Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Spread Holiday Cheer with Portland Ovations

PORTLAND, Maine - Portland Ovations swings into the spirit of the season with Big Band Holidays, a special concert featuring the unrivaled Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, on December 2, at 7:30 pm at Merrill Auditorium.

Bandleader and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis leads an all-star lineup featuring guest vocalists Denzal Sinclaire and Audrey Shakir, some of today's commanding new voices on the scene. A Juno Award nominee and National Jazz Award recipient, Sinclaire is regarded as one of the most dynamic voices in jazz, while Shakir is a bebop leader, with her scatting talents routinely compared to the great Ella Fitzgerald. The JLCO will debut new arrangements of familiar songs sacred and secular, from Count Basie's "Jingle Bells" to classics like "White Christmas" and "Zat You Santa Claus?"

"It's always a thrill to welcome Wynton and the JLCO back to our series," notes Aimée Petrin, Executive Director for Portland Ovations. "To hear these talented and generous musicians in a whole new context was an opportunity we couldn't wait to share with our audiences."

Every December for more than a decade, the critically acclaimed Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis have toured - kicking off the holiday season with messages of peace and good cheer - while exploring the canon of holiday standards. Featuring the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra's signature sense of swing, New Orleans-flavored nuances and deeply soulful and church-rooted grooves, these Big Band Holidays concerts have become a seasonal tradition across the country among jazz lovers and families.

Tickets for Big Band Holidays range from $41 to $63 for Ovations' Members and $45 to $70 for the general public. LL. Bean and Brann & Isaacson are generously sponsoring the performance, with MPBN and Bangor Daily News providing media support. To purchase tickets visit www.portlandovations.org, contact PortTIX at 207.842.0800 or visit the box office at Merrill Auditorium.

Portland Ovations brings the Children's Classic "Caps for Sale" to Merrill Auditorium for a Family Series Performance

PORTLAND, Maine - Portland Ovations brings Adventure Theatre's hilarious new musical adaptation of the children's classic Caps for Sale to Merrill Auditorium for a Family Series performance on Sunday, November 1st at 1pm.

"Caps! Caps for sale! Fifty cents a cap!" is a refrain familiar to generations of children who have grown up with Esphyr Slobodkina's timeless classic. In celebration of its 75th anniversary, Adventure Theatre TMC adapts Caps for Sale - the story of a hapless (and soon to be cap-less) hat peddler who encounters some mischievous monkeys along his sales route - into a brand new musical that jumps off the page and onto the stage with song, dance and live accompaniment, this treasured tale bursts with happy harmonies, merry melodies and quite a bit of monkey business that is sure to enchant the whole family!

Ovations Offstage offers a Cap Making Workshop at the Sam L. Cohen Children's Library, Portland Public Library on Saturday, October 24th at 10:30am - 12pm with MECA teaching artists to create your own fun cap to wear! Demonstration will begin at 10:30am but teaching artists will be able to assist throughout the workshop. Materials will be provided, and you will have a chance to enter Ovations' raffle to win a set of tickets to Caps for Sale on November 1st! For grades pre-K-3.

Tickets to Caps for Sale - The Musical are $12 and may be purchased online at www.portlandovations.org, contacting PortTIX at 207.842.0800 or visiting the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

This performance is recommended for children 3 to 8 years old.

Maine Magazine, Maine Home and Design and Old Port Magazine are Media Sponsors of the Portland Ovations 2015-16 season.

Portland Ovations Presents Lucky Plush: "The Queue" at Westbrook Performing Arts Center

Westbrook, Maine - Portland Ovations presents contemporary dance company Lucky Plush performing The Queue at Westbrook Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, May 6th at 7:30pm.

Equal parts dance and theater,The Queue unfolds in a fictional airport, where travelers stumble humorously, tragically and awkwardly into each other's private lives. Created by Lucky Plush founder/director Julia Rhodes and collaborator Leslie Danzig, The Queue finds its influences in early 20th-century forms of slapstick, vaudeville, Busby Berkeley-style choreography, creaky one-act plays and a 1746 farcical play about a family inheritance. These sources and performance vocabularies collide with contemporary dance and the distinctly non-theatrical context of waiting to create a dance-theater production, showcasing Lucky Plush's signature blend of immediacy, humor and kineticism.

