The University of Mary Washington Philharmonic will host its annual Holiday Pops Concert, “Home for the Holidays,” on Thursday, Dec. 4 and Friday, Dec. 5.
Both concerts will take place at 7:30 p.m. in Dodd Auditorium, located in George Washington Hall on the university’s Fredericksburg campus. Tickets are $10 per person, and admission is free to children under eight years old.
Show highlights include a live performance of “Frozen” and the original John Williams score to the film “Home Alone.” Mary Katherine Greenlaw, mayor of Fredericksburg, will narrate a stirring rendition of “Yes, Virginia There is a Santa Claus.” Finally, a special troupe of Highland dancers from Baffa Academy of Irish Dance in Stafford and Richmond will perform two numbers from Celtic Woman.
The orchestra is welcoming back UMW faculty baritone In Dal Choi, who will sing “Ave Maria” and “O Holy Night.” Before joining the UMW faculty, Choi was a music director of the James Madison University Chorus.
Past holiday concerts have featured some of the Philharmonic’s best efforts including last year’s Beethoven’s Ninth, a Polar Express segment in 2012 that actually had a train rolling through the auditorium, and “A Fiddler’s Holiday” in 2011 that became a national PBS pledge show.
On Wednesday, Dec. 3, the Philharmonic’s annual Fiddlestix Instrument Petting Zoo will take place at 6 p.m. in Dodd Auditorium. Featuring the theme of Disney’s “Frozen,” the program will provide the opportunity to meet characters Elsa and Olaf in person and hear the instruments of the orchestra. The event will conclude with an indoor snowball fight! No reservation is required.
For more information or to purchase tickets for the Holiday Pops Concert, call (540) 654-1324 or visit philharmonic.umw.edu.
