AL Dancers to share the stage with Chicago Philharmonic

The press conference will be immediately followed by performances by the AL Dancers and the renowned pianist Kuang-Hao Huang. 

During the conference Polish Consul General Paulina Kapuścińska and Executive Director of the Chicago Philharmonic Donna Milanovich will address the media and the audience. The Agnieszka Laska Dancers and pianist Kuang-Hao Huang will then take center stage to give a brief modern performance of a scene from Stravinsky’s landmark ballet The Rite of Spring.  This year marks the 100th anniversary of The Rite of Spring, a performance which caused an uproar when it was first performed in 1913 changing the history of music forever. 

This event is a preview of the Chicago Philharmonic’s upcoming concert Twilight of the Romantics at Pick-Staiger Hall on September 29 at 7 p.m.  Artistic Director Scott Speck will lead the Chicago Philharmonic through the Romantic era beginning with Strauss’ thrilling Don Juan.  Soloist Kuang-Hao Huang will perform the rarely heard, one-movement Piano Concerto No. 3 of Pyotr Ilyrich Tchaikovsky.  The orchestra will then celebrate the centennial of Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring.   As a special treat for the audience, the Agnieszka Laska Dancers will pay tribute to the original choreography with a performance that includes their interpretation of selected scenes from the The Rite of Spring.   

As a result of the cooperation between the Polish Consulate General in Chicago and the Chicago Philharmonic, a total of 20 tickets (or 10 tickets for pairs) to the September 29th performance will be offered to the first twenty people who respond to this communiqué to pkremer@bigsplashpr.com. 

The Chicago Philharmonic concert Twilight of the Romantics featuring the Agnieszka Laska Dancers and Kuang-Hao Huang takes place at Pick Staiger Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston at 7 p.m. on Sunday, September 29.  For tickets, visit www.chicagophilharmonic.org or contact the ticket hotline at 866.811.4111.  

Media representatives are requested to send their accreditation requests to konrad.zielinski@msz.gov.pl by 4:30 PM on Wednesday, September 25, 2013. The press conference will be held at 1530 N. Lake Shore Drive.

The choreographer Agnieszka Laska is a native of Poland.  Her group The Agnieszka Laska Dancers are a modern dance troupe from Oregon.  Agnieszka Laska danced for over 25 years with Balet Form Nowoczesnych AGH, a top Polish modern dance company, touring Europe and North America.  She has also choreographed extensively for leading Polish theatre companies in award-winning productions across Europe and at festivals in Edinburgh and Avignon.  Pianist Kuang-Hao Huang has performed throughout the United States as well as in Europe and Asia.

About the Chicago Philharmonic

The Chicago Philharmonic Society is a musician-governed and driven Chicago-based not-for-profit organization originally established in 1988 by the principals of the Lyric Opera Orchestra.   Over the years, the core group of Lyric players has expanded to become a community of over 200 professional musicians, which form the artistic strength of the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra.   Previous conductors have included Zubin Mehta, Sir Andrew Davis, Itzhak Perlman, Jesus Lopez-Cobos, Erich Kunzel, and former Music Director Larry Rachleff.   Throughout the years, the Orchestra has also performed at Ravinia as the Festival Orchestra under the baton of James Conlon and Christoph Eschenbach, among others.