra takes an inventive approach to new music and the classics that critics call compelling and intrepid. The varied program of works includes Tchaikovsky’s 1880 composition, Serenade for String Orchestra in C Major, which A Far Cry performs from memory.
March 14: The Kingdom Choir
The 2022-23 concert series concludes March 14 with a long-awaited performance by top UK-based gospel ensemble, The Kingdom Choir, whose previously planned concerts for TEF were impacted by the global pandemic. The London group gained worldwide attention when it performed at the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Season tickets are available in three option packages. The Classics Series includes An Evening in Paris, J’Nai Bridges and A Far Cry, while the Variations Series features Ain’t Misbehavin,’ Kelli O’Hara and The Kingdom Choir. The Complete Series encompasses the entire six-concert season.
While inflation has impacted the price of just about everything, Thomasville Entertainment Foundation has not raised ticket prices since 2014, despite continued increases in artist fees, production costs and other concert-related expenses. That effort, Tarver said, keeps TEF’s programming accessible to the community at large.
With advance purchase discounts, available through September 1, the Complete Series package is $170, or just over $28 per concert, and three-concert Classical or Variations Series packages are $90, or $30 per concert, a substantial savings over the single ticket price of $38 per concert.
Details and season ticket packages are available online at TEFconcerts.com or by calling the TEF office at 229-226-7404. Single tickets to individual concerts will go on sale approximately one month before each event, subject to availability after season ticket orders are processed.
Established in 1937, Thomasville Entertainment Foundation is a volunteer-powered, non-profit organization celebrating 85 years of entertaining and enriching the community.
Never miss a story: Subscribe to the Tallahassee Democrat using the link at the top of the page.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Thomasville Entertainment features six artists for 85th season
