CONTACT: Lisa Lacher, (515) 271-3119, lisa.lacher@drake.edu
Drake University music students are taking their show on the road, performing songs from “The Pirates of Penzance” from noon to 12:30 p.m. Friday, April 7, in the dining room of the Polk County Senior Center at 2008 Forest Ave. in Des Moines.
The students also have performed excerpts from the popular operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan for 80 residents of Wesley Retirement Community.
“The students were fabulous. Our residents could not be happier,” said Susan Skinner, manager of special programs at Wesley Retirement Community. The performance was part of an ongoing series sponsored by Friends of Drake Arts, in which music students perform at various Des Moines retirement communities.
Drake’s production of “The Pirates of Penzance” features a cast of 34 and an orchestra made up of Drake students, alumni and professional musicians under the direction of Tom Harvey. Ann K. Cravero, Drake assistant professor of music, directs the operetta.
Performances start at 8 p.m. April 21 and 22 in the Performing Arts Hall in the Harmon Fine Arts Center, 25th Street and Carpenter Avenue. Tickets, which are $12 for adults, $6 for students and senior citizens, are available at the Drake Fine Arts Box Office at (515) 271-3841.
On Friday, April 21, Friends of Drake Arts will sponsor a pre-theater dinner and TalkAbout for “The Pirates of Penzance.” Following the 6 p.m. dinner in Levitt Hall in Old Main, Cravero will discuss the operetta and offer insights into how the production came together. Cost for dinner, TalkAbout and operetta is $20. For reservations, call (515) 271-3147 or send an e-mail message to alumni.rsvp@drake.edu.
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