The Hylton Center's Matinee Idylls series is the perfect way to take in an intimate chamber music performance that feels like a concert in your own living room! With the return of our catered lunch option, what’s not to love about this charming afternoon filled with good food and live music? From grand opera to steelpan rhythms, Matinee Idylls presents a fantastic “menu” of engaging performances in the Hylton Center’s cozy Gregory Family Theater followed by a coffee and dessert reception with the artists.
Award-winning cellist Alicia Ward (10/5) starts the 2022-2023 Matinee Idylls season with an extensive repertoire of classical music. Making her orchestral debut as a featured soloist at the age of 12, Ward has since performed throughout the United States and abroad in famed concert halls including Strathmore, Carnegie Hall, Davies Symphony Hall, and the Kennedy Center. Ward now serves as co-director of the Young People’s String Program at the Peabody Institute of Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins University.
Returning in November is Virginia Opera’s A Taste of Opera (11/9), featuring their Herndon Foundation Emerging Artists. In opera companies around the country, young artists sing supporting roles in the companies’ season. These emerging artists have impressive resumes with multiple performance degrees and apprenticeships. Every year, Virginia Opera receives over 600 applicants for this prestigious program. Selected singers receive regular coaching with Virginia Opera’s artistic staff, including Artistic Director Adam Turner, as well as guest conductors and mainstage artists during their yearlong residency. Alumni of the program have gone on to sing with reputable companies such as The Metropolitan Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, and San Francisco Opera. Current biographies of these emerging artists can be found on the Virginia Opera website.
"Our Herndon Foundation Emerging Artists are some of the finest up-and-coming young singers in the nation, selected from over 600 who auditioned, and we’re certain our audiences will be as delighted by them as we are. The Taste of Opera audience may also have a special guest or two to look forward to!" - Virginia Opera
Sample this season’s rising opera stars in A Taste of Opera at the Hylton Center on November 9!
In spring 2023, Victor Provost (3/1), George Mason University adjunct professor in the Dewberry School of Music, presents a concert showcasing the warm, gorgeous sounds of the steelpan, an instrument at the heart of Caribbean music. The Washington City Paper named Provost “Jazz Percussionist of the Year” for six years in a row; and his most recent album, Bright Eyes, garnered critical acclaim. Violinist Leo Sushansky and harpist Michelle Lundy (4/12) close the Matinee Idylls 2022-2023 season with a magnificent string program comprising French composers Camille Saint-Saëns and Jules Massenet. Don’t miss these delightful afternoon concerts by distinguished musicians performing a variety of music, chamber style. Learn more.