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CLASSICAL NOTES
The Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival,
founded and sponsored by local religious organiza-
tions Temple Beth El, Kirk in the Hills and St.
Hugo of the Hills, celebrates 10 successful years
with a 4 p.m. Sunday, March 2, concert at Temple
Beth El in Bloomfield Township. Musica in
Harmonium will feature both secular and sacred
music of the three denominations as performed by
the musical leadership of each congregation: Cantor
David Montefiore of Temple Beth El, Glenn Miller
of Kirk in the Hills and James Gabriel and David
Enos of St. Hugo of the Hills, with combined
choirs and a brass sextet from Detroit Chamber
Winds and Strings, the festival's fourth sponsoring
institution. $10, available at the door; for advance
tickets, call (248) 559-2097.
Violinist Jannina Barefield, with pianist Angelina
Pashmakova, performs a classical concert 3 p.m.
Sunday, March 2, at Detroit's Harlequin Café. $10.
Reservations: (313) 331-0922.
The Vienna-based Alban Berg Quartet is noted
for its broad repertoire, ranging from classical to
avant-garde compositions. In a University Musical
Society concert 8 p.m. Monday, March 8, at
Rackham Auditorium in Ann Arbor, the group will
play Schnittke's String Quartet No 4 (1989) and
Beethoven's Quartet in c-sharp minor (1826). $16-
$32. (734) 764-2538.
Twenty-year-old Chinese pianist Lang Lang
makes his Detroit Symphony Orchestra debut with
a performance of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No.
1, conducted by Roberto Abbado, 1:30 and 8 p.m.
Friday, 8:30 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday,
March 7-9, at Orchestra Hall. Berio's Requies,
Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1 and Mussorgsky's
Overture to Khovanshchina round out the program.
$15-$56. (313) 576-5111.
Macomb Center for the Performing
Arts hosts the London City Opera in a
performance of Puccini's Madame
Butterfly 8 p.m. Friday, March 7. $36-
$45. (586) 286-2222. -
are uniting to produce staged readings of
Lysistrata, Aristophanes' classic anti-war
comedy, in which women from opposing
states unite to end a war by refusing to
sleep with their husbands until the men
agree to lay down their swords. A reading
at Detroit's Bonstelle Theatre begins 7:30
p.m., featuring Henrietta Hermelin,
The Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor
Shirley Benyas and others, followed by a
hosts An Evening with Martin Sexton,
panel discussion of community leaders,
GAIL ZIMMERMAN
the singer/songwriter/guitarist who
including Rudy Simons and Fern Katz;
Arts & Entertainment
recently released Live Wide Open, his first
$5 donation/benefits Freedom House in
Editor
live recording, Saturday, March 1. Doors
Detroit, a sanctuary for political refugees.
at 6:30 p.m. $17.75. (248) 645-6666.
Another reading begins 8 p.m. at
Leon Russell played on, arranged, wrote and pro-
Detroit's Furniture Factory, 4126 Third Street; $5
duced some of rock 'n' roll's most successful records;
donation/benefits MADRE, a nonprofit interna-
he performs at Ferndale's Magic Bag Saturday,
tional women's human rights organization that
March 1, doors at 8 p.m., $20. Also at the Magic
works in conflict areas worldwide. The work will be
Bag, Ireland's hottest act, the Saw Doctors - with
read in at least 391 communities in 33 countries.
their "I Useta Lover" that country's best-selling sin-
For more information, go to www.lysistratapro-
gle of all time - take the stage Sunday, March 2,
ject.corn.
doors at 8 p.m., $15. (248) 544-3030.
Eve Ensler's Vagina Monologues, the provocative
Grammy-winning Coldplay, with frontman and
play that raises awareness and funding to stop vio-
Gwyneth Paltrow boyfriend Chris Martin, performs
lence against women and girls as it gives voice to a
in a sold-out concert at Detroit's Fox Theatre 7:30
chorus of diverse human voices, takes the stage at
Monday, March 3. $30-$35. (248) 645-6666.
the Detroit Opera House 8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 5
In their fourth decade on stage, The Irish Rovers
and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday,
visit Macomb Center for the _Performing Arts 7:30
March 4-9. This production stars former Supreme
p.m. Thursday, March 6. $27-$35. (586) 286-2222.
Mary Wilson and actresses Starla Benford and Amy
Contemporary folk artist Tom Rush returns to
J. Carle. $27.50-$40. (248) 645-6666.
The Ark in Ann Arbor 8 p.m. Friday, March 7. $20.
Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin's classic
(734) 761-1451.
musical about an orphan who wins the hearts of all
she meets, Annie returns to Detroit 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday-Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2
ON THE STAGE
p.m. Sunday, March 4-9, at Detroit's Fox Theatre.
Grease is still the word and visits Macomb Center
$22-$60. (248) 433-1515.
Jewish Ensemble Theatre's production of Denial,
for the Performing Arts 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28, and
previewed in last week's Jewish News and focusing
2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, March 1. $40-$45. (586)
286-2222.
on the angst of defending First Amendment rights
On Monday, March 3, as part of the Lysistrata
when right-wing extremists expound volatile propa-
Project, a global initiative in opposition to a possible
ganda including a denial of the Holocaust, will fea- .
war on Iraq, dozens of Detroit-area theater artists
ture the following Thursday evening talkbacks fol-
Pop/RocK/JAzz/FoLK
THE RELUCTANT DRAGON
Fred Buchalter, who performs with
the Michigan Opera Theatre and has
been various on-air characters for
Dick Purtan's radio program, will be
the narrator of a family puppet and
music show scheduled for
Congregation Beth Ahm.
The Reluctant Dragon, a tale about
a young boy who befriends a day-
dreaming dragon, will be presented
1:30 p.m. Sunday, March 2, by the
Rackham Symphony Choir with the
help of some life-size puppets from
Detroit's PuppetArt.
After the presentation, the Dubov
Youth Klezmer Band will entertain.
"I like being part of the theatrical seg-
.
2/28
2003
62
ment of this production, which is a
good story about good people," says
. Buchalter, who began his interest in per-
forming as part of the choir at
Congregation Beth Abraham in Detroit.
"I've sung with Rackham before, but
I'm not doing any singing this time."
The Reluctant Dragon, with text by
Kenneth Grahame and music by
John Rutter, is based on a story pub-
lished in 1898 by the author of The
Wind in the Willows. Rutter set the
story to music in 1983.
The tale follows villagers who dis-
cover the dragon, become frightened
and plan its demise. Through- a
friendship and intervention, the drag-
on is saved.
Suzanne Mallare Acton, Rackham's
artistic and musical director, conducts
the dragon theater piece. Among the
Jewish members of the choir, the old-
est and largest choral organization in
Detroit, are Ray Litt, Avital Granot,
Helen Rowin and Ruth Zaromp.
Funded by the Walter Litt Family
Jewish Music Fund, patrons are asked
only for goodwill offerings to benefit
the One Family Fund for victims of
terrorism in Israel.
"This may be a classic story," says
Buchalter, who worked in radio for
17 years, "but it's not dated."
- Suzanne Chessler
FYI:
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Notice must be received at
least three weeks before the scheduled event. Photos are appreciated but cannot be returned. All events and dates listed in the Out & About column are subject to change.