December 2015
Performance Highlight
Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents:
American Ballet Theatre: The Nutcracker (West Coast Premiere of
New Production)
December 10 – 20, 2015 | Tuesday – Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1
and 6:30 p.m. (Please note opening night on Thursday, December 10)
Segerstrom Hall. Tickets start at $29.
www.scfta.org
Kevin McKenzie, Artistic Director
Choreography by Alexei Ratmansky
Music by Peter Tchaikovsky
Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Ballet Theatre have been partners in creating and
presenting important dance events, world famous artists and spectacular productions since 1986 during
the Center’s inaugural International Dance Season. That first production was The Nutcracker – so it is
fitting in the Center’s 30th Season to celebrate its dance history, artistic relationship with ABT and the
holidays with the Company’s latest production of The Nutcracker, created by Artist in Residence Alexei
Ratmansky. Adding to the occasion: students from the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie
School at the Center that opens in September 2015 will appear in this beloved work. A cast of more than
100 performers accompany young Clara on a dreamlike journey amid colorful, larger-than-life scenery,
magical toy soldiers, mischievous mice, sparkling snowflakes, and a glittering Christmas tree!
Calendar of Events
Pacific Symphony presents:
Conrad Tao & Beethoven’s “Eroica”
December 3 – 5, 2015 | Thursday – Saturday at 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $25.
www.pacificsymphony.org
Carl St.Clair, conductor
Conrad Tao, piano
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
December 2015
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Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”
Hailed by critics as an “exciting prodigy” and “breathtaking,” 20-year-old Conrad Tao has become a
Pacific Symphony audience favorite. His performance of Prokofiev’s masterpiece is sure to elicit the
same exuberant reaction! Then, Beethoven’s popular symphony - filled with drama, death, resistance,
strife and ultimate rebirth!
Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents:
Diana Krall: Wallflower World Tour
December 5, 2015 | Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Segerstrom Hall. Tickets start at $59.
www.scfta.org
By any standard this five-time Grammy® winning jazz pianist and vocalist is one of the most
accomplished and distinctive musicians in the world today. Respected far and wide as a wildly successful
recording and performing artist, Krall remains a true musical force. On Wallflower, Krall’s stunning and
surprising new album for Verve Records, this world-class player has consciously chosen to hand over a
little control to sixteen-time Grammy winning producer David Foster in order, once again, to do something
unexpected. On the new album she has recorded a collection of songs from the Sixties to present day,
showcasing her considerable gifts as a vocalist in a bold and beautiful way. During her Wallflower World
Tour, Krall will perform material from her stunning new album and favorites from her vast catalogue of
recorded material.
Pacific Symphony presents:
Nutcracker for Kids
December 5, 2015 | Saturday at 10 and 11:30 a.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $25.
www.pacificsymphony.org
Alejandro Gutiérrez, conductor
Festival Ballet Theatre
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker
Visions of sugarplums will dance in your head after seeing Tchaikovsky's delightful Christmas ballet —
performed in a condensed 45-minute version created just for kids. This seasonal favorite finishes with a
grand finale holiday sing-along and is sure to sell out!
Pacific Symphony presents:
Handel’s Glorious Messiah
December 6, 2015 | Sunday at 3 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $25.
www.pacificsymphony.org
Robert Moody, conductor
Kathryn Mueller, soprano
David Drudgen, counter-tenor
David Blalock, tenor
Troy Cook, baritone
Pacific Chorale - John Alexander, artistic director
Handel: Messiah
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
December 2015
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An event of joy, reflection and renewal: Thrill to blazing trumpets, thundering timpani and the electrifying,
uplifting “Hallelujah!” chorus.
Vanguard University’s 2015 Christmas Fantasia
December 8, 2015 | Tuesday at 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $25.
www.scfta.org
Kick off your holiday season in style! You are invited to experience Christmas Fantasia and enjoy the best
the season has to offer. Enjoy favorite carols and breathtaking masterpieces performed by Vanguard
University's 200-member choirs and orchestra in the elegance and acoustical perfection of two stunning
venues. Awe-inspiring performances of carols and holiday favorites make this night unforgettable.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents:
American Ballet Theatre: The Nutcracker (West Coast Premiere of
New Production)
December 10 – 20, 2015 | Tuesday – Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1
and 6:30 p.m. (Please note opening night on Thursday, December 10)
Segerstrom Hall. Tickets start at $29.
