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2011 Blackcreek Music Festival
June 4 - Aug.30:: Beginning on June 4 with Plácido Domingo in concert, and with such renowned artists as James
Taylor, Diana Krall, Tony Bennett, Helen Mirren, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones and the London Symphony Orchestra to follow, the new BlackCreek Summer Music Festival will launch its inaugural season at the Rexall Centre
on the grounds of York University in Toronto.
The 2011 season spans 14 weeks, from June to September, and includes a wide array of programs by some of the most revered names in pop and jazz, along with
rousing symphonic evenings, Broadway showstoppers, world music and iconic country artists, all performing "under the stars."
"The Rexall Centre, with its ideal octagonal amphitheatre configuration, has been
re-imagined as a brilliant new concert venue," commented Kevin Albrecht, CEO of iSport Concerts Ltd. and the BlackCreek Limited Partnership, producers of the Festival. "It will offer excellent sightlines;
state-of-the-art lighting, video, and sound design; and, most importantly, an intimate connection to the stage.
The BlackCreek festival will provide a superior entertainment experience; one that is
affordable, offers accessible programs from a wide-ranging menu and has been designed to appeal to music lovers of all generations and from all walks of life."
The open-view stage has been designed in collaboration with celebrated architect and designer, Mark Fisher, who has designed some of the most memorable rock concerts ever staged, including The Wall
for Pink Floyd, every Rolling Stones show since 1989, and every U2 concert since 1992.
The complete schedule is listed below:
Saturday, June 4 Plácido Domingo, Sondra Radvanovsky and the BlackCreek Festival Orchestra and Chorus :: Vocal superstar Plácido Domingo will provide a thrilling launch to the BlackCreek
Festival. He is universally considered one of the greatest tenors of all time…and one of the greatest classical crossover artists. As one of the Three Tenors, his voice has brought pleasure to millions around the globe.
His album sales worldwide are in excess of 100 million copies. Winner of 10 Grammys and 2 Latin Grammys, he is known as "the King of Opera." This will be his first Toronto appearance in over a decade.
Joining
Plácido Domingo will be special guest, soprano Sondra Radvanovsky, one of the leading vocal artists on the international scene today and recognized as one of the foremost Verdi sopranos of her generation. Ms.
Radvanovsky has performed in every major opera house in the world, including Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Paris Opera, Teatro alla Scala, Vienna State Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Los Angeles
Opera, and numerous others.
Ms. Radvanovsky has partnered Plácido Domingo many times on international operatic stages — but never before in Toronto. When she sings with him at the Opening Night of the
BlackCreek Summer Music Festival, listeners are guaranteed a sumptuous feast of opera duets and arias.
Saturday, June 25 James Taylor (with special guest to be announced) :: Known as America's troubadour, James Taylor's songs and sentiments embody the art of songwriting in its most fundamental form. Over the course of his illustrious career, he has
earned 40 gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards, five Grammys, as well as the Century Award, Billboard
magazine's highest accolade for creative achievement. As the authentic voice of America's heartland, he has influenced music lovers of all generations. Wednesday, June 29 Lorin Maazel conducting the Castleton Festival Orchestra featuring Dame Helen Mirren and Jeremy Irons :: Lorin Maazel conducting the Castleton Festival Orchestra with the Castleton Festival Chorus and
vocal soloists, in music inspired by Shakespeare: Mendelssohn's incidental music to A Midsummer Night's Dream, featuring Dame Helen Mirren and Jeremy Irons reciting Shakespeare's verses; and Tchaikovsky's
Romeo and Juliet. Saturday, July 2 Diana Krall and Tony Bennett with Orchestra :: Diana Krall is a jewel in the world of contemporary jazz and a Canadian musical treasure. From
sultry Latin grooves to beloved classic jazz standards, this multiple award-winning pianist and singer is disarmingly intimate, utterly soulful and hypnotically sensual.
Tony Bennett, the 15-time Grammy award
winner, is celebrated as the "singer's singer." With worldwide record sales in the millions, his talent reaches out across borders and generations. Singer, painter, writer, Kennedy Center Honoree, Emmy Award-winner and
recipient of Billboard magazine's elite Century Award, his vocals touch the heart.
Saturday, July 9 The Very, Very Best of Broadway ::
Featuring Marvin Hamlisch as musical director, and starring Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Martin Short, with the BlackCreek Festival Orchestra and Chorus and other Broadway leading ladies and gentlemen to be announced.
Friday, July 22 Lorin Maazel conducts the Castleton Festival Opera ::
Vocal soloists and Orchestra in music from two of the most popular of all operas. Act One will be highlights in concert version from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess
. Act Two will be orchestral interludes and highlights in concert version from Act IV of Carmen, with Denyce Graves in the title role.
Saturday, August 24 Barry Manilow with The Yougstown Symphony Orchestra :: With worldwide sales of more than 80 million records, Barry Manilow's success is a benchmark in popular music. He is ranked as the top Adult Contemporary chart artist of all time,
according to R&R (Radio & Records), with no less than 25 consecutive Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1975 and 1983. The list includes all-time favourites that Manilow still
sings today: "Mandy," "It's A Miracle," "Could It Be Magic," "I Write the Songs," "Tryin' To Get the Feeling Again," "This One's For You," "Weekend In New England," "Looks Like We Made It," "Can't Smile Without You,"
"Even Now," and the Grammy Award-winning "Copacabana (At the Copa)." Rolling Stone
crowned him "a giant among entertainers…the showman of our generation," and Frank Sinatra summed up Manilow best when Ol' Blue Eyes told the British press, "He's next." Monday, August 27 London Symphony Orchestra :: Lorin Maazel conducts the London Symphony Orchestra and the BlackCreek Festival Chorus, with bass René Pape as soloist. Mr. Pape will be heard in the Coronation Scene from
Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov and music from Verdi's Don Carlo. The concert ends with the Mussorgsky/Ravel Pictures at an Exhibition.June 4 - Aug. 30
Rexall Centre, York University | Tickets can be purchased online by
clicking here or by calling 1-888-860-7888.
The BlackCreek Summer Music Festival Box Office at the Rexall Centre will open for single-ticket sales on Saturday, May 7, with box office hours from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Groups of 14 or more may receive discounts on single-ticket prices for select concerts. For further inquiries,
please click here
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