On Monday, May 4th between 6pm and 8pm at The Ballroom of Mechanics Hall 519 Congress Street in Portland, ME - intermediate to advanced dancers and thespians are invited for a 2-hour dance/theatre workshop with Julia Rhoads, artistic director of Lucky Plush. The workshop will explore the relationship between dance, performance and visual storytelling. Cost is $35. To register, please email Portland Ovations Offstage:offstage@portlandovations.org or call (207) 773-3150 ext. 3.

On Wednesday night at 6:30PM one hour prior to the performance at Westbrook Performing Arts Center Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture with Paul Sarvis, Chair of Bowdoin College's Department of Theater and Dance. He will discuss Lucky Plush's new work in relation to other modern and contemporary choreogrphers' collaborative experiments in narrative performance.

Tickets for Lucky Plush The Queue range from $25.20 to $32.40 for Ovations' Members and from $28 to $36 for the general public, a limited amount of $15 student tickets are also available. To purchase tickets, visit www.portlandovations.org, contact PortTIX at 207.842.0800 or stop by the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Lucky Plush The Queue is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New England Foundation for the Arts and the National Performance Network. With media support provided by Dispatch Magazine.

Portland Ovations Presents Nordic Fiddlers Bloc at Hannaford Hall, USM Portland

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings the Nordic Fiddlers Bloc comprised of Olav Luksengård Mjelva (Norway), Anders Hall (Sweden) and Kevin Henderson (Shetland) to Hannaford Hall, USM Portland for an evening concert on April 25th at 8PM.


Olav is an award winning musician who is also a member of the acclaimed band SVER and widely recognized as one of Norway's finest fiddle players; Anders, also a member of SVER is continually cited as one of Sweden's leading fiddle players across a broad range of styles, while Kevin, one of Shetlands finest fiddle players, is a member of such bands as Boys of the Lough, Fiddlers' Bid and Session A9.


Considered three of the finest young fiddlers working in the international folk music scene today. They will be performing reels, polskas and ballads with mesmerizing fervor and graceful bowing, the Nordic Fiddlers Bloc brilliantly integrates old traditions with innovative ideas and expressions while blending their own individual styles to create a sound that is distinct, expressive and invigorating. The Herald states, "Seldom before have three fiddles sounded so much like four and at times five instruments without using electronic trickery."


At 5pm Portland Ovations invites all members of our fiddle-playing community to bring their instruments and join the Nordic Fiddlers Bloc at Hannaford Hall for an informal music-share before the concert. Whatever your style, bluegrass, maritime, southern, roundspeak - you are welcomed to join the trio for a fun afternoon of lively music.


One hour prior to the performance at 7pm Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture "Fiddle Dialects" with Don Roy and Erica Brown from 317 Main Community Music Center in Yarmouth, will play and speak about fiddle dialects, including Old-Time, Bluegrass, Celtic, Franco-Acadian and more.


Tickets for Nordic Fiddlers Bloc are $32.40 for Ovations' Members, $36 for the general public and a limited amount of $10 student tickets are also available. The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc performance is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and Center for Cultural Exchange Foundation. To purchase tickets visit www.portlandovations.org, call PortTix at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Portland Ovations Presents Global Music Collaboration The Nile Project at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations presents The Nile Project, a concert collaboration between musicians representing all 11 countries along the Nile River at Merrill Auditorium on Sunday, April 12th at 7PM.


Founded by Egyptian ethnomusicologist Mina Girgis and Ethiopian-American singer Meklit Hadero to raise awareness of the Nile Basin's cultural and environmental challenges, a pan-Nile percussion section drives this diverse orchestra of musicians and singers combining the regions' instruments, languages and traditions. The Nile Project's unique sound comes from the various musicians, learning from one another and translating that experience into collectively composed songs. The result is an unprecedented collaboration that garnered The Nile Project's first recording, Aswan, a coveted spot on NPR's Top 5 Must-Hear International Albums of 2013.


