Join us on Sunday, February 14th at 1 PM on WRTI 90.1, and Monday, February 15th at 7 PM on WRTI HD-2 to hear a fabulously romantic Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert broadcast from 2019. Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Sergei Prokofiev’s brilliant take on Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet.
It's a performance of the complete ballet, with some cuts of repeated material. And for this production, the Philadelphians are joined by the Philadelphia-based theater group known as JUNK, a mainstay of Philadelphia’s FringeArts Festival, cleverly bridging the gap between dance and physical theater.
Think of a ballet danced and acted in the air above the stage, a blend of traditional dance-theater, acrobatics, and circus arts!
Coming up on the Orchestra's Digital Stage, Feb. 18-25, Michelle Cann plays Florence Price. Details here. March 4th to 11th, watch the Philadelphians and JUNK present Rodion Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite, Details here.
Romeo and Juliet is performed with an intermission. Acts I and II come before the break, and Acts III and IV after. We’ll undoubtedly hear oohs and aahs, applause, and other reactions from the Verizon Hall audience, as the members of JUNK dance in mid-air, fly above the stage, and engage in all manner of death-defying acts. We’ll help fill in the blank spaces of your imagination!
From the Dance of the Knights, to the Balcony Scene, from the death of Mercutio to the death of Juliet, Prokofiev has written some of the most powerfully moving music ever composed. And you can hear it all!
During intermission, WRTI’s Susan Lewis speaks with Yannick, and Debra Lew Harder discusses the innovative theatrical concept of this production with the choreographer and general director of JUNK, Brian Sanders.
PROGRAM:
Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet, Op. 54
Act I
- Introduction
- Interlude
- Masks
- Dance of the Knights
- Juliet’s Variation
- Tybalt Recognizes Romeo
- Gavotte (The Departure of the Guests)
- The Balcony Scene
- Romeo’s Variation
- Love Dance
Act II
- Folk Dance
- Romeo at Friar Laurence’s Cell
- Juliet at Friar Laurence’s Cell
- The People’s Merry-Making Continues
- Tybalt Encounters Mercutio
- Tybalt Fights with Mercutio
- The Death of Mercutio
- Romeo Decides to Avenge Mercutio’s Death
- Finale of Act II
INTERMISSION
Act III
- Introduction
- Farewell Before Parting
- Juliet Refuses to Marry Paris
- Juliet Alone
- Interlude
- At Friar Laurence’s Cell
- Interlude
- Juliet Alone
- Dance of the Girls with Lilies
- At Juliet’s Bedside
Act IV
- Juliet’s Funeral
- The Death of Juliet
The Philadelphia Orchestra
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor
Gregg Whiteside is producer and host of the Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert broadcasts, every Sunday at 1 pm on WRTI 90.1, streaming online at WRTI.org, and on our mobile app! Listen again on Mondays at 7 pm on WRTI HD-2
