If, on an average Sunday night, you most likely wouldn’t find yourself at the Boston Philharmonic, it’s time to reconsider. Boston’s orchestra is hosting a concert event that you likely haven’t experienced before.
The Rite of Spring Dance Party, presented by the Boston Philharmonic and in Partnership with Groupmuse and the Sheep Island Ensemble, Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” orchestral concert will be performed, but not in the buttoned-up style that one might associate with the Philharmonic. The concert is being considered a “New Directions” approach, and will be performed by both freelance players and students and led by James Blachly. The evening will benefit “Music for Food,” a musician-led initiative for local hunger relief.
What makes this Rite of Spring performance different, of course, is the dance party component. The audience is invited to come up to the stage, in close proximity, and dance to the “visceral and elemental work” as described by the event’s press release. The same announcement also guesses that this will be the first time Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” will be performed in such an interactive fashion. The Philharmonic believes that the concert will be an experience for both those familiar and unfamiliar with the concert.
If you like the idea of the Rite of Spring Dance Party, but can’t make it to Sunday evening’s performance, keep an ear out for more “New Directions” event from the Boston Philharmonic. The idea is to launch “an initiative that will explore innovative ways to engage people with the energy and power of live performance,” according to the release. In inviting the audience to participate in interactive dance during the concert, the Philharmonic is introducing a new way to experience their music, and hopes to expand their audience reach.
The concert will take place this Sunday, January 18 at 8 p.m. at the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology. Tickets are available at $15 for general admission, $5 for students, and $50 for VIP.
So if you’re looking for plans on a (hopefully) long weekend, consider the Boston Philharmonic. In the words of the Rite of Spring’s project manager, John Helyar: “After all, raging dance parties set to the music of Stravinsky don’t happen every day!”
Image via Boston Philharmonic