Prior to The Nile Project performance, Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture at 6pm in the Merrill Rehearsal Hall with The Nile Project's executive director, ethnomusicologist and entrepreneur Mina Girgis talking about the project's evolution, music, and ultimate goals.

Tickets for The Nile Project range from $25.20 to $32.40 for Ovations' Members and $28 to $36 for the general public with a limited amount of $15 student tickets also available. Support for The Nile Project is generously provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New England Foundation for the Arts and the Center for Cultural Exchange Foundation.

To purchase tickets, visit www.portlandovations.org, contact PortTix at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Olivier te Boekhorst Named to Board of Portland Ovations

Portland, Cape Elizabeth, Maine - Olivier te Boekhorst has been named to the Board of Directors of Portland Ovations, the 84 year-old not-for-profit performing arts organization based in Portland, Maine. Te Boekhorst is Corporate Vice President at IDEXX Laboratories, where for the past decade he has applied his strategic business development expertise to growing IDEXX's global business profile.

The son of a diplomat, Te Boekhorst moved to Maine in 2004 with his family after growing up in Poland, Kuwait, New York and the Netherlands. He loves living in Maine with his two young daughters, sharing with them the majestic outdoors, the tremendous culture and the first-class restaurants. Aimée M. Petrin, Portland Ovations' Executive Director states, "We are incredibly pleased to welcome Olivier to the Ovations board. His extensive business experience, international perspective and love of the arts will serve Ovations and this community extremely well now and into the future."

"Maine is fortunate that Ovations brings truly spectacular performing arts to our lives," says Te Boekhorst, "My family has been inspired by the performances and I look forward to supporting Ovation's vision of making the experience of the performing arts a vital part of our every day life."

Portland Ovations Brings the Children's Favorite "Skippyjon Jones" to Life Onstage at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings the bestselling children's book Skippyjon Jones to life onstage at Merrill Auditorium for a Sunday morning Family Series performance on March 29th at 11am.

Skippyjon Jones wants to be the best Chihuahua ever. Not just any Chihuahua, but a swashbuckling, sword-fighting, romantically noble one. The only problem: he's actually a Siamese cat! Before you can say "Holy guacamole," Skippyjon's wild imagination transforms him into El Skippito Friskito, donning a mask, a cape, and an accent he becomes the greatest canine sword fighter in old Mexico. But when the local pack of Chihuahuas is terrorized by the gigantic bee, Alfredo Buzzito El Blimpo Bublebeeto Bandito, will Skippyjon be a 'fraidy-cat or the top dog?

Based on the bestselling book by Judy Schachner, Skippyjon Jones is an enchanting musical about unleashing your powerful imagination and following your dreams. This TheatreWorks USA's musical adaptation boasts "witty lyrics" and a "multitextured score" (The New York Times).

Recommended for children 5-10 years old.

Tickets to Skippyjon Jones are $12 and may be purchased online at www.portlandovations.org, contacting PortTIX at 207.842.0800 or visiting the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Portland Ovations presentation of Skippyjon Jones generously receives media support from Dispatch Magazine.

The Boston Camerata Come to Portland for an Afternoon Concert with Portland Ovations

PORTLAND, Maine - Portland Ovations brings the preëminent early music ensemble, the Boston Camerata to Hannaford Hall at USM Portland for an afternoon concert Saturday, March 28th at 4pm.

Founded in 1954, the Camerata has been under the direction of French-born singer and scholar Anne Azéma since autumn, 2008. Their musical performances are well known for their blending of spontaneity and emotional commitment with careful research and scholarship. These live performances present vital, historically informed representations of European music of the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque eras, and of early American music, sacred and secular.

On March 28th presented by Portland Ovations, the Boston Camerata is joined by the Sharq Arabic Music Ensemble for a performance of Sacred Bridge, an interfaith celebration unlike any other. Weaving together the shared musical pasts of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths in Medieval Spain, Sacred Bridge conveys the poignancy and hope of intersecting cultures that remains relevant today. Jewish minstrels and folk songs, Christian psalms set to music, Gregorian and Koranic chants among other forms all find new meaning when performed alongside one another. Attend and discover the common musical roots of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, and the astonishing and beautiful interactions among these traditions.