www.scfta.org
Kevin McKenzie, Artistic Director
Choreography by Alexei Ratmansky
Music by Peter Tchaikovsky
Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Ballet Theatre have been partners in creating and
presenting important dance events, world famous artists and spectacular productions since 1986 during
the Center’s inaugural International Dance Season. That first production was The Nutcracker – so it is
fitting in the Center’s 30th Season to celebrate its dance history, artistic relationship with ABT and the
holidays with the Company’s latest production of The Nutcracker, created by Artist in Residence Alexei
Ratmansky. Adding to the occasion: students from the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie
School at the Center that opens in September 2015 will appear in this beloved work. A cast of more than
100 performers accompany young Clara on a dreamlike journey amid colorful, larger-than-life scenery,
magical toy soldiers, mischievous mice, sparkling snowflakes, and a glittering Christmas tree!
Millennial Choirs & Orchestras Rejoice
December 11, 2015 | Friday at 5 and 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $18.
www.scfta.org
Orange County Millennial Choirs & Orchestras rejoices in the birth of Jesus Christ this Christmas season.
The breathtaking Youth Choirs. The majestic Grand Chorus. The elegant Symphony Orchestra. A
Christmas concert unlike anything you have ever experienced. Millennial Choirs & Orchestras (MCO) is a
performing force of over 3,000 participants, and growing. With locations in California, Arizona, Utah,
Texas, and Idaho, MCO has become the largest organization of its kind in the world, offering superb
music training and professional performance opportunities to musicians of all ages and abilities.
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
December 2015
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Philharmonic Society of Orange County presents:
Peter and the Wolf
December 12, 2015 | Saturday at 3 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $15.
www.philharmonicsociety.org
This concert will be performed without an intermission. Total run time: 1 hour.
Orange County Youth Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Alfred Wachs, music director and conductor
Orange County School of the Arts Symphony Orchestra
Christopher Russell, conductor
TBA, narrator
Shostakovich: Festive Overture in A major, Op. 96
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf, Op. 67
Tchaikovsky: Selections from The Nutcracker
Celebrate the holidays as a family at the Philharmonic Society with some of music’s most beloved
classics. Prokofiev’s delectable score uses the instruments of the orchestra to tell the story of young
Peter and his adventures in the forest in Peter and the Wolf, and Tchaikovsky conjures up an enchanted
land of magic and sweets in his music from The Nutcracker.
Daniel Alfred Wachs and Christopher Russell conduct the combined forces of the Orange County Youth
Symphony Orchestra and the Orange County School of the Arts Symphony, who bring their immense
talent and youthful enthusiasm to a thrilling program for the whole family to share. Pre-concert activities,
crafts, demonstrations and more in the lobby on hour prior to performance.
Philharmonic Society of Orange County presents:
Los Angeles Philharmonic
December 13, 2015 | Sunday at 3 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $45.
www.philharmonicsociety.org
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Mirga Gražinyte-Tyla, conductor
Hilary Hahn, violin
Weinberg: Suite No. 4 from The Golden Key, Op. 55d
Vieuxtemps: Violin Concerto No. 4 in D minor, Op. 31
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
The Los Angeles Philharmonic appears in its annual visit to Orange County conducted by the young
Lithuanian conductor Mirga Gražinyte-Tyla, a Dudamel Fellow with the orchestra in the 2012-13 season
and now its Assistant Conductor.
Featuring two-time Grammy-winning American violinist Hilary Hahn in Vieuxtemps’ Violin Concerto No. 4,
the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s afternoon program also includes Weinberg’s Suite No. 4 from The
Golden Key, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4. Pre-concert lecture by Christopher Russell at 2 p.m.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents:
Mark O’Connor – An Appalachian Christmas
December 15, 2015 | Tuesday at 8:00 p.m.
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
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Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $29.
www.scfta.org
The music of An Appalachian Christmas mixes holiday arrangements, both instrumental and vocal, in
bluegrass and other American musical genres. Concertgoers will be treated to fresh takes on traditional
Christmas carols with a few original compositions as well. O’Connor’s renditions are playful and joyous,
but can be strikingly earnest too. O’Connor’s An Appalachian Christmas album (2011) reached the #1
ranking on Billboard’s Bluegrass Album charts and has been in the top five each year since. Hailed by
critics from the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and Los Angeles Times as a top 10 album of
the holiday season, it has become a perennial classic Christmas recording.
