M E D I A  A D V I S O R Y

February 22, 2017 – Richmond, Virginia Don’t miss the next Dominion Casual Fridays concert featuring Stravinsky’s Pétrouchka on Friday, March 3 at 6:30pm. Host Todd Waldo joins conductor Steven Smith to provide a behind the scenes look into the music. Grab a drink, relax and enjoy a casual, one-hour performance at the Dominion Arts Center’s Carpenter Theatre.

Originally a ballet, Stravinsky revised Pétrouchka in 1947 for a concert performance by adding a concert ending. The story tells a tale about three puppets, Pétrouchka, the Moor and the Ballerina, who are brought to life by a mysterious showman at the Shrovetide Fair in St. Petersburg. As their personalities become animated, the Moor taunts Pétrouchka, who is in despair after having been rejected by the Ballerina. The next scene finds the ballerina dancing for the Moor only to be interrupted by Pétrouchka who bursts in by surprise. In the final scene, Pétrouchka rushes into the fair crowd, pursued by the Moor who attacks and strikes him dead. The showman reassures the crowd that Pétrouchka is only a puppet, but when the spectators leave, the puppet’s apparition startles him. Pétrouchka jeers at the terrified puppeteer from the roof of his booth.

After the concert, audience members are invited to join Richmond Symphony musicians for a happy hour in the speakeasy at Vagabond restaurant located at 700 E. Broad Street, one block from the Carpenter Theatre.

Adult tickets for Dominion Casual Fridays performances start at $10, college student tickets
are $7, and child tickets are free for individuals 17 and under. Purchase tickets online at www.richmondsymphony.com or by calling 1.800.514.ETIX.

The Casual Fridays Series sponsor is Dominion Resources. The concert sponsor is McGuireWoods LLP. The exclusive restaurant partner is Vagabond. The media sponsor is Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Steven Smith, conductor

Todd Waldo, host

#          #          #

About the Richmond Symphony

Founded in 1957, the Richmond Symphony is the largest performing arts organization in Central Virginia. The organization includes an orchestra of more than 70 professional musicians, the 150-voice Richmond Symphony Chorus and more than 260 students in the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra programs. Each season, more than 200,000 members of the community enjoy concerts, and radio broadcasts. The Symphony also provides educational outreach programs to over 50,000 students and teachers each year. The Richmond Symphony is partially funded by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.