Ovations Offstage offers a post-performance Q&A immediately following the performance with Anne Azéma, Mehmet Sanlikol and Joel Cohen.

Tickets for The Boston Camerata with Sharq Arabic Music Ensemble: Sacred Bridge are $37.80 for Ovations' Members, $42 for the general public and a limited amount of $10 student tickets are also available. The Boston Camerata performance is graciously sponsored by WBACH and foundation support is provided by National Endowment for the Arts and New England Foundation for the Arts. To purchase tickets, contact PortTix at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium. Tickets are also available online at www.portlandovations.org.

Portland Ovations Presents the powerful theater piece "Basetrack Live" at Westbrook Performing Arts Center

Westbrook, Maine - Named one of the top 10 theater events of 2014 by Charles Isherwood of The New York Times, Portland Ovations presents Basetrack Live at Westbrook Performing Arts Center on Thursday, March 26, 2015 at 7:30pm.

Basetrack Live is a dynamic multi-disciplinary work at the intersection of theater, music, new media, journalism and technology, a true multimedia experience with a live quintet, narration and projected images combining to tell the powerful story of war and humanity. Basetrack grew out of a Facebook page by photojournalist Teru Kuwayama that became a lifeline for Marines and their families to connect. Taking actual Facebook posts and pairing them with interviews of Marines filmed while at war creates an educational, moving, and inspirational theatrical work unlike any other. This visually arresting, sonically engaging and emotionally gripping theater piece draws on the power of individual stories to examine the collective experience of Marines stationed abroad, and their families, as they struggle to cope with separation and the uncertainties of war.

Portland Ovations and Ovations Offstage connects Basetrack Live to our community with the following residency activities leading up to the performance. On Monday March 23rd at 5pm the cast and crew of Basetrack arrive in Portland and are welcomed with a community dinner at Easy Day in South Portland, where members of our veteran community and their families will join Portland Ovations and the Basetrack Live artists for an evening of food, fun and camaraderie. Earlier that day a community dialogue titled Stories We Carry will take place at the Wishcamper Center on the Portland campus of USM from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. Attended by Basetrack actors Tyler La Marr and Ashley Bloom Stories We Carry provides veterans, their families, and their communities a safe space, free of politics, to engage in meaningful conversations about the impact of war on all citizens. Following the performance on Thursday night March 26th a post-performance panel discussion will take place from the stage focusing on Maine's dynamic resources for veterans and their loved ones after deployment. The panel will be moderated by Portland Vet Center's Cliff Trott and include artists from Basetrack Live and leaders in our community dedicated to supporting Maine veterans and their families.

Tickets for Basetrack Live range from $25.20-$28.80 for Ovations' Members, $28-$32 for the general public and $15 student and "residency" tickets are also available to Maine Vets and their families, as well as any full-time students. WEX and Easy Day provide corporate support for the Basetrack Live performance with foundation support provided by the National Performance Network, Center for Cultural Exchange Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts. To purchase tickets, visit www.portlandovations.org, call PortTix at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Portland Ovations Presents Moscow City Ballet: "Swan Lake"

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations presents one of Russia's leading ballet companies Moscow City Ballet performing Swan Lake on Wednesday, March 18th - 7pm at Merrill Auditorium.


With unwavering perfection set against lush sets and costuming, Moscow City Ballet's Swan Lake is the epic dance event of the season. Featuring outstanding principals, stunning soloists and a sublime corps de ballet, the company's many international tours have long-established its reputation as one of Russia's leading ballet companies. Set to Tchaikovsky's sweeping score, Swan Lake is one of the great romantic stories, filled with drama and exquisite choreography. When Siegfried, a dashing young prince, falls in love with Odette, the beautiful Queen of the Swans, the sorcerer Von Rothbart is determined to use his evil magic to thwart their happiness.


One hour prior to the performance at 6pm in the Merrill Rehearsal Hall Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture with Linda Miele, Maine State Ballet's Artistic Director, discussing the history, context and cultural impact of Swan Lake, perhaps the most popular of all classical ballets.


