We Got Animated
We followed that wildly dramatic oratorio work – and its 18 double choruses! – with an intimate exploration of the part song, in which the chorus combined and recombined in multiple configurations to perform love songs, hunting songs, gypsy songs, waltzes, and more. In the center of it all, quite literally, was Anderson & Roe, the piano duo whose musical and physical pyrotechnics transformed Piazzolla, Brahms, and us!
But what could be more animated than 130 singers at a glamorous night club circa 1941? Perhaps you’d prefer the circus? Our fantastically versatile chorus brought the house down with their lively performances in the dream sequences/crowd scenes of Lady in the Dark, aided and abetted by visionary choreographer Doug Varone. It’s pretty safe to say we’ve left the notion of “park & bark” behind.
We Made Headlines
Features and reviews of MasterVoices shows ran in over 55 media outlets! Including live segments on WNYC and New York Live, selection as a “Critic’s Pick” by the New York Times,and our first feature in Vogue as The Most Fashionable Production in New York.
You didn’t hear it from us, but sources say our nearly sold-out performance of Handel’s Israel in Egypt in November had the Carnegie Hall Stage Bursting with Artists (Berkshire Fine Arts), while our lieder-loving concert Night Songs and Love Waltzes in March allowed ourMasterful Voices to sing of Night, Love, and Joy (Cadenza) at Alice Tully Hall, where a sea of smiles in the audience enjoyed an intimate musical experience to be cherished by all(OperaWire). For our City Center audience of Lady in the Dark, our Lovingly Revived Masterpiece Musical (NY Stage Review) in April was a bit like spotting a rare bird in the wilderness (Talkin’ Broadway) – it thrilled (Parterre) with its Rich & Textured Performance Featuring Unbelievable Music With Incredible Artists (OperaWire), like when Victoria Clark Stops the Show (Q on Stage). Well cast and smartly produced (NY Times), its stylish staging(Hollywood Reporter) was Wonderful (Woman Around Town). Whether you love opera, musical theater, oratorios, or lieder, we hope you agree our long history of presenting wonderful evenings of song and theatre makes it a thrill whenever [we] sing (Show/ShowDown)!
We Made Our Garden Grow
Maestro Sperling believes that the best artistic flowers grow from a soil rich in artistic collaboration. This year our garden was in full blossom thanks to new partnerships with visual artist Kevork Mourad, whose animated illustrations lent a contemporary urgency toIsrael in Egypt, and Vogue Editor-at-Large Hamish Bowles. Special soloist flowers included John Holiday, Nmon Ford, Ashley Park, and Nicholas Phan, among others, and we were delighted to water 3 lovely young seeds from the Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts at Juilliard!
Rich soil inspired deeper roots, too, thanks to renewed collaborations with spectacular artists like choreographer Doug Varone, composer Ricky Ian Gordon, designer Doug Fitch, costumer Tracy Christensen, plus sui generis performers Victoria Clark, Nicole Cabell, David Pittu, Montego Glover, and Mikaela Bennett, among others.
We also had 7,545 very important collaborators – some new, some old – who were essential in making each performance unique: YOU, our audience!
