The Cleveland Orchestra’s Family Concert Series returns to Severance Music Center
Under 18s Free tickets offered for all Family Concerts
CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Orchestra’s 2022 Family Concert Series returns to the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Concert Hall at Severance, after a hiatus during the 2020-21 season due to the pandemic. A highlight of The Cleveland Orchestra’s educational offerings for young people every year, the Family Concert series — now in its 52nd year — is a tradition for many Northeast Ohio families, creating lasting musical memories.
“We’re thrilled that Family Concerts are back at Severance Music Center,” said Joan Katz Napoli, The Cleveland Orchestra’s Vice President of Education & Community Engagement Programs. “ It’s so exciting to see families fill the hall, introducing children to the Orchestra and its music, experiencing unique and engaging Cleveland Orchestra concerts together, and making lifelong musical memories! Children are naturally drawn to music, and we want to make sure all children have the opportunity to access and experience The Cleveland Orchestra.
Tickets are now available in pre-sale to past Family Concert subscribers. Starting on Monday, December 13, all individual tickets will be on sale. Purchases can be made by visiting the Severance Music Center Ticket Office, clevelandorchestra.com, emailing [email protected], or by calling 216-231-1111 or 800-686-1141. The Orchestra’s popular Under 18s Free ticket program is available for all Family Concerts (see below for more information.)
2022 Family Concert Series
On Sunday, March 13, 2022 at 3:00 p.m., The Cleveland Orchestra will present The Listener, featuring the hilarious Magic Circle Mime Co. (back by popular demand!). This concert introduces young people to the orchestra and explores the important relationship between the audience’s role as a listener and the musicians’ performance. In the dramatic storyline, the conductor has prepared a concert program but is interrupted by the unexpected participation of two “audience members” played by the mimes. This laugh-out-loud, fun performance includes the music of Britten, Bernstein, John Williams, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, and more!
In The Chevalier on Saturday, May 7, 2022 at 11:00 a.m., The Cleveland Orchestra brings the music of composer Joseph Bologne to life. This concert theater event, written and directed by Bill Barclay, artistic director of Concert Theatre Works, tells his story. The son of a slave and French aristocrat, music teacher to Marie Antoinette, and a contemporary of Mozart, Bologne’s musical genius was rarely acknowledged due to his race. In addition to four actors who bring The Chevalier’s story to life, The Cleveland Orchestra is joined by a violin soloist Brendon Elliott from the Sphinx Organization’s roster of Black and Latinx musicians.
Every Cleveland Orchestra Family Concert features engaging pre-concert activities, including our Instrument Discovery zone, which offers hands-on opportunities for children to try playing various orchestral instruments. The Instrument Discovery program and various other free pre-concert events begin one hour before each Orchestra performance.
The Family Concert series is supported by The Giant Eagle Foundation.
Under 18s Free
The Cleveland Orchestra’s Under 18s Free program offers free tickets (one per regular-priced adult paid admission) to young people 17 and under, for the Family Concert Series. Under 18s Free tickets are not available for box seating.
Under 18s Free is a program of The Cleveland Orchestra’s Center for Future Audiences. The Center, created with a lead endowment gift from the Maltz Family Foundation, was established to fund programs to foster new generations of audiences for Cleveland Orchestra concerts in Northeast Ohio. Under 18s Free continues to develop young audiences by making Orchestra concerts affordable for families, offering free tickets to young people, 17 and under, for select Severance Hall performances. For more information on Under 18s Free and other Center for Future Audiences ticketing programs, please visit: clevelandorchestra.com/attend/concerts-for-families/under-18s-free/.
Ticket and Performance Parking Information
Tickets start at $15 for adults, with one child under 18 free for each adult ticket purchased. Additional child tickets start at $10. From December 8-12, a special pre-sale and discount will be offered to past Family Concert subscribers. All tickets are on sale starting December 13.
For more information about the Family Concert Series, call the Cleveland Orchestra Ticket Office at 216-231-1111 or 800-686-1141, or visit clevelandorchestra.com/attend/concerts-for-families/.
For information about parking for Severance Music Center concerts, click here.
All programs, artists, and prices are subject to change.
Severance Music Center Health & Safety Policy
The Cleveland Orchestra is committed to creating a safe and comfortable environment for its musicians, guests, audiences, staff, and volunteers. Everyone coming to Severance Music Center for concerts and events will be required to wear a mask. Guests will also be required to show proof of full Covid-19 vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result.