Tickets for Moscow City Ballet: Swan Lake are almost sold out but available tickets range from $27 to $45 for Ovations Members and $30 to $50 for the general public. To purchase tickets, visit www.portlandovations.org, call PortTix at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium. Puelle Design sponsors the performance with media support provided by BDN Maine.

Portland Ovations Presents the Broadway National Tour of "Memphis" at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations heats up this winter with its' presentation of the Tony Award-winning musical Memphis at Merrill Auditorium on Saturday, March 14 for two performances 4pm and 8pm.

Inspired by actual events, Memphis, the Musical is set in the places where rock and roll was born in the 1950s: the seedy nightclubs, radio stations and recording studios of the musically- rich Tennessee city of Memphis. With an original score, it tells the fictional story of DJ Huey Calhoun, a good ole' local boy with a passion for R&B music and Felicia Farrell, an up-and-coming black singer that he meets one fateful night on Beale Street. Despite the objections of their loved ones (Huey's close-minded mama and Felicia's cautious brother, the club owner), they embark on a dangerous affair. As their careers rise, the relationship is challenged by personal ambition and the pressures of an outside world that is just unable to accept their love. Will their love be able to withstand the trials of separation, greed and fame? This hot and bothered Broadway musical is filled with heart, soul and energy to burn!

Winner of four 2010 Tony Awards® including Best Musical, Memphis played pre-Broadway at the

Portland Ovations Presents French Pianist Alexandre Tharaud At Hannaford Hall, USM Portland

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings pianist Alexandre Tharaud to Hannaford Hall on the USM Portland campus for a recital Thursday, January 22, 2015 at 7:30pm.

Alexandre Tharaud is a French pianist who has an international reputation as an artist of unique vision and originality. Tharaud is heralded for his brilliantly conceived programs and bestselling recordings that range from Bach, Chopin, Rameau, and Ravel to music inspired by 1920s Paris cabaret life. His playing has been praised by The New York Times as "exquisite, crisp and beautifully textured" and noted for its "refinement and daring." He made his Carnegie Hall debut during the 2012-13 season in a sold-out program of Scarlatti and Liszt. That year also saw Tharaud star in and provide the soundtrack to the film Amour, which took the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. His Ovations debut will include works by Mozart, Couperin, Schubert and Beethoven.

One hour prior to the performance at 6:30pm Ovations Offstage offers the pre-performance lecture

Portland Ovations Presents the Broadway National Tour of "Sister Act" on January 17th

Portland, Maine - Direct from Broadway, Sister Act, the hilarious, five-time Tony-nominated musical smash, comes to Merrill Auditorium presented by Portland Ovations. Called "In a word, DIVINE!" by the Associated Press, Sister Act arrives on January 17th for two performances at 3pm and 8pm.

Produced by Whoopi Goldberg, TROIKA Entertainment and Sister Act On Tour, LLC, Sister Act received five 2011 Tony®Award nominations including BEST MUSICAL, BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Alan Menken (music)/Glenn Slater (lyrics), and BEST BOOK OF A MUSICAL (Cheri & Bill Steinkellner and Douglas Carter Beane).

"To hear people laugh and cheer the way they do at Sister Act - a show people think they know but

Maine Natives Play Starring Roles in Award-Winning Broadway Tours Presented by Portland Ovations

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings four top National Broadway tours to Merrill Auditorium in the winter and spring, with two Maine natives in starring roles. Boasting a combined 21 Tony Award nominations and 5 wins, Portland Ovations is proud to present: Sister Act - January 17th at 3pm and 8pm; Million Dollar Quartet - February 21st at 4pm and 8pm; the 2010 Tony Award-winning Best Musical Memphis - March 14th at 4pm and 8pm; and - back by popular demand - Mamma Mia! - right after Mother's Day on May 13th and 14th at 7:30pm. All performances are at Merrill Auditorium in Portland.

If the titles and award nominations are not exciting enough, two out of the four Broadway

Portland Ovations Presents An Evening with Ira Glass at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings This American Life host and National Public Radio icon Ira Glass back to Merrill Auditorium on Saturday, November 8th at 8pm.

