Holiday Brass!!

The Motor City Brass Quintet

David Ammer, Jacob Cameron

Dave Everson, Derek Lockhart

John Rutherford

Provided a fabulous kick-off to the holiday season. The music was enhanced by a beautiful video presentation by Liz Larin (http://www.lizlarin.com/).

The concert video can be seen here.(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW0WhAV6leM)

For more of their music or to purchase their Christmas Vespers CD, visit http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/motorcitybrass

or contact them directly at http://www.motorcitybrassquintet.com/

Over the River and Through the Woods

Another successful production!!



Thanks to cast and crew for a wonderful weekend at The Playhouse.

The Amabile Chamber Trio

Amabile [ah MAH bee lay] means "loveable" or "sweet" in Italian. Music can lovable to everyone.

"Music is a universal language of Mankind."

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The Amabile Chamber Trio, with Michael J. McGillivray (violin and viola), Sonia Lee (violin) and Catherine Sherwin (flute) took us on a wonderful ride through four centuries of music, including selections for flute and violin by Morley and Telemann, the Duo for Violin and Viola in G Major by Mozart, Six Duets for Two Violins by Bartok and finally Beethoven's Serenade in D Major for Flute, Violin and Viola, Op. 25.

The evening was enjoyed by all who attended, as we kicked off the fourth season of Chamber Music at The Playhouse.

Jazz Experience with Marcus, Charlie and Joan

To cap off yet another great season of Chamber Music at The Playhouse, we heard some fabulous New Orleans jazz from trumpeter Marcus Belgrave and saxophonist/flutist Charlie Gabriel, with some smooth vocals by Joan Belgrave.

They were joined on stage by

Marion Hayden on bass,

Gayelynn McKinney on drums,

Tad Weed on piano and

Chris Smith on trombone.

Announcing the release of their new CD Excitable, we heard several selections from that recording as well as their other two CDs, some being original compositions by Joan Belgrave.

We helped Marcus celebrate his 73rd birthday when members Joann Castle and Yolanda Turner presented him with a cake.

The Playhouse hasn't heard that much great music in a long, long time!!!!!

The Vast Difference

Fine Arts finished its 103rd season with a production of this Jeff Daniel's comedy. The mile-a-minute entrance-exits and madcap surrealism failed to obscure this comedy's deeply serious undertone.
George Noonan, played by member Charly Davis, was tossed to and fro in his deliberations about having a vasectomy.

He turns a routine visit to his urologist, played by member Anne Maters, into a psychotherapy session about life, the insignificance of the modern-day man and the vast difference between stewards and stewardesses.

His wife Rita, played by guest Amy Secor, doesn't want to chance adding another daughter to a family that already includes five girls.



And his deceased father Earl, played by guest Bruce Maters, still holds great sway over George.


Twenty nine other characters enter into George's decision-making process, all played by Bill McCarthy, Rob Green, Greg Ridella and Mark Wiacek. While some helped, most just added to the confusion his life was becoming. All were hilariously funny.

And although we never saw her on stage, Pat Vintevoghel provided an authentic stewardess' voice.



Thanks to all who helped make this another GREAT FINE ARTS SEASON!!!