Audience members ages 3 and older who cannot be vaccinated may provide proof of a negative test result received from a completed lab-certified antigen COVID-19 test within 24 hours prior to entering Severance, or a negative test result received from a completed PCR COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior to entering Severance.
For the most up to date information, please visit: clevelandorchestra.com/attend/health-safety/
Anyone feeling ill or experiencing symptoms related to a cold or infectious disease is asked to stay home.
To ensure our audiences’ experience with The Cleveland Orchestra is as safe as possible, we continue to consult with the Cleveland Clinic and local public health authorities for health and safety guidelines. These include, but are not limited to, meeting HV/AC air filtration and circulation system requirements, enhanced cleaning procedures, and providing hand sanitizer through the venue. As always, the safety of our audiences, musicians, staff, and volunteers remains our top priority.
Education and Community Engagement
The Cleveland Orchestra’s commitment to education and community service was central to the establishment of the Orchestra in 1918, and has never been more important. Over the past hundred years, The Cleveland Orchestra has introduced more than four million young people to symphonic music through live concert experiences. Today, with the support of many generous individual, foundation, corporate, and governmental funding partners, the Orchestra’s education and community programs in recent years have reached more than 100,000 young people and adults annually, helping to foster a lifelong relationship with music. Now in his 20th season, Music Director Franz Welser-Mӧst is leading the Orchestra with a renewed commitment to music education and community engagement based on his belief that every child’s life should include music. He continues to emphasize that the arts are critical to a well-rounded education and that learning is a lifelong pursuit and journey.
As we look to the future, we strive to be Cleveland’s Orchestra, engaging our diverse citizenry and building community through music, removing barriers to participation, advocating for and helping to facilitate equitable access to comprehensive music education in schools, nurturing the next generation of musicians and audience members, and harnessing the life-changing power of music to make the world a better place through new initiatives developed for even greater impact. For more information, please visit these links: Education, Community, and Learning Resources.
Calendar Listings
2022 Family Concert Series
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Concert Hall at Severance
Sunday, March 13, 2022, at 3:00 p.m.
THE LISTENER
The Cleveland Orchestra
Vinay Parameswaran, conductor
Magic Circle Mime Co., special guests
The Listener, featuring the hilarious Magic Circle Mime Co. (back by popular demand!) introduces young people to the orchestra and explores the important relationship between the audience’s role as listener and the musicians’ performance. In the dramatic storyline, the conductor has prepared a concert program but is interrupted by the unexpected participation of two “audience members” (the mimes). Join us for 50 minutes of music, drama and laugh-out-loud fun as we learn about the orchestra, its music, and the art of listening.
Program includes:
BRITTEN Excerpts from Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra
BERNSTEIN Overture from Candide
SHOSTAKOVICH Polka from The Golden Age
WILLIAMS Harry’s Wondrous World from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
TCHAIKOVSKY “Dance of the Swans” from Swan Lake
BIZET “Les Toreadors” from Carmen
MOZART Finale from Symphony No. 39
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Concert Hall at Severance
Saturday, May 7, 2022, at 11:00 a.m.
THE CHEVALIER
The Cleveland Orchestra
Vinay Parameswaran, conductor
Brendon Elliott, violin
Written and directed by Bill Barclay, artistic director of Concert Theatre Work
Son of a slave and French aristocrat, Joseph Bologne has reached the top of his game – music teacher to Marie Antoinette and Europe’s fencer to beat. But when a bedridden Mozart is carried into his kitchen, he attracts the attention of a secret police force returning people of color to slavery. As Paris hurtles toward Revolution, Bologne is forced to choose between his creative freedom and the crusade for equality. Can he sacrifice his bow for his sword?
This is the true story of three immigrants – Marie Antoinette, Mozart, and the Chevalier – conflating the French Revolution with the Resistance against authoritarianism unfolding today. Four actors and a violin soloist join The Cleveland Orchestra to tell Bologne’s incredible story alongside his finest works for orchestra.
All music by Joseph Bologne.
Program includes:
Symphony No.2 in D major, Op.11
Violin Concerto Op.3, No.1 in D major — II. Adagio
Symphony in G major, Op.11 No.1 — III. Allegro assai Violin Sonata No.2 in A major
String Quartet No.4 in C minor — I. Allegro moderato
L’amant anonyme: Ballet No.1
Violin Concerto in A major, Op.5, No.2 —- I. Allegro moderato
Symphony Concertante in G major, Op.13 — II. Rondeau & cadenza
Violin Concerto No.9 in G major, Op.8 — III. Rondeau
Instrument Discovery and other free pre-concert activities begin one hour before each Family Concert Series performance.
All artists and programs subject to change