Ira Glass has won all of the major broadcasting awards, he has 2.1 million weekly listeners and the most popular podcast in the country. With This American Life, he blurs the lines between journalism, documentary and fiction to create something wholly original, thought provoking and humorous. As it approaches its twentieth year, join Glass for a fascinating evening of insight into the cultural force and how it's put together: what makes a compelling story, where they find the amazing stories for their show, and how he and his staff are trying to push broadcast journalism beyond its taditional boundaries. Combining his distinct narration with taped segments, Glass recreates the sound and feel of the show live onstage for the audience to experience.

Tickets for Reinventing Radio: An Evening with Ira Glass range from $27 to $45 for Ovations' Members and $30-$50 for the general public.. To purchase tickets, visit www.portlandovations.org call PortTIX at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Support for An Evening with Ira Glass is provided by show sponsor OceanView at Falmouth with media support from The Portland Phoenix and MPBN.

Portland Ovations Presents Béla Fleck, Abigail Washburn & Del McCoury Band at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations presents Béla Fleck, Abigail Washburn and the Del McCoury Band at Merrill Auditorium Saturday, November 1st at 8 pm.

On the heels of releasing their first album together, Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn hit the Merrill Stage to perform original songs as well as old Appalachian classics, for an unforgettable evening of banjo and bluegrass. Winner of 15 Grammy Awards and widely acknowledged as the world's most innovative banjo player, Fleck's riveting and virtuosic musicianship blend with Washburn's beguiling composing, playing and singing to create music unlike anything heard before.

Fleck and Washburn are joined by 50-year music veteran Del McCoury and his Grammy Award-winning five-piece Del McCoury Band for the quintessential bluegrass experience.

One hour prior to the performance at 7pm in the Merrill Rehearsal Hall, Ovations Offstage is offering

Portland Ovations Members Get First Look at New Season

PORTLAND, Maine - Wednesday night at the Masonic Temple on Congress Street Portland Ovations unveiled their 84th season to Ovations Members and guests at their Annual Members-Only Preview Party.

With the capacity-crowd buzzing about what the non-profit performing arts presenter may bring to greater Portland next year, Executive Director Aimée M. Petrin stepped into the spotlight and announced an eclectic season, featuring artists from as far away as Pakistan and as close to home as Fort Kent. A multidisciplinary presenter, Ovations' season features 27 performances across genres as varied as Broadway, Classical Music, Dance, Music of the World, Family, and Innovations, a new category made up of multi-media performances that push boundaries and defy conventional categorization.

Portland Ovations kicks off the new season with their annual party fundraiser POP! at the Portland Company complex on October 1st . That same week will see the first performance of the season when Ovations partners with the Victoria Mansion to present the Metropolis Ensemble - led by Maine native and Bates Alum Andrew Cyr - on October 3rd as part of the First Friday Art Walk.

The season that follows includes four Broadway National Tours that boast a total of 21 Tony Award nominations and five Tony Award wins: Sister Act, Million Dollar Quartet (featuring the music of Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash), Memphis, and - back by popular demand - the

Portland Ovations Presents Inventive and Awe-Inspiring Dance Company Pilobolus at Merrill Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings back the ever-evolving dance company Pilobolus for a Friday evening performance April 25th at 8pm at Merrill Auditorium.

Pilobolus returns for an awe-inspiring evening of visual ingenuity and physical spectacle. More than a dance company, Pilobolus continues to astound with its ever-evolving, inventive movement-based performance - pushing the envelope of what is possible and, moreover, what is expected. Twisting bodies, sheer athleticism and a delightful sense of play combine with one-of-kind sets, sound and costumes for a glorious display of what the human body - and mind - can do.

Pilobolus' Ovations program promises to be one of its most intriguing and perhaps the most diverse program for the dance company to date, ranging from the theatrical to something unexpected to classic Pilobolus - now and of the past. It is also a program created with both unexpected and refreshing collaborations from the antics of magicians Penn & Teller to the creative mind of director/choreographer Trish Sie, known for her fabulous video work with the band OK Go (Here it Goes Again).

