Wednesday, November 7, 2018 - 7:30 pm -  The Hanover Theatre

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Forty years ago, Maria Callas shrugged off the earthly binds of temporal life, leaving a bereft world longing for her presence, her performances, her voice. Now she returns to the stage, in all her grandeur, confirming her immortality to stunned audiences.

Introducing  Callas in Concert , a triumphant event that brings the beloved La Divina to the stage via hologram, singing to the accompaniment of a full live orchestra. As this unprecedented performance unfolds, you will surrender all notions of what is real and get lost in the magic of perhaps the best opera singer of all time.

From the moment the curtain rises, you are a captive in Callas’s world. Her most iconic performances of Bellini, Bizet, Verdi, Puccini and more feature original recordings digitally remastered and brought to life on stage through breathtaking state-of-the-art digital and laser technology. Yet this is far from a replay of her past glories. You will delight as Ms. Callas playfully engages the orchestra conductor. And you will stare awe-stricken as she reacts to you, the live audience, and you feel her soul.

Callas in Concert was featured on CBS Sunday Morning - read/watch it here .

Clip of Callas in an excerpt from  Carmen - watch it here .

Constantine Kitsopouloshas made a name for himself as a conductor whose musical experiences comfortably span the worlds of opera and symphony, where he conducts in such venues as Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and Royal Albert Hall, and musical theater, where he can be found leading orchestras on Broadway. 

Mr. Kitsopoulos is in his third season as music director of the Queens Symphony Orchestra and continues as general director of Chatham Opera, which he founded in 2005. This season Mr. Kitsopoulos also makes debuts with the New York Pops, Colorado Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Houston Symphony, Elgin Symphony and Westchester Philharmonic

In the 2007-2008 season, Mr. Kitsopoulos returned to the Baltimore, Detroit, Hartford and Milwaukee symphonies in addition to making his debuts with the San Francisco, Mobile, Princeton and Virginia symphonies. Orchestral highlights of previous seasons include conducting appearances with the Annapolis Symphony, Blossom Festival Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic, Lubbock Symphony, Madison Symphony, National Arts Centre Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, New York Virtuosi Chamber Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Brooklyn Philharmonic, and a complete performance of Stravinsky's "L'Histoire du Soldat" with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Mr. Kitsopoulos also continued to show his ability and interest in performing new works and conducting a wide variety of genres. In 2005 he conducted the Red Bull Artsehcro, an orchestra consisting of students from the top conservatories and university music programs in the country, in a concert at Carnegie Hall featuring a program of world premieres by Raul Yanez and Laura Karpman.

In the 2006-2007 season, Mr. Kitsopoulos conducted DiCapo Opera Theatre's production of "The Merry Widow" and the Chatham Opera's debut production of Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors." Previous season's operatic highlights include the DiCapo Opera Theatre's production of Gounod's "Faust" and all three versions of Puccini's "Madama Butterfly", the Hong Kong Municipal Opera production of Bizet's "Carmen" in both Hong Kong and Beijing, and Gluck's "Orefeo ed Euridice" at Alice Tully Hall. Mr. Kitsopoulos also served as music director of the world premiere of Ed Dixon's "Fanny Hill" at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut, where he created the productions orchestrations as well.

In addition to his orchestral and classical commitments, Mr. Kitsopoulos is much in demand as a theatre conductor, both on Broadway and nationwide. This past season, Mr. Kitsopoulos was conductor and music director for the Tony nominated musical "A Catered Affair." In 2007, he conducted the Tony nominated "Coram Boy" and the American Conservatory Theatre production of Kurt Weill's "Happy End," for which he recorded the cast album at Skywalker Ranch. Other musical theatre highlights include serving as Music Director and Principal Conductor of Baz Luhrmann's highly acclaimed production of Puccini's "La Bohème", conducting the new musical "Mambo Kings" in San Francisco in 2005, serving s Music Director of Frank Wildhorn's "Dracula" and "Les Misérables" and conducting Matthew Bourne's Broadway production of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake".

Constantine Kitsopoulos studied conducting with Vincent LeSelva, as well as Gustav Meier, Sergiu Commissiona, and Semyon Bychkov. He studied piano with Marienka Michna, Chandler Gregg, Ed Edson, and Sophia Rosoff.

His first recording – Baz Luhrmann’s production of La Bohème – was released by Dreamworks in 2002.  His recording of Kurt Weill's "Happy End" was released in 2007 by Ghostlight Records. The cast album of "A Catered Affair" was released in 2008 by PS Classics.

Symphony NHwas founded in 1923 by conductor and educator Elmer “Pop” Wilson and is now New Hampshire's oldest professional orchestra.  Symphony NH was known as the Nashua Symphony Orchestra until 2012.  Jonathan McPhee joined Symphony NH as Music Director from 2008 to 2017, leading the orchestra new artistic heights and presenting programs that feature a variety of music and appeal to the diverse tastes of New Hampshire audiences.  Most notably in 2016, Symphony NH premiered McPhee's highly acclaimed  The Essential RING , called "outstanding Wagner" by  The Boston Globe .

Symphony NH has performed orchestra concerts in Nashua, Concord, Lebanon, Peterborough, and Keene, as well as additional towns across the state.  Our education programs have served Nashua students for many years, and starting in 2016 were additionally brought to students in Manchester, Concord and the Upper Valley.