New Philharmonic opens a new concert season with Show Boat & Show Tunes

“A bell is not a bell till you ring it. A song is not a song till you sing it. Love in your heart wasn’t put there to stay. Love isn’t love till you give it away,” wrote famous American librettist and theatrical producer Oscar Hammerstein II. The love for music, rhythm and passion will fill the air in the McAninch Arts Center when acclaimed New Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Muspratt opens its new season with “Show Boat & Show Tunes.” This concert program will feature show tunes by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart and songs from the musical “Show Boat” by Hammerstein and Jerome Kern. “Show Boat & Show Tunes” will take place at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 29 and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 30 at McAninch Arts Center on the grounds of College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn.

As always, Maestro Muspratt gathered many great talents that together will help him create an unforgettable event. The miracle of producing beautiful music starts, of course, with Muspratt’s unbeatable enthusiasm and charisma, but it would not be possible without the hard work of the New Philharmonic musicians, professionalism of the New Philharmonic associate conductor Ben Nadel, and passion of the talented guest artists. This time, the New Philharmonic will be joined by four acclaimed guest vocalists – soprano Brooklyn Snow, mezzo-soprano Kate Tombaugh, tenor Matthew Greenblatt and baritone Bill McMurray – and the 100-voice Northwest Indiana Symphony Chorus under the direction of Dr. Nancy Menk.

It will be The MAC debut for talented soprano Brooklyn Snow, who is known not only in the United States, but also internationally, particularly in Hong Kong and the Netherlands. Her operatic performances include Barbara in “Le nozze di Figaro,” Isabel in “The Pirates of Penzance” and the Page in “Rigoletto.” Mezzo-soprano Kate Tombaugh has performed at The MAC in New Philharmonic’s “The Best of Broadway” concerts in 2017. She also appeared at numerous opera companies and symphonies throughout the United States and is known for her numerous title roles.

“Show Boat & Show Tunes” will be also The MAC debut for tenor Matthew Greenblatt. This outstanding soloist performed the role of Prince Tamino in “The Magic Flute” quintet for the Palm Beach Opera’s “Opera and Waterfront Concert,” served as apprentice artist for Opera, covering the roles of Candide in “Candide” and Spoletta in “Tosca,” and has been seen in the Bel Canto in Tuscany program headed by the internationally acclaimed conductor, Giovanni Reggioli.

Acclaimed baritone Bill McMurray, who performed on such prestigious stages as Lyric Opera of Chicago and Jay Pritzker Pavilion, has more than thirty operatic roles to his credit. He was last seen at the MAC in New Philharmonic’s 2016 concert called “An Evening of Gershwin.” This award winning soloist is happy to return to The MAC and perform together with the New Philharmonic.

This concert program also wouldn’t be possible without the Northwest Indiana Symphony Chorus under the direction of Dr. Nancy Menk. Established in 1987, this great organization consists of devoted professionals who have performed with the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra in everything from requiems to reggae.

Combined with unforgettable show tunes by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart and popular songs from “Show Boat” by Oscar Hammerstein and Jerome Kern, the talent of these singers and musicians will shine with all the spectrum of extreme musicality, energy and sensitivity. In the first half of the concert program, the audience will have a chance to hear such memorable musical gems by Rodgers and Hart as “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered” from “Pal Joey”, “My Funny Valentine” and “Where or When” from “Babes in Arms”, “Mimi” from the movie “Love Me Tonight”, “With a Song in my Heart” from “Spring Is Here”, “This Can’t Be Love” from “The Boys from Syracuse”, “Little Girl Blue” and “My Romance” from “Jumbo”, and the title song from “I Married an Angel.”

“The music on the first half of our Show Boat & Show Tune' concert [Rodgers and Hart] almost never gets performed anymore, at least in its entirety,” said New Philharmonic associate conductor Ben Nadel in his interview with Director of The MAC Diana Martinez for Backstage Buzz. “We actually had to go to the publisher and specially request them to prepare this music for us. Those will be tunes like 'I married an angel,' 'My romance,' and my personal favorite 'My funny Valentine.'"

The second half of this concert program will feature songs from “Show Boat” by Hammerstein and Kern, the musical that was best described in 1994 by David Richards for The New York Times: “‘Show Boat’ is the great American musical about the tumultuousness of love, played out against the majestic Mississippi River and the big-shouldered city of Chicago.” The New Philharmonic, the soloists and the Northwest Indiana Symphony Chorus will demonstrate all the beauty of such iconic songs and selections from this musical as “Show Boat Overture,” “Cotton Blossom,” “Where's the Mate for Me?,” “Make Believe,” “Ol’ Man River,” “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man,” “Life Upon the Wicked Stage,” “You Are Love,” “The Sports of Gay Chicago,” “Why Do I Love You?,” “Bill” and “Old Man River Finale.”

“Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man,” is sung in one of the most elegant songs from this classical musical. “Can’t help loving this orchestra,” say the music lovers from the Chicago area who keep coming to The MAC to hear the New Philharmonic Orchestra play. And I, as a writer, can’t help but keep writing about it.

For tickets and information, please call 630-942-4000 or visit AtTheMAC.org. New Philharmonic’s “Show Boat and Show Tunes” will be performed Saturday, September 29 at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, September 30 at 3 p.m. General admission tickets are $55, tickets for youth ages 17 and under are $10, and tickets for seniors, military, veterans, faculty and staff members are $53.

Natalia Dagenhart

Photo: Bill McMurray headshot, courtesy of the artist