The evening will open with Automaton, the result of an international partnering with Belgian choreographer

Portland Ovations Presents Ten-Time Grammy Award-Winning Artist Bobby McFerrin

Merrill Auditorium for a Sunday Evening Concert

Portland, Maine - Portland Ovations brings the matchless vocal improviser with a breathtaking range and Ten-time Grammy Award-winner Bobby McFerrin to Merrill Auditorium for a Sunday evening concert on April 13th at 7 pm. Bobby McFerrin was exposed to a multitude of musical genres during his youth - classical, R&B, jazz, pop and world music - and has absorbed them all to create his own unparalleled sound. Whether it is a rendition of the Bach prelude Ave Maria, his incomparable interpretations of Beatles songs, collaborations with cellist Yo-Yo Ma, or conducting the Vienna Philharmonic, McFerrin awes audiences.

With his latest project, Spirit You All, McFerrin, backed by a five-piece band, pays homage to his father and the generations of Americans who sang of shared joy and pain through the powerful music of Negro Spirituals. McFerrin and his band re-imagine an American tradition. Beloved songs like "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands" and "Every Time I Feel The Spirit" along with original tunes explore McFerrin's everyday search for grace, wisdom, and freedom.

Spirit You All raises the roof with joyful grooves and embraces Bobby McFerrin's folk, rock, and blues influences without abandoning his fearless improvisational approach or his never-ending exploration of the human voice.

At 6 pm before the concert Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture Holy Songs in Strange Land in the Green Room at Merrill Auditorium. During this lecture Judith Casselberry, Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Bowdoin College, will present the complex meanings and context of American Negro Spirituals. Professor Casselberry, as a vocalist/guitarist, performs nationally and internationally with Toshi Reagon and Big Lovely. Over the past seven years she has participated in European tours of "The Temptation of Saint Anthony," directed by Robert Wilson with book and libretto by Bernice Johnson

Tickets for Bobby McFerrin: Spirit You All range from $41 to $63 for Ovations' Members and $45 to $70 for the general public. Bobby McFerrin: Spirit You All is locally sponsored by L.L. Bean and MPBN. To purchase tickets visit www.portlandovations.org, call PortTIX at 207.842.0800 or go to the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

Handel and Haydn Society Come to Portland for an Afternoon Concert with Portland Ovations

PORTLAND, Maine -  Portland Ovations brings back the Handel and Haydn Society to Hannaford Hall at USM Portland for an afternoon concert inspired by Felix Mendelssohn's own music library on Saturday, April 5th at 3 pm.

Approaching its bicentennial in 2015, the Handel and Haydn Society is the oldest continuously performing arts organization in the United States. Founded in Boston in 1815, the Handel and Haydn Society is internationally recognized for its revelatory style of using the instruments and techniques of the composer's time. The mission of the Society is to perform Baroque and Classical music at the highest levels and share that music with a large and diverse audience. With an esteemed tradition of innovation and excellence, which began in the 19th century with the American premieres of Handel's Messiah (1818), the Handel and Haydn Society over the last 20 years have given important historical performances of core repertoire and introduced innovative programs to great acclaim. They also won a Grammy award in 2002 for their recording of Sir John Tavener's Lamentations and Praises, co-commissioned with Chanticleer.

Handel and Haydn Society's Portland Ovations concert features electrifying concertmaster Aisslinn Nosky who leads her fellow string players in a chamber program of baroque and classical works by George Fredric Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, J.S. Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Felix Mendelssohn.

Ovations Offstage offers a pre-performance lecture, "Mendelssohn's Library" at 2 pm in Hannaford Hall with Mary Hunter, Professor of Music at Bowdoin College who will discuss Mendelssohn's contributions to the formation of the classical music canon.

Tickets for the Handel and Haydn Society are $36 for Ovations' Members, $40 for the general public and a limited amount of $10 student tickets are also available. The Handel and Haydn Society's performance is graciously sponsored by the Maine Mall and supported by the New England Foundation for the Arts and the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust. To purchase tickets visit www.portlandovations.org, contact PortTIX at 207-842-0800 or visit the box office window at Merrill Auditorium.

For high-resolution photography of the Handel and Haydn Society please visit the 'press' link at the bottom of the Portland Ovations homepage at www.portlandovations.org.