Pacific Symphony presents:
A Cirque Christmas
December 18 – 19, 2015 | Friday & Saturday at 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $35.
www.pacificsymphony.org
Richard Kaufman, conductor
Cirque de la Symphonie
A delightful Christmas concert for the whole family: Holiday tunes add a special sparkle to this jawdropping fusion of fliers, acrobats, contortionists, dancers, jugglers and strongmen who perform their
cirque acts while Pacific Symphony provides a joyous soundtrack perfect for the most wonderful time of
the year.
Pacific Chorale presents:
Tis the Season!
December 20 & 21, 2015 | Sunday at 5:30 p.m. and Monday at 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $29
www.pacificchorale.org
Pacific Chorale
Members of Pacific Symphony
Southern California Children's Concert Chorus
Jung-A Lee, organist
Robert Istad, conducting
Celebrate the spirit of the season with song and cheer, as Pacific Chorale Artistic Director Designate
Robert Istad takes the podium to conduct the holiday festivities! Resounding brass instruments, angelic
children’s voices, and of course, the splendid singers of Pacific Chorale bring seasonal classics and
popular favorites to life in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall for one of Orange County’s
best-loved Christmas traditions.
Pacific Symphony presents:
Holiday Organ Spectacular
December 22, 2015 | Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $15.
www.pacificsymphony.org
Todd Wilson, organ
Members of Pacific Symphony
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
December 2015
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Celebrate the season with the king of instruments! Enjoy a magnitude of musical splendors with a worldclass organist and a delightful mix of sacred and holiday music. Favorite Christmas carols share the bill
with traditional organ works that highlight the $3.1 million organ.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents:
Fiesta Navidad with Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano
December 23, 2015 | Wednesday at 8 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $29.
www.scfta.org
Come celebrate the holidays mariachi style with Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano! Segerstrom
Center for the Arts welcomes back the world renowned, Grammy-winning ensemble for a celebratory
evening of Mexican and American holiday songs. Fiesta Navidad combines traditional mariachi and
holiday favorites for a joyous, colorful, and entertaining celebration of the holiday season. The program
features mariachi music as well as with cherished holiday songs including “Feliz Navidad” and “Noche de
Paz.” Fun for young and old alike!
Straight No Chaser The New Old Fashioned Tour
December 28, 2015 | Monday at 7:30 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets start at $39.50.
www.scfta.org
The New Old Fashioned Tour comes to town on the heels of the release of their new album The New Old
Fashioned (in stores October 27th), their fifth album release through Atlantic Records. The album
features an eclectic array of songs that explore multiple influential musical eras highlighted by signature
and singularly unique medleys. Straight No Chaser is the real deal, the captivating sound of ten
unadulterated human voices coming together to make extraordinary music that is moving people in a
fundamental sense...and with a sense of humor. On the road, Straight No Chaser has built a reputation
as an unforgettable live act.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts is an acclaimed arts institution as well as a beautiful multi-disciplinary
cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence on all of its stages, offering unsurpassed
experiences, and to engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of
live performance and a diverse array of inspiring programs.
Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County’s
largest non-profit arts organization. In addition to its six performance venues, Segerstrom Center is also
home to the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School, where students ages 3 – 14 are taught
by acclaimed teachers utilizing the renowned ABT National Training Curriculum in studios utilized by the
world’s greatest dancers and choreographers.
The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international
ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, intimate performances of jazz and cabaret,
contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, familyfriendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on
the plaza and many other special events.
The Center’s education programs are designed to inspire young people through the arts and reach
hundreds of thousands of students each year. In addition to the presenting and producing institution
Segerstrom Center for the Arts, the 14-acre campus also embraces the facilities of two independently
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org
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acclaimed organizations: Tony Award®-winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the
future home of the Orange County Museum of Art.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region’s major
performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and
the Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons at
Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
Free Public Tours
Segerstrom Center offers tours of Southern California's award-winning home for the performing arts and
its expanded facilities. The tours take visitors through the three venues, making this a perfect outing for
groups or anyone who wants to know more about the performing arts. The tour is conducted by Center
Docents. Public tours are conducted Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Private group tours are
by reservation only.
Please note: Private and public tours of all Segerstrom Center halls are now available.
Please call (714) 556-2122, ext. 4246 for more information on either the private or the public tours.
For information about individual programs and ticket prices, call:
Segerstrom Center for the Arts – (714) 556-2787
Pacific Chorale – (714) 662-2345
The Philharmonic Society of Orange County – (949) 553-2422 Pacific Symphony – (714) 755-5799
All programs, artists and dates are subject to change.
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600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
T (714) 556-2121
F (714) 556-8984
SCFTA.org