The Washington Performing Arts Society 2009-10 season
Ticket and subscription information and complete season listings: wpas.org
When Patrick Hayes founded the Washington Performing Arts Society more than 40 years ago, he was committed to “showcasing the complete spectrum of the arts in performances of the highest quality, including classical music, jazz, gospel, contemporary dance, international music and artforms and works that bend genres in provocative ways.”
The commitment lives on in the 2009-10 WPAS season offerings, presented in some of the finest venues throughout the Washington area.
“Sometimes people think of us just for classical music, [but] that’s only part of what we do,” WPAS President Neale Perl said. “There are a lot of choices people have, [and] if you subscribe to WPAS, you can make your own series. It’s a cultural arts buffet.”
Indeed, variety is the hallmark of the season. And with more than 60 performances, the choices are legion.
Jazz lovers, for example, will not want to miss famed saxophonist Sonny Rollins in December or the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis in March at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. The Ramsey Lewis Trio with Ann Hampton Callaway will perform at the Warner Theatre in May.
“Part of our DNA at WPAS is to do collaborations with local dance companies, or local artists,” Perl continued. “We have a long history of presenting some of the best dance companies in the world here.”
Longtime WPAS performers Sweet Honey in the Rock are set for a show with members of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre at the Warner Theatre in October.
For a touch of Bollywood this season, Kailash Kher, one of India’s most popular young singers, performs with his band Kailasa at Lisner Auditorium in November.
Up-and-coming jazz, world and classical musicians make their mark on audiences this season at Sixth & I Historic Synagogue in downtown Washington, a new performing venue for WPAS. The lineup includes sitar player Anoushka Shankar, daughter of Ravi.
WPAS has signed four major orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony, for performances at the Kennedy Center.
Perl urges D.C. audiences to “expand their palettes” by picking a few different performances, ones they would ordinarily not seek out.
“You’ll look back on it with beautiful memories,” he concluded.
